Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Shanghai and Oradea

For one person, living is cheaper in Oradea: $1,023 a month against $1,222 in Shanghai, rent and utilities included – about $2,400 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
49

Cost of Living Index in Oradea
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Oradea Living Index

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Shanghai

🇨🇳 China

$1,222

/mo nomad

Oradea

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,023

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Shanghai and in Oradea

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

A single person spends $1,222 per month in Shanghai vs $1,023 in Oradea, rent included.

Shanghai $1,222
Oradea $1,023

A couple spends around $1,971 per month in Shanghai vs $1,523 in Oradea, rent included.

Shanghai $1,971
Oradea $1,523

A family of three spends $2,720 per month in Shanghai vs $2,022 in Oradea, rent included.

Shanghai $2,720
Oradea $2,022

Shanghai costs about 19% more than Oradea, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Shanghai and Oradea are more affordable than the global median – Shanghai 10% lower, Oradea 25% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.53 ¥30.03

$8.26 RON 39.34

-45.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$30.16 ¥200

$41.28 RON 197

-26.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.11 ¥33.94

$7.42 RON 35.34

-31.13%

Cappuccino

$3.41 ¥22.64

$2.58 RON 12.29

32.17%

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

$0.58 ¥3.84

$1.90 RON 9.03

-69.47%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.35 ¥2.35

$1.78 RON 8.50

-80.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.23 ¥8.20

$2.14 RON 10.22

-42.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.31 ¥15.33

$3.19 RON 15.19

-27.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.88 ¥12.48

$1.47 RON 7.02

27.89%

White Bread (500g)

$1.94 ¥12.85

$1.05 RON 5.02

84.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.98 ¥6.50

$1.16 RON 5.51

-15.52%

Eggs

$1.70 ¥11.28

$2.78 RON 13.23

-38.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.02 ¥113

$8.13 RON 38.75

109.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.22 ¥21.36

$6.13 RON 29.21

-47.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.93 ¥85.8

$8.81 RON 41.99

46.77%

Apples (1kg)

$2.15 ¥14.27

$1.07 RON 5.10

100.93%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 ¥11.45

$1.50 RON 7.15

15.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 ¥13.47

$1.44 RON 6.87

40.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.73 ¥11.51

$1.36 RON 6.49

27.21%

Potato (1kg)

$0.83 ¥5.49

$0.80 RON 3.82

3.75%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 ¥6.12

$0.87 RON 4.14

5.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.67 ¥4.47

$0.68 RON 3.24

-1.47%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 ¥3.91

$0.81 RON 3.87

-27.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.77 ¥25.03

$5.63 RON 26.81

-33.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.03 ¥73.2

$5.90 RON 28.11

86.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 ¥5.98

$0.99 RON 4.69

-9.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ¥10.65

$1.76 RON 8.39

-9.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.57 ¥3.80

$0.82 RON 3.90

-30.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.62 ¥197

$22.55 RON 107

31.35%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ¥14.21

$0.74 RON 3.54

189.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 ¥3.09

$0.70 RON 3.32

-32.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.74 ¥58.0

$7.27 RON 34.62

20.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 ¥8.91

$1.78 RON 8.47

-24.72%

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

$19.3K ¥127.8K

$28.0K RON 133.6K

-31.35%

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

$18.3K ¥121.3K

$24.8K RON 118.1K

-26.22%

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

$58.9 ¥391

$137 RON 652

-56.95%

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

$7.90 ¥52.4

$6.29 RON 29.98

25.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.60 ¥70.3

$7.80 RON 37.16

35.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.8 ¥430

$47.06 RON 224

37.72%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.47 ¥116

$16.40 RON 78.2

6.52%

Cinema Ticket

$9.06 ¥60.1

$7.54 RON 35.91

20.16%

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

$1,587 ¥10.5K

$385 RON 1,833

312.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.2K ¥187.4K

$8,983 RON 42.8K

214.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.6 ¥362

$60.6 RON 289

-9.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.21 ¥247

$37.01 RON 176

0.54%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.6 ¥495

$55.6 RON 265

34.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 ¥705

$62.9 RON 300

68.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,026 ¥6,808

$428 RON 2,040

139.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$559 ¥3,712

$346 RON 1,647

61.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,618 ¥17.4K

$643 RON 3,065

307.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,191 ¥7,905

$504 RON 2,401

136.33%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.4K ¥88.7K

$2,267 RON 10.8K

489.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,527 ¥43.3K

$1,806 RON 8,606

261.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,712 ¥11.4K

$896 RON 4,271

90.99%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.36

7.1

-52.68%

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

Last update for Shanghai: October 25, 2026

Last update for Oradea: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Shanghai

$559 45.8%

Oradea

$346 33.8% 38.2% $213

Groceries & Markets

Shanghai

$237 19.4%

Oradea

$186 18.2% 21.3% $50

Clothing & Footwear

Shanghai

$123 10%

Oradea

$97 9.5% 20.7% $25

Eating Out

Shanghai

$107 8.8%

Oradea

$151 14.8% 41.2% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Shanghai

$83 6.8%

Oradea

$62 6.1% 25.1% $21

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Shanghai

$77 6.3%

Oradea

$151 14.8% 95% $74

Getting Around

Shanghai

$36 3%

Oradea

$30 2.9% 17.4% $6.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,026 in Shanghai versus $428 in Oradea. 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 91% higher in Shanghai. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $30 in Shanghai versus $41 in Oradea. Groceries tell a different story – $237 in Shanghai vs $186 in Oradea – so Oradea wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Shanghai

🇷🇴 Oradea

🕒 Local time

21:10 9:10 PM

15:10 3:10 PM

6 h behind Shanghai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

24,870,895

196,367

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.151 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

1 RON = 0.21 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 6.64 CNY (1 CNY = 0.151 USD). 1 EUR = 7.41 CNY (1 CNY = 0.135 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 4.76 RON (1 RON = 0.21 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Shanghai Oradea 8,180 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Shanghai
Oradea

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 Oradea: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,222 in Shanghai, $1,023 in Oradea – Oradea comes out roughly 16% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,833 per month in Shanghai and $1,535 in Oradea. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Oradea, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $428 there versus $1,026 in Shanghai.

Groceries cost about 27% more in Shanghai, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $30 in Shanghai and $41 in Oradea. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,222 in Shanghai and $1,023 in Oradea, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Oradea – 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 Oradea. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Shanghai makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.