Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Heyuan

For one person, living is cheaper in Heyuan: $792 a month against $3,245 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $29,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

156

Cost of Living Index in Sydney
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Sydney Living Index
38

Cost of Living Index in Heyuan
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Heyuan Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,245

/mo nomad

Heyuan

🇨🇳 China

$792

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Heyuan

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

A single person spends $3,245 per month in Sydney vs $792 in Heyuan, rent included.

Sydney $3,245
Heyuan $792

A couple spends around $4,803 per month in Sydney vs $1,284 in Heyuan, rent included.

Sydney $4,803
Heyuan $1,284

A family of three spends $6,362 per month in Sydney vs $1,776 in Heyuan, rent included.

Sydney $6,362
Heyuan $1,776

Sydney costs about 310% more than Heyuan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sydney sits 139% above the global median, while Heyuan is 42% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.41 A$25.05

$3.06 ¥20.44

468.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$90.3 A$130

$29.30 ¥196

208.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.92 A$17.15

$5.34 ¥35.68

123.22%

Cappuccino

$4.03 A$5.80

$3.06 ¥20.47

31.70%

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

$2.88 A$4.15

$0.58 ¥3.87

396.55%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 A$3.20

$0.34 ¥2.25

555.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.89 A$11.36

$1.36 ¥9.11

480.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.78 A$9.76

$2.75 ¥18.38

146.55%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 A$2.45

$1.79 ¥11.95

-4.47%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$1.91 ¥12.75

53.93%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 A$3.61

$1.11 ¥7.39

126.13%

Eggs

$5.55 A$7.99

$1.52 ¥10.19

265.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.77 A$16.94

$16.29 ¥109

-27.75%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 A$13.35

$5.14 ¥34.37

80.54%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.70 A$24.03

$12.23 ¥81.8

36.55%

Apples (1kg)

$3.92 A$5.64

$2.29 ¥15.28

71.18%

Banana (1kg)

$3.16 A$4.55

$1.22 ¥8.18

159.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.48 A$5.00

$1.38 ¥9.22

152.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.38 A$6.31

$1.78 ¥11.89

146.07%

Potato (1kg)

$3.33 A$4.79

$0.96 ¥6.40

246.88%

Onion (1kg)

$2.40 A$3.46

$1.18 ¥7.92

103.39%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.31 A$3.32

$0.83 ¥5.55

178.31%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 A$1.65

$0.66 ¥4.44

74.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.34 A$63.8

$3.90 ¥26.04

1036.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.71 A$19.72

$10.64 ¥71.1

28.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.00 A$5.75

$1.02 ¥6.79

292.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.03 A$5.80

$1.90 ¥12.71

112.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.22 A$4.63

$0.31 ¥2.10

938.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$154 A$222

$17.71 ¥118

770.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.57 A$5.14

$1.84 ¥12.32

94.02%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.58 A$2.27

$0.43 ¥2.89

267.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.44 A$56.8

$7.19 ¥48.04

448.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.13

$1.33 ¥8.88

11.28%

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

$29.6K A$42.5K

$19.2K ¥128.1K

54.28%

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

$27.7K A$39.8K

$17.7K ¥118.6K

55.91%

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

$241 A$347

$61.4 ¥410

293.38%

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

$27.57 A$39.67

$16.39 ¥110

68.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$56.3 A$81.0

$14.49 ¥96.9

288.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$78.1 A$112

$41.17 ¥275

89.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.26 A$33.47

$15.11 ¥101

53.94%

Cinema Ticket

$17.55 A$25.26

$6.54 ¥43.72

168.35%

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

$2,185 A$3,144

$422 ¥2,823

417.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$27.8K A$40.0K

$24.4K ¥163.4K

13.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$49.24 ¥329

62.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$70.7 A$102

$41.47 ¥277

70.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$159

$81.1 ¥542

36.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 A$186

$69.9 ¥467

85.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,477 A$3,564

$303 ¥2,026

717.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,777 A$2,557

$182 ¥1,218

875.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,885 A$7,030

$623 ¥4,165

684.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,093 A$4,451

$375 ¥2,507

724.96%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.4K A$19.3K

$3,487 ¥23.3K

284.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,375 A$12.1K

$1,937 ¥13.0K

332.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,074 A$5,862

$1,362 ¥9,104

199.19%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.92

3.38

75.15%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 20, 2026

Last update for Heyuan: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.8K 54.8%

Heyuan

$182 23% 89.7% $1.6K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$378 11.7%

Heyuan

$239 30.1% 36.9% $140

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$325 10%

Heyuan

$92 11.6% 71.6% $233

Eating Out

Sydney

$297 9.2%

Heyuan

$93 11.8% 68.6% $204

Getting Around

Sydney

$178 5.5%

Heyuan

$23 2.9% 87.1% $155

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$176 5.4%

Heyuan

$109 13.7% 38.1% $67

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$113 3.5%

Heyuan

$54 6.9% 52.1% $59

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,477 in Sydney versus $303 in Heyuan. 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 199% 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 $90.0 in Sydney versus $29.00 in Heyuan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $378 vs $239 – making Heyuan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇨🇳 Heyuan

🕒 Local time

21:21 9:21 PM

18:21 6:21 PM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

2,953,019

💱 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 Heyuan 7,480 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

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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 Heyuan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $3,245 in Sydney, $792 in Heyuan – roughly 310% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,867 per month in Sydney and $1,188 in Heyuan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Groceries cost about 59% 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 mid-range dinner for two costs $90.0 in Sydney and $29.00 in Heyuan. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Heyuan, where all-in costs run around $792, than in Sydney at $3,245. In Heyuan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sydney it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Heyuan – 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 Heyuan. 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.