Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Gongzhuling

For one person, living is cheaper in Gongzhuling: $591 a month against $3,152 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $30,700 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
29

Cost of Living Index in Gongzhuling
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Gongzhuling Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,152

/mo nomad

Gongzhuling

🇨🇳 China

$591

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Gongzhuling

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

A single person spends $3,152 per month in Sydney vs $591 in Gongzhuling, rent included.

Sydney $3,152
Gongzhuling $591

A couple spends around $4,710 per month in Sydney vs $946 in Gongzhuling, rent included.

Sydney $4,710
Gongzhuling $946

A family of three spends $6,268 per month in Sydney vs $1,300 in Gongzhuling, rent included.

Sydney $6,268
Gongzhuling $1,300

Sydney costs about 433% more than Gongzhuling, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sydney sits 133% above the global median, while Gongzhuling is 56% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.57 A$25.29

$2.10 ¥14.06

736.67%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.5 A$132

$16.39 ¥110

458.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.96 A$17.21

$4.60 ¥30.75

160.00%

Cappuccino

$4.07 A$5.85

$1.98 ¥13.24

105.56%

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

$2.85 A$4.10

$0.43 ¥2.91

562.79%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 A$3.24

$0.23 ¥1.54

878.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.60 A$10.94

$0.72 ¥4.84

955.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.43 A$10.69

$1.61 ¥10.75

361.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 A$2.38

$1.31 ¥8.74

26.72%

White Bread (500g)

$2.78 A$4.00

$2.18 ¥14.60

27.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 A$3.49

$1.08 ¥7.22

124.07%

Eggs

$5.64 A$8.12

$1.03 ¥6.86

447.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.71 A$16.85

$7.44 ¥49.77

57.39%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.66 A$13.89

$3.66 ¥24.45

163.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.75 A$24.10

$9.21 ¥61.6

81.87%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 A$5.85

$0.59 ¥3.93

589.83%

Banana (1kg)

$3.25 A$4.68

$0.65 ¥4.34

400.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.44 A$4.96

$0.54 ¥3.60

537.04%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.28 A$6.16

$0.43 ¥2.88

895.35%

Potato (1kg)

$3.28 A$4.72

$0.46 ¥3.10

613.04%

Onion (1kg)

$2.30 A$3.30

$0.54 ¥3.59

325.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.30 A$3.31

$0.43 ¥2.88

434.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 A$1.74

$0.58 ¥3.85

108.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$43.71 A$62.9

$3.68 ¥24.63

1087.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.88 A$19.97

$10.47 ¥70.0

32.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.90 A$5.62

$0.64 ¥4.27

509.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 A$5.63

$1.14 ¥7.60

242.98%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.04 A$4.38

$0.31 ¥2.10

880.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$150 A$216

$17.64 ¥118

751.64%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.38 A$4.86

$1.15 ¥7.67

193.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 A$2.24

$0.35 ¥2.37

345.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.01 A$57.6

$2.63 ¥17.56

1421.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 A$2.01

$1.25 ¥8.35

12.00%

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

$29.1K A$41.9K

$19.1K ¥127.6K

52.64%

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

$30.1K A$43.4K

$16.4K ¥109.8K

83.55%

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

$223 A$320

$28.49 ¥190

681.33%

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

$27.16 A$39.08

$5.81 ¥38.84

367.47%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.8 A$80.3

$10.41 ¥69.6

436.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.6 A$107

$42.01 ¥281

77.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.99 A$34.52

$15.34 ¥103

56.39%

Cinema Ticket

$17.56 A$25.27

$5.12 ¥34.25

242.97%

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

$2,196 A$3,160

$400 ¥2,673

449.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.2K A$40.6K

$11.5K ¥76.7K

145.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 A$113

$16.10 ¥108

387.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$68.4 A$98.5

$22.24 ¥149

207.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$160

$59.3 ¥397

87.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 A$193

$44.86 ¥300

199.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,500 A$3,598

$300 ¥2,009

732.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,709 A$2,460

$184 ¥1,233

827.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,946 A$7,117

$637 ¥4,261

676.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,022 A$4,349

$375 ¥2,505

706.68%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.2K A$18.9K

$3,488 ¥23.3K

277.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,370 A$12.0K

$1,926 ¥12.9K

334.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,113 A$5,919

$341 ¥2,280

1106.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

3.5

66.86%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 11, 2026

Last update for Gongzhuling: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.7K 54.2%

Gongzhuling

$184 31.2% 89.2% $1.5K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$379 12%

Gongzhuling

$160 27.1% 57.7% $218

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$306 9.7%

Gongzhuling

$45 7.6% 85.4% $261

Eating Out

Sydney

$299 9.5%

Gongzhuling

$64 10.8% 78.6% $235

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$177 5.6%

Gongzhuling

$64 10.8% 63.7% $113

Getting Around

Sydney

$174 5.5%

Gongzhuling

$22 3.7% 87.4% $152

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$110 3.5%

Gongzhuling

$52 8.8% 52.4% $57

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,500 in Sydney versus $300 in Gongzhuling. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 1106% higher in Sydney, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $91.0 in Sydney versus $16.00 in Gongzhuling. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $379 vs $160 – making Gongzhuling the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇨🇳 Gongzhuling

🕒 Local time

14:44 2:44 PM

11:44 11:44 AM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

862,313

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 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 AUD in detail →

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Between locations

Sydney Gongzhuling 9,040 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

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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 Gongzhuling: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Sydney is pricier by about 433%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,728 per month in Sydney and $887 in Gongzhuling. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Gongzhuling, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $2,196 per month in Sydney and $400 in Gongzhuling. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 136% more in Sydney, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Gongzhuling, where all-in costs run around $591, than in Sydney at $3,152. In Gongzhuling it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sydney it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Gongzhuling – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Gongzhuling. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Sydney makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.