Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Shanghai and South Yarra

For one person, living is cheaper in Shanghai: $1,244 a month against $2,436 in South Yarra, rent and utilities included – about $14,300 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
119

Cost of Living Index in South Yarra
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South Yarra Living Index

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Shanghai

🇨🇳 China

$1,244

/mo nomad

South Yarra

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,436

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Shanghai and in South Yarra

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,244 in Shanghai versus $2,436 in South Yarra.

Shanghai $1,244
South Yarra $2,436

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,999 in Shanghai versus $3,527 in South Yarra.

Shanghai $1,999
South Yarra $3,527

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,755 in Shanghai versus $4,618 in South Yarra.

Shanghai $2,755
South Yarra $4,618

Living in Shanghai costs roughly 49% less than in South Yarra, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Shanghai is 8% below, South Yarra is 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.56 ¥30.43

$17.64 A$25.39

-74.15%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$30.21 ¥202

$84.5 A$122

-64.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.25 ¥35.08

$8.25 A$11.87

-36.36%

Cappuccino

$3.28 ¥21.91

$3.53 A$5.08

-7.08%

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

$0.57 ¥3.84

$2.07 A$2.98

-72.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.36 ¥2.38

$1.71 A$2.46

-78.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.23 ¥8.22

$9.78 A$14.08

-87.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 ¥15.16

$8.24 A$11.85

-72.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 ¥12.28

$1.54 A$2.22

19.48%

White Bread (500g)

$1.96 ¥13.06

$2.74 A$3.95

-28.47%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.03 ¥6.86

$1.41 A$2.03

-26.95%

Eggs

$1.67 ¥11.15

$4.24 A$6.10

-60.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.96 ¥113

$10.35 A$14.89

63.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.19 ¥21.30

$6.94 A$9.99

-54.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.90 ¥86.1

$15.17 A$21.83

-14.96%

Apples (1kg)

$2.24 ¥14.98

$2.85 A$4.10

-21.40%

Banana (1kg)

$1.66 ¥11.12

$2.03 A$2.92

-18.23%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.02 ¥13.52

$1.36 A$1.95

48.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.66 ¥11.07

$2.80 A$4.03

-40.71%

Potato (1kg)

$0.77 ¥5.17

$1.41 A$2.03

-45.39%

Onion (1kg)

$0.93 ¥6.20

$2.12 A$3.04

-56.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.63 ¥4.18

$2.41 A$3.47

-73.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.60 ¥3.98

$1.64 A$2.35

-63.41%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.80 ¥25.40

$31.82 A$45.79

-88.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.87 ¥72.6

$12.30 A$17.69

-11.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 ¥5.50

$5.70 A$8.20

-85.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.61 ¥10.75

$5.26 A$7.56

-69.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.61 ¥4.11

$2.92 A$4.20

-79.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.40 ¥196

$81.7 A$118

-64.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.11 ¥14.09

$4.47 A$6.43

-52.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 ¥2.86

$1.42 A$2.05

-69.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.06 ¥60.5

$30.47 A$43.85

-70.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 ¥8.88

$1.31 A$1.88

1.53%

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

$19.0K ¥127.0K

$28.4K A$40.9K

-33.10%

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

$18.7K ¥124.9K

$26.6K A$38.2K

-29.58%

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

$57.8 ¥386

$232 A$334

-75.08%

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

$8.09 ¥54.0

$27.31 A$39.30

-70.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.48 ¥69.9

$41.68 A$60.0

-74.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$65.7 ¥439

$55.2 A$79.4

19.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.82 ¥119

$16.96 A$24.40

5.07%

Cinema Ticket

$8.95 ¥59.8

$13.70 A$19.71

-34.67%

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

$1,414 ¥9,438

$2,417 A$3,478

-41.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$27.9K ¥186.0K

$30.4K A$43.7K

-8.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.0 ¥360

$81.4 A$117

-33.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.09 ¥248

$50.8 A$73.1

-26.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.3 ¥496

$117 A$168

-36.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 ¥705

$132 A$190

-20.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 ¥7,046

$1,367 A$1,967

-22.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$585 ¥3,904

$1,163 A$1,674

-49.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,485 ¥16.6K

$2,109 A$3,035

17.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,232 ¥8,228

$1,788 A$2,573

-31.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.9K ¥93.0K

$5,707 A$8,212

144.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,253 ¥41.7K

$5,659 A$8,143

10.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,711 ¥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 12, 2026

Last update for South Yarra: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Shanghai

$585 47%

South Yarra

$1.2K 47.8% 98.9% $579

Groceries & Markets

Shanghai

$235 18.9%

South Yarra

$324 13.3% 38% $89

Clothing & Footwear

Shanghai

$122 9.8%

South Yarra

$172 7% 40.7% $50

Eating Out

Shanghai

$106 8.5%

South Yarra

$289 11.9% 172% $183

Sport & Entertainment

Shanghai

$84 6.7%

South Yarra

$83 3.4% 1.3% $1.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Shanghai

$76 6.1%

South Yarra

$301 12.4% 294% $225

Getting Around

Shanghai

$36 2.9%

South Yarra

$105 4.3% 191% $69

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,055 in Shanghai and $1,367 in South Yarra. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $30.00 in Shanghai vs $85.0 in South Yarra for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $235 vs $324 per month, with Shanghai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Shanghai

🇦🇺 South Yarra

🕒 Local time

09:08 9:08 AM

12:08 12:08 PM

3 h ahead of Shanghai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

24,870,895

25,147

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 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 18, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.51 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Shanghai South Yarra 8,060 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Shanghai
South Yarra

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 South Yarra: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Shanghai and South Yarra differ by about 96% in total monthly costs ($1,244 vs $2,436 including rent). Shanghai is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,865 in Shanghai and $3,654 in South Yarra 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: $1,055 in Shanghai versus $1,367 in South Yarra. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,414 in Shanghai versus $2,417 in South Yarra. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 38% higher in South Yarra. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,244 in Shanghai versus $2,436 in South Yarra, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Shanghai but tight or insufficient in South Yarra. The gap between the two cities makes Shanghai 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.

Safety-wise, Shanghai and South Yarra are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Shanghai gentler on the wallet – expenses run 96% less than in South Yarra. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.