Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Shanghai and Honiara

For one person, living is cheaper in Shanghai: $1,250 a month against $1,742 in Honiara, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

61

Cost of Living Index in Shanghai
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Shanghai Living Index
83

Cost of Living Index in Honiara
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Honiara Living Index

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Shanghai

🇨🇳 China

$1,250

/mo nomad

Honiara

🇸🇧 Solomon Islands

$1,742

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Shanghai and in Honiara

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 Honiara actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,250 per month in Shanghai vs $1,742 in Honiara, rent included.

Shanghai $1,250
Honiara $1,742

A couple spends around $2,019 per month in Shanghai vs $2,873 in Honiara, rent included.

Shanghai $2,019
Honiara $2,873

A family of three spends $2,789 per month in Shanghai vs $4,004 in Honiara, rent included.

Shanghai $2,789
Honiara $4,004

Shanghai is about 28% cheaper than Honiara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Shanghai sits 7% below the global median, while Honiara is 30% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.55 ¥30.40

$6.66 SBD 53.8

-31.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.52 ¥197

$62.8 SBD 507

-52.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.10 ¥34.08

$12.53 SBD 101

-59.30%

Cappuccino

$3.42 ¥22.88

$3.48 SBD 28.14

-1.72%

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

$0.61 ¥4.11

$1.60 SBD 12.89

-61.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.36 ¥2.40

$1.05 SBD 8.49

-65.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.21 ¥8.07

$2.42 SBD 19.58

-50.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.29 ¥15.31

$5.70 SBD 46.04

-59.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.86 ¥12.46

$2.57 SBD 20.75

-27.63%

White Bread (500g)

$2.01 ¥13.45

$1.49 SBD 12.00

34.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.02 ¥6.83

$1.64 SBD 13.28

-37.80%

Eggs

$1.72 ¥11.46

$5.48 SBD 44.27

-68.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.19 ¥115

$6.61 SBD 53.4

160.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.35 ¥22.39

$8.34 SBD 67.4

-59.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.80 ¥85.5

$15.18 SBD 123

-15.68%

Apples (1kg)

$2.17 ¥14.51

$6.39 SBD 51.6

-66.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.74 ¥11.65

$2.70 SBD 21.83

-35.56%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.94 ¥12.96

$8.70 SBD 70.2

-77.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.68 ¥11.23

$3.67 SBD 29.62

-54.22%

Potato (1kg)

$0.77 ¥5.17

$1.99 SBD 16.09

-61.31%

Onion (1kg)

$0.93 ¥6.21

$3.47 SBD 28.01

-73.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.62 ¥4.16

$1.40 SBD 11.30

-55.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 ¥3.88

$1.03 SBD 8.36

-43.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.83 ¥25.60

$4.26 SBD 34.39

-10.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.94 ¥73.1

$10.37 SBD 83.7

5.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.84 ¥5.59

$1.69 SBD 13.67

-50.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ¥10.71

$3.47 SBD 28.00

-53.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.59 ¥3.92

$0.39 SBD 3.12

51.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.27 ¥202

$25.14 SBD 203

20.41%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.06 ¥13.77

$1.27 SBD 10.28

62.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 ¥3.13

$1.20 SBD 9.72

-60.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.80 ¥58.8

$12.60 SBD 102

-30.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.27 ¥8.51

$1.35 SBD 10.92

-5.93%

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

$19.6K ¥131.0K

$18.7K SBD 151.1K

4.74%

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

$18.6K ¥124.2K

$34.1K SBD 275.7K

-45.59%

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

$57.2 ¥382

$429 SBD 3,464

-86.66%

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

$8.06 ¥53.8

$27.02 SBD 218

-70.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.52 ¥70.3

$89.0 SBD 719

-88.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.6 ¥432

$36.76 SBD 297

75.82%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.63 ¥118

$8.94 SBD 72.2

97.20%

Cinema Ticket

$8.84 ¥59.1

$4.41 SBD 35.65

100.45%

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

$1,437 ¥9,605

$100 SBD 811

1331.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.1K ¥187.5K

$2,898 SBD 23.4K

868.39%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.7 ¥365

$27.71 SBD 224

97.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.43 ¥243

$93.5 SBD 755

-61.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.4 ¥504

$95.9 SBD 774

-21.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 ¥695

$103 SBD 829

1.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,039 ¥6,945

$870 SBD 7,024

19.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$589 ¥3,933

$434 SBD 3,507

35.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,487 ¥16.6K

$1,851 SBD 14.9K

34.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,237 ¥8,268

$1,398 SBD 11.3K

-11.51%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.6K ¥90.8K

$86.4K SBD 698.0K

-84.29%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,191 ¥41.4K

$62.1K SBD 501.2K

-90.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,715 ¥11.5K

$444 SBD 3,583

286.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.36

15.67

-78.56%

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

Last update for Shanghai: October 4, 2026

Last update for Honiara: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Shanghai

$589 47.1%

Honiara

$434 25.3% 26.2% $154

Groceries & Markets

Shanghai

$237 19%

Honiara

$345 20.1% 45.5% $108

Clothing & Footwear

Shanghai

$122 9.7%

Honiara

$144 8.4% 18.2% $22

Eating Out

Shanghai

$107 8.6%

Honiara

$167 9.7% 55.5% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Shanghai

$82 6.6%

Honiara

$46 2.7% 44.6% $37

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Shanghai

$76 6.1%

Honiara

$545 31.8% 619% $469

Getting Around

Shanghai

$37 3%

Honiara

$34 2% 8.2% $3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,039 in Shanghai versus $870 in Honiara. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 287% higher in Shanghai, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $30.00 in Shanghai versus $63.0 in Honiara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $237 vs $345 – making Shanghai the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Shanghai

🇸🇧 Honiara

🕒 Local time

14:26 2:26 PM

17:26 5:26 PM

3 h ahead of Shanghai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

24,870,895

54,600 Capital

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Solomon Islands Dollar SBD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

1 SBD = 0.124 USD

1 SBD = 0.11 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SBD, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.5 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

Solomon Islands Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 8.08 SBD (1 SBD = 0.124 USD). 1 EUR = 9.06 SBD (1 SBD = 0.11 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Shanghai Honiara 6,100 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Shanghai
Honiara

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 Honiara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,250 in Shanghai, $1,742 in Honiara – roughly 39% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,874 per month in Shanghai and $2,614 in Honiara. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Shanghai, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 45% more in Honiara, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $30.00 in Shanghai and $63.0 in Honiara. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Shanghai, where all-in costs run around $1,250, than in Honiara at $1,742. In Shanghai it covers expenses comfortably, while in Honiara it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Shanghai – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Shanghai. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Honiara makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.