Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Shanghai and Magadan

For one person, living is cheaper in Magadan: $1,005 a month against $1,250 in Shanghai, rent and utilities included – about $2,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

61

Cost of Living Index in Shanghai
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Shanghai Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Magadan
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Magadan Living Index

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Shanghai

🇨🇳 China

$1,250

/mo nomad

Magadan

🇷🇺 Russia

$1,005

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Shanghai and in Magadan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,250 in Shanghai versus $1,005 in Magadan.

Shanghai $1,250
Magadan $1,005

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,019 in Shanghai versus $1,585 in Magadan.

Shanghai $2,019
Magadan $1,585

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,789 in Shanghai versus $2,164 in Magadan.

Shanghai $2,789
Magadan $2,164

Living in Shanghai is roughly 24% more expensive than in Magadan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Shanghai 7% lower, Magadan 25% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.55 ¥30.45

$11.46 ₽974

-60.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.52 ¥198

$36.52 ₽3,105

-19.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.10 ¥34.13

$6.39 ₽543

-20.19%

Cappuccino

$3.42 ¥22.92

$2.77 ₽235

23.47%

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

$0.61 ¥4.12

$1.11 ₽94.3

-45.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.36 ¥2.41

$0.57 ₽48.11

-36.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.21 ¥8.08

$1.68 ₽143

-27.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.29 ¥15.33

$3.02 ₽256

-24.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.86 ¥12.48

$1.10 ₽93.3

69.09%

White Bread (500g)

$2.01 ¥13.47

$0.72 ₽61.2

179.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.02 ¥6.84

$1.16 ₽98.4

-12.07%

Eggs

$1.72 ¥11.48

$1.51 ₽128

13.91%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.19 ¥115

$10.97 ₽933

56.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.35 ¥22.43

$5.26 ₽447

-36.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.80 ¥85.7

$12.84 ₽1,091

-0.31%

Apples (1kg)

$2.17 ¥14.54

$1.68 ₽143

29.17%

Banana (1kg)

$1.74 ¥11.67

$1.80 ₽153

-3.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.94 ¥12.99

$1.69 ₽144

14.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.68 ¥11.25

$2.36 ₽201

-28.81%

Potato (1kg)

$0.77 ¥5.18

$0.79 ₽67.3

-2.53%

Onion (1kg)

$0.93 ¥6.22

$0.59 ₽50.2

57.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.62 ¥4.17

$1.47 ₽125

-57.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 ¥3.88

$0.66 ₽56.1

-12.12%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.83 ¥25.64

$2.66 ₽226

43.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.94 ¥73.2

$6.64 ₽565

64.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.84 ¥5.60

$1.03 ₽87.7

-18.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ¥10.73

$2.00 ₽170

-20.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.59 ¥3.92

$0.52 ₽44.51

13.46%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.27 ¥203

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.06 ¥13.79

$2.31 ₽197

-10.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 ¥3.13

$0.36 ₽30.40

30.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.80 ¥58.9

$5.02 ₽427

75.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.27 ¥8.53

$0.86 ₽73.3

47.67%

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

$19.6K ¥131.2K

$34.8K ₽3.0M

-43.64%

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

$18.6K ¥124.4K

$32.1K ₽2.7M

-42.03%

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

$57.2 ¥383

$108 ₽9,172

-46.96%

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

$8.06 ¥53.9

$5.71 ₽485

41.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.52 ¥70.4

$7.40 ₽629

42.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.6 ¥433

$34.01 ₽2,892

90.03%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.63 ¥118

$22.93 ₽1,950

-23.11%

Cinema Ticket

$8.84 ¥59.1

$6.18 ₽526

43.04%

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

$1,437 ¥9,620

$389 ₽33.1K

269.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.1K ¥187.9K

$7,208 ₽612.8K

289.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.7 ¥366

$70.7 ₽6,009

-22.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.43 ¥244

$49.87 ₽4,240

-26.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.4 ¥504

$130 ₽11.1K

-42.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 ¥696

$114 ₽9,676

-8.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,039 ¥6,956

$433 ₽36.8K

139.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$589 ¥3,940

$299 ₽25.5K

96.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,487 ¥16.6K

$840 ₽71.4K

196.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,237 ¥8,282

$573 ₽48.7K

116.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.6K ¥90.9K

$1,927 ₽163.8K

604.79%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,191 ¥41.4K

$1,333 ₽113.4K

364.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,715 ¥11.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.36

21.33

-84.25%

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

Last update for Shanghai: October 4, 2026

Last update for Magadan: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Shanghai

$589 47.1%

Magadan

$299 29.8% 49.1% $289

Groceries & Markets

Shanghai

$237 19%

Magadan

$204 20.3% 13.8% $33

Clothing & Footwear

Shanghai

$122 9.7%

Magadan

$164 16.3% 34.8% $42

Eating Out

Shanghai

$107 8.6%

Magadan

$165 16.4% 54% $58

Sport & Entertainment

Shanghai

$82 6.6%

Magadan

$46 4.6% 43.6% $36

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Shanghai

$76 6.1%

Magadan

$121 12% 59.6% $45

Getting Around

Shanghai

$37 3%

Magadan

$6.2 * 0.6% 83.2% $31

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,039 in Shanghai and $433 in Magadan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $30.00 in Shanghai vs $37.00 in Magadan. Groceries flip the comparison at $237 vs $204, with Magadan cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Shanghai

🇷🇺 Magadan

🕒 Local time

15:24 3:24 PM

18:24 6:24 PM

3 h ahead of Shanghai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

24,870,895

89,193

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Russian Ruble RUB ₽

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.149 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

100 RUB = 1.18 USD

100 RUB = 1.05 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RUB, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.149 USD). 1 EUR = 7.51 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 85.02 RUB (100 RUB = 1.18 USD). 1 EUR = 95.36 RUB (100 RUB = 1.05 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

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Shanghai Magadan 3,830 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Shanghai
Magadan

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 Magadan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Magadan wins on cost – living expenses run 24% lower than in Shanghai. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Magadan the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $1,874 in Shanghai and $1,507 in Magadan 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: $1,039 in Shanghai versus $433 in Magadan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,437 in Shanghai versus $389 in Magadan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Magadan – a meal for two runs $37.00 versus $30.00 in Shanghai. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,005 in Magadan versus $1,250 in Shanghai, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Magadan but tight or insufficient in Shanghai. The gap between the two cities makes Magadan the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Magadan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 24% less than in Shanghai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.