Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Shanghai and Suginami-ku

For one person, living costs are similar in Shanghai and in Suginami-ku: $1,244 and $1,256 a month, rent and utilities included.

61

Cost of Living Index in Shanghai
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Shanghai Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Suginami-ku
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Suginami-ku Living Index

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Shanghai

🇨🇳 China

$1,244

/mo nomad

Suginami-ku

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,256

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Shanghai and in Suginami-ku

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 Suginami-ku actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,244 in Shanghai versus $1,256 in Suginami-ku.

Shanghai $1,244
Suginami-ku $1,256

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,999 in Shanghai versus $1,994 in Suginami-ku.

Shanghai $1,999
Suginami-ku $1,994

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,755 in Shanghai versus $2,732 in Suginami-ku.

Shanghai $2,755
Suginami-ku $2,732

Living in Shanghai costs roughly 1% less than in Suginami-ku, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Shanghai 8% lower, Suginami-ku 7% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.56 ¥30.47

$6.34 ¥1,002

-28.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$30.21 ¥202

$40.62 ¥6,418

-25.63%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.25 ¥35.13

$5.12 ¥810

2.54%

Cappuccino

$3.28 ¥21.94

$3.47 ¥548

-5.48%

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

$0.57 ¥3.84

$1.05 ¥166

-45.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.36 ¥2.39

$0.78 ¥124

-53.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.23 ¥8.23

$2.56 ¥404

-51.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 ¥15.18

$3.18 ¥503

-28.62%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 ¥12.30

$1.44 ¥227

27.78%

White Bread (500g)

$1.96 ¥13.08

$1.70 ¥269

15.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.03 ¥6.87

$3.65 ¥576

-71.78%

Eggs

$1.67 ¥11.16

$1.97 ¥312

-15.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.96 ¥113

$10.52 ¥1,661

61.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.19 ¥21.33

$5.99 ¥946

-46.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.90 ¥86.3

$14.18 ¥2,241

-9.03%

Apples (1kg)

$2.24 ¥15.00

$5.81 ¥917

-61.45%

Banana (1kg)

$1.66 ¥11.13

$2.75 ¥434

-39.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.02 ¥13.54

$2.80 ¥442

-27.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.66 ¥11.08

$4.08 ¥645

-59.31%

Potato (1kg)

$0.77 ¥5.17

$2.65 ¥418

-70.94%

Onion (1kg)

$0.93 ¥6.21

$2.64 ¥416

-64.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.63 ¥4.19

$1.23 ¥194

-48.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.60 ¥3.99

$0.81 ¥128

-25.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.80 ¥25.44

$3.82 ¥604

-0.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.87 ¥72.7

$6.48 ¥1,024

67.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 ¥5.51

$1.79 ¥283

-54.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.61 ¥10.76

$2.03 ¥320

-20.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.61 ¥4.11

$1.39 ¥219

-56.12%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.40 ¥197

$46.37 ¥7,326

-36.60%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.11 ¥14.11

$3.21 ¥508

-34.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 ¥2.87

$2.76 ¥435

-84.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.06 ¥60.6

$20.79 ¥3,285

-56.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 ¥8.89

$1.11 ¥175

19.82%

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

$19.0K ¥127.2K

$21.0K ¥3.3M

-9.35%

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

$18.7K ¥125.1K

$18.1K ¥2.9M

3.60%

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

$57.8 ¥387

$130 ¥20.6K

-55.68%

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

$8.09 ¥54.1

$23.89 ¥3,774

-66.14%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.48 ¥70.0

$31.49 ¥4,974

-66.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$65.7 ¥439

$58.1 ¥9,175

13.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.82 ¥119

Cinema Ticket

$8.95 ¥59.9

$12.85 ¥2,030

-30.35%

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

$1,414 ¥9,451

$631 ¥99.7K

124.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$27.9K ¥186.2K

$14.8K ¥2.3M

88.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.0 ¥361

$61.4 ¥9,697

-12.04%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.09 ¥248

$36.64 ¥5,789

1.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.3 ¥496

$60.3 ¥9,528

23.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 ¥706

$102 ¥16.1K

3.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 ¥7,056

$477 ¥75.3K

121.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$585 ¥3,910

$377 ¥59.6K

54.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,485 ¥16.6K

$979 ¥154.7K

153.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,232 ¥8,240

$803 ¥126.9K

53.38%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.9K ¥93.1K

$4,685 ¥740.1K

197.30%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,253 ¥41.8K

$1,700 ¥268.6K

267.73%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,711 ¥11.4K

$2,799 ¥442.2K

-38.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.36

68.00%

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

Last update for Shanghai: October 12, 2026

Last update for Suginami-ku: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Shanghai

$585 47%

Suginami-ku

$377 30% 35.5% $207

Groceries & Markets

Shanghai

$235 18.9%

Suginami-ku

$289 23% 23% $54

Clothing & Footwear

Shanghai

$122 9.8%

Suginami-ku

$117 9.3% 3.9% $4.7

Eating Out

Shanghai

$106 8.5%

Suginami-ku

$134 10.7% 26.6% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Shanghai

$84 6.7%

Suginami-ku

$84 6.7% 0.2% $0.2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Shanghai

$76 6.1%

Suginami-ku

$186 14.8% 143% $109

Getting Around

Shanghai

$36 2.9%

Suginami-ku

$69 5.5% 90.8% $33

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,055 in Shanghai and $477 in Suginami-ku. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Suginami-ku pays 64% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $30.00 in Shanghai vs $41.00 in Suginami-ku for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $235 vs $289 per month, with Shanghai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Shanghai

🇯🇵 Suginami-ku

🕒 Local time

08:09 8:09 AM

09:09 9:09 AM

1 h ahead of Shanghai

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

24,870,895

540,180

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

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Shanghai Suginami-ku 1,750 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

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Shanghai
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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 Suginami-ku: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Shanghai and Suginami-ku differ by about 1% in total monthly costs ($1,244 vs $1,256 including rent). Shanghai is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 64% lower in Suginami-ku. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,055 in Shanghai versus $477 in Suginami-ku. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,414 in Shanghai versus $631 in Suginami-ku. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 23% higher in Suginami-ku. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,244 in Shanghai versus $1,256 in Suginami-ku, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Shanghai but tight or insufficient in Suginami-ku. 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 Suginami-ku 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 1% less than in Suginami-ku. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.