Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Shanghai and Forbes

For one person, living is cheaper in Shanghai: $1,222 a month against $2,543 in Forbes, rent and utilities included – about $15,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Shanghai
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Shanghai Living Index
122

Cost of Living Index in Forbes
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Forbes Living Index

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Shanghai

🇨🇳 China

$1,222

/mo nomad

Forbes

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,543

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Shanghai and in Forbes

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Shanghai and in Forbes actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,222 in Shanghai versus $2,543 in Forbes.

Shanghai $1,222
Forbes $2,543

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,971 in Shanghai versus $3,751 in Forbes.

Shanghai $1,971
Forbes $3,751

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,720 in Shanghai versus $4,958 in Forbes.

Shanghai $2,720
Forbes $4,958

Living in Shanghai costs roughly 52% less than in Forbes, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Shanghai is 10% below, Forbes is 87% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.53 ¥30.16

$15.91 A$22.63

-71.53%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$30.16 ¥201

$94.9 A$135

-68.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.11 ¥34.09

$11.31 A$16.08

-54.82%

Cappuccino

$3.41 ¥22.74

$3.52 A$5.00

-3.12%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.58 ¥3.86

$2.99 A$4.25

-80.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.35 ¥2.36

$2.37 A$3.37

-85.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.23 ¥8.23

$6.98 A$9.92

-82.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.31 ¥15.40

$7.40 A$10.53

-68.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.88 ¥12.54

$1.69 A$2.41

11.24%

White Bread (500g)

$1.94 ¥12.90

$2.42 A$3.44

-19.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.98 ¥6.53

$2.14 A$3.04

-54.21%

Eggs

$1.70 ¥11.32

$5.00 A$7.11

-66.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.02 ¥113

$10.16 A$14.45

67.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.22 ¥21.45

$9.52 A$13.54

-66.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.93 ¥86.2

$13.72 A$19.50

-5.76%

Apples (1kg)

$2.15 ¥14.33

$3.78 A$5.37

-43.12%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 ¥11.50

$3.01 A$4.28

-42.52%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 ¥13.53

$3.55 A$5.05

-42.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.73 ¥11.56

$4.92 A$7.00

-64.84%

Potato (1kg)

$0.83 ¥5.52

$2.50 A$3.55

-66.80%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 ¥6.14

$2.55 A$3.63

-63.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.67 ¥4.49

$2.28 A$3.24

-70.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 ¥3.93

$1.45 A$2.06

-59.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.77 ¥25.14

$46.43 A$66.0

-91.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.03 ¥73.5

$12.36 A$17.58

-10.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 ¥6.01

$4.75 A$6.75

-81.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ¥10.69

$5.80 A$8.24

-72.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.57 ¥3.81

$2.66 A$3.78

-78.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.62 ¥197

$78.5 A$112

-62.25%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ¥14.27

$3.70 A$5.27

-42.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 ¥3.11

$1.72 A$2.45

-72.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.74 ¥58.3

$45.70 A$65.0

-80.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 ¥8.95

$1.25 A$1.78

7.20%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$19.3K ¥128.3K

$33.8K A$48.1K

-43.08%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$18.3K ¥121.8K

$28.1K A$40.0K

-35.05%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$58.9 ¥393

$195 A$277

-69.78%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$7.90 ¥52.6

$23.66 A$33.64

-66.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.60 ¥70.7

$53.4 A$75.9

-80.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.8 ¥432

$59.1 A$84.0

9.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.47 ¥116

$19.72 A$28.04

-11.41%

Cinema Ticket

$9.06 ¥60.4

$12.05 A$17.14

-24.81%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$1,587 ¥10.6K

$2,301 A$3,271

-31.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.2K ¥188.2K

$21.3K A$30.3K

32.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.6 ¥364

$80.6 A$115

-32.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.21 ¥248

$56.7 A$80.7

-34.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.6 ¥497

$117 A$166

-36.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 ¥708

$124 A$176

-14.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,026 ¥6,837

$1,558 A$2,215

-34.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$559 ¥3,728

$1,278 A$1,817

-56.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,618 ¥17.5K

$2,463 A$3,501

6.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,191 ¥7,939

$2,041 A$2,903

-41.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.4K ¥89.1K

$5,228 A$7,433

155.80%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,527 ¥43.5K

$5,146 A$7,317

26.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,712 ¥11.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.36

5.9

-43.05%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Shanghai: October 25, 2026

Last update for Forbes: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Shanghai

$559 45.8%

Forbes

$1.3K 50.3% 129% $719

Groceries & Markets

Shanghai

$237 19.4%

Forbes

$364 14.3% 53.8% $127

Clothing & Footwear

Shanghai

$123 10%

Forbes

$170 6.7% 38.6% $47

Eating Out

Shanghai

$107 8.8%

Forbes

$275 10.8% 157% $168

Sport & Entertainment

Shanghai

$83 6.8%

Forbes

$83 3.3% 0.3% $0.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Shanghai

$77 6.3%

Forbes

$272 10.7% 251% $195

Getting Around

Shanghai

$36 3%

Forbes

$101 4% 179% $65

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,026 in Shanghai and $1,558 in Forbes. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $30 in Shanghai vs $95 in Forbes for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $237 vs $364 per month, with Shanghai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Shanghai

🇦🇺 Forbes

🕒 Local time

23:38 11:38 PM

02:38 2:38 AM

3 h ahead of Shanghai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

24,870,895

8,481

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

1 AUD = 0.703 USD

1 AUD = 0.632 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 6.67 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.42 CNY (1 CNY = 0.135 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 AUD (1 AUD = 0.703 USD). 1 EUR = 1.58 AUD (1 AUD = 0.632 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

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Shanghai Forbes 7,700 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

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Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Shanghai vs Forbes: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Shanghai and Forbes differ by about 108% in total monthly costs ($1,222 vs $2,543 including rent). Shanghai is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,833 in Shanghai and $3,814 in Forbes to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,026 in Shanghai versus $1,558 in Forbes. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,222 per month in Shanghai versus $2,543 in Forbes – a 108% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Shanghai runs roughly 62% less than in Forbes. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your budget.

At $1,222 in Shanghai versus $2,543 in Forbes, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Shanghai but tight or insufficient in Forbes. The gap between the two cities makes Shanghai the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Shanghai is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Forbes, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Shanghai gentler on the wallet – expenses run 52% less than in Forbes. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.