Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sibiu and Shanghai

For one person, living is cheaper in Sibiu: $1,112 a month against $1,256 in Shanghai, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

54

Cost of Living Index in Sibiu
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Sibiu Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Shanghai
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Shanghai Living Index

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Sibiu

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,112

/mo nomad

Shanghai

🇨🇳 China

$1,256

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sibiu and in Shanghai

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,112 in Sibiu versus $1,256 in Shanghai.

Sibiu $1,112
Shanghai $1,256

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,654 in Sibiu versus $1,999 in Shanghai.

Sibiu $1,654
Shanghai $1,999

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,197 in Sibiu versus $2,743 in Shanghai.

Sibiu $2,197
Shanghai $2,743

Living in Sibiu costs roughly 11% less than in Shanghai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Sibiu 18% lower, Shanghai 7% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.50 RON 40.21

$4.45 ¥29.78

91.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.33 RON 200

$30.29 ¥203

39.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.48 RON 35.37

$5.09 ¥34.01

46.95%

Cappuccino

$3.27 RON 15.48

$3.43 ¥22.96

-4.66%

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

$2.01 RON 9.50

$0.62 ¥4.15

224.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.76 RON 8.33

$0.39 ¥2.58

351.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.09 RON 14.60

$1.23 ¥8.25

151.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.87 RON 18.31

$2.21 ¥14.81

75.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.43 RON 6.78

$1.85 ¥12.37

-22.70%

White Bread (500g)

$1.14 RON 5.40

$1.95 ¥13.02

-41.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.36 RON 6.43

$1.00 ¥6.67

36.00%

Eggs

$3.47 RON 16.41

$1.71 ¥11.43

102.92%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.95 RON 37.60

$17.47 ¥117

-54.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.86 RON 27.73

$3.24 ¥21.66

80.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.04 RON 38.05

$12.99 ¥86.8

-38.11%

Apples (1kg)

$1.15 RON 5.44

$2.24 ¥14.98

-48.66%

Banana (1kg)

$1.57 RON 7.43

$1.68 ¥11.25

-6.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.44 RON 6.80

$1.95 ¥13.03

-26.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.54 RON 12.02

$1.73 ¥11.60

46.82%

Potato (1kg)

$0.66 RON 3.13

$0.76 ¥5.10

-13.16%

Onion (1kg)

$0.60 RON 2.84

$0.92 ¥6.15

-34.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.99 RON 4.68

$0.66 ¥4.41

50.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.85 RON 4.03

$0.60 ¥4.00

41.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.90 RON 27.92

$3.69 ¥24.65

59.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.46 RON 35.28

$10.92 ¥73.0

-31.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.92 RON 4.36

$0.87 ¥5.85

5.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.40 RON 6.61

$1.63 ¥10.87

-14.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.71 RON 3.34

$0.62 ¥4.13

14.52%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$17.14 RON 81.1

$30.38 ¥203

-43.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.91 RON 4.28

$2.06 ¥13.79

-55.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.80 RON 3.79

$0.46 ¥3.08

73.91%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.24 RON 39.00

$8.84 ¥59.1

-6.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.94 RON 9.19

$1.33 ¥8.86

45.86%

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

$28.8K RON 136.4K

$19.3K ¥128.7K

49.73%

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

$25.6K RON 121.1K

$18.2K ¥122.0K

40.33%

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

$117 RON 551

$57.1 ¥382

104.08%

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

$9.07 RON 42.90

$8.07 ¥53.9

12.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$12.40 RON 58.7

$10.70 ¥71.5

15.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.35 RON 167

$64.6 ¥432

-45.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.48 RON 68.5

$17.29 ¥116

-16.25%

Cinema Ticket

$6.77 RON 32.04

$9.05 ¥60.5

-25.19%

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

$449 RON 2,123

$1,441 ¥9,638

-68.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,702 RON 31.7K

$28.2K ¥188.4K

-76.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$74.7 RON 353

$53.5 ¥358

39.53%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.65 RON 150

$37.05 ¥248

-14.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.3 RON 413

$77.0 ¥515

13.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.0 RON 416

$104 ¥694

-15.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$450 RON 2,131

$1,023 ¥6,841

-55.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$410 RON 1,938

$594 ¥3,971

-31.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$837 RON 3,960

$2,563 ¥17.1K

-67.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$606 RON 2,867

$1,213 ¥8,107

-50.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,501 RON 11.8K

$13.5K ¥90.4K

-81.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,022 RON 9,566

$6,247 ¥41.8K

-67.64%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,111 RON 5,257

$1,699 ¥11.4K

-34.62%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.02

3.36

108.93%

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

Last update for Sibiu: October 17, 2026

Last update for Shanghai: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sibiu

$410 36.8%

Shanghai

$594 47.3% 45% $184

Groceries & Markets

Sibiu

$196 17.6%

Shanghai

$238 18.9% 21.4% $42

Eating Out

Sibiu

$168 15.1%

Shanghai

$107 8.5% 36.5% $61

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sibiu

$138 12.4%

Shanghai

$76 6% 45% $62

Clothing & Footwear

Sibiu

$127 11.4%

Shanghai

$122 9.7% 3.6% $4.6

Sport & Entertainment

Sibiu

$49 4.4%

Shanghai

$83 6.6% 69.2% $34

Getting Around

Sibiu

$25 2.2%

Shanghai

$37 3% 49.6% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $450 in Sibiu and $1,023 in Shanghai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Shanghai pays 53% 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: $42.00 in Sibiu vs $30.00 in Shanghai. Groceries flip the comparison at $196 vs $238, with Sibiu cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Sibiu

🇨🇳 Shanghai

🕒 Local time

16:19 4:19 PM

21:19 9:19 PM

5 h ahead of Sibiu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

147,245

24,870,895

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

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Between locations

Sibiu Shanghai 8,090 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Sibiu
Shanghai

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

Sibiu vs Shanghai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sibiu and Shanghai differ by about 13% in total monthly costs ($1,112 vs $1,256 including rent). Sibiu is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 53% lower in Shanghai. 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: $450 in Sibiu versus $1,023 in Shanghai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $449 in Sibiu versus $1,441 in Shanghai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 21% higher in Shanghai. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,112 in Sibiu versus $1,256 in Shanghai, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Sibiu but tight or insufficient in Shanghai. The gap between the two cities makes Sibiu 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, Sibiu and Shanghai 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 Sibiu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 13% less than in Shanghai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.