Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Shaoxing and Shenzhen

For one person, living is cheaper in Shaoxing: $751 a month against $1,131 in Shenzhen, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

36

Cost of Living Index in Shaoxing
Learn more

Shaoxing Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Shenzhen
Learn more

Shenzhen Living Index

Jump to prices

Shaoxing

🇨🇳 China

$751

/mo nomad

Shenzhen

🇨🇳 China

$1,131

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Shaoxing and in Shenzhen

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Shaoxing and in Shenzhen actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $751 in Shaoxing versus $1,131 in Shenzhen.

Shaoxing $751
Shenzhen $1,131

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,204 in Shaoxing versus $1,741 in Shenzhen.

Shaoxing $1,204
Shenzhen $1,741

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,657 in Shaoxing versus $2,352 in Shenzhen.

Shaoxing $1,657
Shenzhen $2,352

Living in Shaoxing costs roughly 34% less than in Shenzhen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Shaoxing 45% lower, Shenzhen 17% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.72 ¥24.81

$3.73 ¥24.87

-0.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.22 ¥148

$29.92 ¥200

-25.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.31 ¥35.43

$5.36 ¥35.74

-0.93%

Cappuccino

$2.58 ¥17.20

$3.39 ¥22.60

-23.89%

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

$0.62 ¥4.15

$0.55 ¥3.66

12.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.36 ¥2.38

$0.35 ¥2.36

2.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.15 ¥7.66

$1.47 ¥9.82

-21.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.19 ¥14.64

$2.17 ¥14.47

0.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.80 ¥11.97

$1.59 ¥10.62

13.21%

White Bread (500g)

$1.96 ¥13.05

$1.63 ¥10.86

20.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.75 ¥4.99

$1.14 ¥7.57

-34.21%

Eggs

$1.73 ¥11.55

$1.78 ¥11.86

-2.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.67 ¥77.8

$21.25 ¥142

-45.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.31 ¥22.05

$3.45 ¥23.04

-4.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.59 ¥70.6

$14.69 ¥98.0

-27.91%

Apples (1kg)

$1.78 ¥11.90

$2.23 ¥14.91

-20.18%

Banana (1kg)

$1.72 ¥11.50

$1.61 ¥10.71

6.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.72 ¥11.46

$1.89 ¥12.64

-8.99%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.09 ¥7.28

$1.41 ¥9.39

-22.70%

Potato (1kg)

$0.83 ¥5.51

$1.04 ¥6.93

-20.19%

Onion (1kg)

$0.91 ¥6.07

$1.25 ¥8.34

-27.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.65 ¥4.36

$0.56 ¥3.75

16.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 ¥3.87

$0.61 ¥4.04

-4.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.44 ¥22.92

$4.38 ¥29.23

-21.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.61 ¥70.8

$11.72 ¥78.2

-9.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 ¥5.13

$0.98 ¥6.52

-21.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.62 ¥10.81

$1.83 ¥12.18

-11.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.23 ¥1.54

$0.57 ¥3.81

-59.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.86 ¥133

$22.57 ¥151

-12.01%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.99 ¥13.25

$1.52 ¥10.13

30.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 ¥2.87

$0.38 ¥2.55

13.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.04 ¥60.3

$6.99 ¥46.60

29.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 ¥8.93

$1.35 ¥9.00

-0.74%

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

$19.5K ¥129.8K

$19.8K ¥132.1K

-1.72%

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

$18.0K ¥120.4K

$17.9K ¥119.5K

0.73%

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

$47.33 ¥316

$62.8 ¥419

-24.59%

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

$7.90 ¥52.7

$10.25 ¥68.4

-22.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.14 ¥61.0

$16.36 ¥109

-44.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$15.57 ¥104

$49.52 ¥330

-68.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.79 ¥45.32

$17.32 ¥116

-60.80%

Cinema Ticket

$6.82 ¥45.51

$7.64 ¥50.9

-10.73%

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

$844 ¥5,630

$526 ¥3,510

60.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.9K ¥166.3K

$24.5K ¥163.7K

1.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$40.55 ¥270

$55.1 ¥368

-26.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.99 ¥213

$39.99 ¥267

-20.01%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.9 ¥513

$72.3 ¥482

6.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 ¥708

$92.7 ¥618

14.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$434 ¥2,898

$771 ¥5,145

-43.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$222 ¥1,484

$478 ¥3,187

-53.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$596 ¥3,977

$1,984 ¥13.2K

-69.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$450 ¥3,000

$852 ¥5,682

-47.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,407 ¥42.7K

$13.6K ¥91.0K

-53.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,558 ¥23.7K

$6,013 ¥40.1K

-40.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$901 ¥6,009

$1,751 ¥11.7K

-48.56%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.36

3.35

0.30%

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

Last update for Shaoxing: October 18, 2026

Last update for Shenzhen: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Shaoxing

$222 29.6%

Shenzhen

$478 42.3% 115% $255

Groceries & Markets

Shaoxing

$205 27.2%

Shenzhen

$251 22.2% 23% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Shaoxing

$115 15.3%

Shenzhen

$117 10.4% 1.8% $2.1

Eating Out

Shaoxing

$91 12.1%

Shenzhen

$102 9% 12.3% $11

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Shaoxing

$64 8.6%

Shenzhen

$89 7.9% 38.8% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Shaoxing

$29 3.9%

Shenzhen

$65 5.7% 122% $36

Getting Around

Shaoxing

$25 3.3%

Shenzhen

$28 2.5% 13.5% $3.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $434 in Shaoxing and $771 in Shenzhen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Shenzhen pays 94% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $22 in Shaoxing vs $30 in Shenzhen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $205 vs $251 per month, with Shaoxing cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Shaoxing

🇨🇳 Shenzhen

🕒 Local time

00:33 12:33 AM

Same time as Shaoxing

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,912,239

12,528,300

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Shaoxing Shenzhen 1,050 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Shaoxing
Shenzhen

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

Shaoxing vs Shenzhen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Shaoxing and Shenzhen differ by about 51% in total monthly costs ($751 vs $1,131 including rent). Shaoxing is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 49% lower in Shaoxing. 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: $434 in Shaoxing versus $771 in Shenzhen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $844 in Shaoxing versus $526 in Shenzhen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

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

Expats usually find Shaoxing gentler on the wallet – expenses run 34% less than in Shenzhen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.