Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Baoji

For one person, living is cheaper in Baoji: $756 a month against $3,152 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $28,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

155

Cost of Living Index in Sydney
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Sydney Living Index
36

Cost of Living Index in Baoji
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Baoji Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,152

/mo nomad

Baoji

🇨🇳 China

$756

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Baoji

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,152 in Sydney versus $756 in Baoji.

Sydney $3,152
Baoji $756

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,710 in Sydney versus $1,139 in Baoji.

Sydney $4,710
Baoji $1,139

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,268 in Sydney versus $1,521 in Baoji.

Sydney $6,268
Baoji $1,521

Living in Sydney is roughly 317% more expensive than in Baoji, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Sydney is 133% above, Baoji is 44% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.57 A$25.39

$2.74 ¥18.31

541.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.5 A$132

$11.92 ¥79.6

667.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.96 A$17.28

$4.46 ¥29.80

168.16%

Cappuccino

$4.07 A$5.88

$2.17 ¥14.53

87.56%

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

$2.85 A$4.12

$0.29 ¥1.92

882.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 A$3.25

$0.27 ¥1.80

733.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.60 A$10.99

$1.45 ¥9.71

424.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.43 A$10.73

$1.46 ¥9.79

408.90%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 A$2.39

$1.48 ¥9.87

12.16%

White Bread (500g)

$2.78 A$4.02

$1.75 ¥11.70

58.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 A$3.50

$0.91 ¥6.07

165.93%

Eggs

$5.64 A$8.15

$0.86 ¥5.73

555.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.71 A$16.92

$11.71 ¥78.3

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.66 A$13.95

$3.96 ¥26.49

143.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.75 A$24.20

$10.58 ¥70.7

58.32%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 A$5.88

$1.67 ¥11.16

143.71%

Banana (1kg)

$3.25 A$4.70

$1.11 ¥7.44

192.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.44 A$4.98

$1.24 ¥8.27

177.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.28 A$6.19

$1.27 ¥8.51

237.01%

Potato (1kg)

$3.28 A$4.73

$0.63 ¥4.22

420.63%

Onion (1kg)

$2.30 A$3.32

$0.70 ¥4.68

228.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.30 A$3.32

$0.62 ¥4.16

270.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 A$1.74

$0.54 ¥3.64

124.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$43.71 A$63.2

$3.44 ¥22.98

1170.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.88 A$20.05

$9.75 ¥65.1

42.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.90 A$5.64

$0.76 ¥5.09

413.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 A$5.65

$1.75 ¥11.71

123.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.04 A$4.40

$0.29 ¥1.95

948.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$150 A$217

$16.56 ¥111

807.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.38 A$4.88

$1.29 ¥8.61

162.02%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 A$2.25

$0.29 ¥1.92

437.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.01 A$57.8

$4.52 ¥30.17

785.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 A$2.02

$1.37 ¥9.15

2.19%

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

$29.1K A$42.1K

$19.3K ¥129.3K

50.52%

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

$30.1K A$43.5K

$17.5K ¥117.0K

72.11%

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

$223 A$322

$90.2 ¥603

146.78%

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

$27.16 A$39.25

$6.31 ¥42.14

330.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.8 A$80.7

$10.84 ¥72.4

414.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.6 A$108

$46.46 ¥310

60.59%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.99 A$34.67

$13.18 ¥88.0

82.02%

Cinema Ticket

$17.56 A$25.38

$5.81 ¥38.79

202.24%

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

$2,196 A$3,173

$701 ¥4,682

213.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.2K A$40.7K

$17.5K ¥117.1K

60.81%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 A$113

$39.43 ¥263

98.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$68.4 A$98.9

$37.67 ¥252

81.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$161

$74.2 ¥496

49.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 A$194

$91.5 ¥611

46.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,500 A$3,613

$278 ¥1,856

799.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,709 A$2,470

$196 ¥1,310

771.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,946 A$7,146

$629 ¥4,205

685.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,022 A$4,367

$350 ¥2,335

764.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.2K A$19.0K

$3,178 ¥21.2K

314.32%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,370 A$12.1K

$1,815 ¥12.1K

361.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,113 A$5,944

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

3.35

74.33%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 11, 2026

Last update for Baoji: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.7K 54.2%

Baoji

$196 25.9% 88.5% $1.5K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$379 12%

Baoji

$192 25.3% 49.4% $187

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$306 9.7%

Baoji

$107 14.2% 64.9% $198

Eating Out

Sydney

$299 9.5%

Baoji

$74 9.8% 75.3% $225

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$177 5.6%

Baoji

$109 14.4% 38.2% $67

Getting Around

Sydney

$174 5.5%

Baoji

$20 2.7% 88.2% $153

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$110 3.5%

Baoji

$58 7.7% 47.1% $52

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,500 in Sydney and $278 in Baoji. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $91.0 in Sydney vs $12.00 in Baoji for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $379 vs $192 per month, with Baoji cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇨🇳 Baoji

🕒 Local time

17:02 5:02 PM

14:02 2:02 PM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

1,438,000

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.692 USD

1 AUD = 0.617 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.692 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.617 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.49 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

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Between locations

Sydney Baoji 8,860 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Sydney
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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

Sydney vs Baoji: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Baoji is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 317% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $4,728 in Sydney and $1,135 in Baoji 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: $2,500 in Sydney versus $278 in Baoji. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Baoji runs roughly 807% less than in Sydney. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $2,196 in Sydney versus $701 in Baoji. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $756 in Baoji versus $3,152 in Sydney, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Baoji but tight or insufficient in Sydney. The gap between the two cities makes Baoji 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, Sydney and Baoji 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 Baoji gentler on the wallet – expenses run 317% less than in Sydney. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.