Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Kunshan

For one person, living is cheaper in Kunshan: $710 a month against $3,182 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $29,700 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
35

Cost of Living Index in Kunshan
Learn more

Kunshan Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,182

/mo nomad

Kunshan

🇨🇳 China

$710

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Kunshan

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

A single person spends $3,182 per month in Sydney vs $710 in Kunshan, rent included.

Sydney $3,182
Kunshan $710

A couple spends around $4,696 per month in Sydney vs $1,135 in Kunshan, rent included.

Sydney $4,696
Kunshan $1,135

A family of three spends $6,210 per month in Sydney vs $1,561 in Kunshan, rent included.

Sydney $6,210
Kunshan $1,561

Sydney costs about 348% more than Kunshan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sydney sits 137% above the global median, while Kunshan is 47% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.66 A$25.38

$2.76 ¥18.47

539.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$97.1 A$140

$21.37 ¥143

354.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.94 A$17.16

$4.78 ¥31.96

149.79%

Cappuccino

$4.00 A$5.75

$3.03 ¥20.28

32.01%

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

$2.84 A$4.07

$0.46 ¥3.09

517.39%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 A$3.26

$0.29 ¥1.94

682.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.89 A$11.34

$0.94 ¥6.28

739.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.13 A$10.24

$2.14 ¥14.32

233.18%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 A$2.39

$1.85 ¥12.38

-10.27%

White Bread (500g)

$2.79 A$4.01

$1.56 ¥10.43

78.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.32 A$3.34

$0.94 ¥6.29

146.81%

Eggs

$5.53 A$7.95

$1.61 ¥10.78

243.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.08 A$17.36

$13.00 ¥86.9

-7.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.84 A$14.15

$3.24 ¥21.67

203.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.61 A$23.88

$10.38 ¥69.4

60.02%

Apples (1kg)

$4.02 A$5.78

$1.81 ¥12.10

122.10%

Banana (1kg)

$3.15 A$4.53

$1.19 ¥7.98

164.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.50 A$5.04

$1.48 ¥9.90

136.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.47 A$6.42

$1.09 ¥7.27

310.09%

Potato (1kg)

$3.32 A$4.78

$0.70 ¥4.70

374.29%

Onion (1kg)

$2.30 A$3.31

$0.98 ¥6.52

134.69%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.34 A$3.37

$0.56 ¥3.74

317.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 A$1.66

$0.51 ¥3.44

125.49%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$45.02 A$64.7

$3.16 ¥21.15

1324.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.96 A$20.06

$10.71 ¥71.6

30.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.98 A$5.72

$0.74 ¥4.96

437.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.07 A$5.84

$1.59 ¥10.63

155.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.16 A$4.54

$0.27 ¥1.78

1070.37%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$150 A$216

$17.00 ¥114

782.12%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.45 A$4.96

$1.41 ¥9.44

144.68%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.33 ¥2.18

393.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.98 A$57.5

$6.75 ¥45.12

492.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 A$2.01

$1.18 ¥7.91

18.64%

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

$28.4K A$40.8K

$19.8K ¥132.2K

43.65%

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

$29.4K A$42.3K

$17.4K ¥116.1K

69.20%

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

$220 A$316

$44.30 ¥296

396.37%

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

$27.70 A$39.81

$9.92 ¥66.3

179.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.5 A$79.8

$11.65 ¥77.9

376.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.3 A$107

$41.65 ¥278

78.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.95 A$34.42

$13.67 ¥91.4

75.20%

Cinema Ticket

$17.73 A$25.48

$5.99 ¥40.04

195.99%

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

$2,157 A$3,100

$331 ¥2,211

552.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.3K A$40.7K

$16.7K ¥111.6K

69.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 A$113

$42.98 ¥287

82.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$70.5 A$101

$29.88 ¥200

136.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$160

$72.0 ¥481

54.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$132 A$189

$72.0 ¥481

83.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,514 A$3,613

$273 ¥1,824

821.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,732 A$2,489

$196 ¥1,310

783.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,889 A$7,025

$601 ¥4,017

713.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,039 A$4,367

$356 ¥2,376

754.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.2K A$19.0K

$3,052 ¥20.4K

332.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,117 A$11.7K

$2,029 ¥13.6K

299.96%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,082 A$5,867

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

3.89

50.13%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 5, 2026

Last update for Kunshan: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.7K 54.5%

Kunshan

$196 27.3% 88.7% $1.5K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$380 12%

Kunshan

$199 27.7% 47.7% $181

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$303 9.6%

Kunshan

$66 9.2% 78.3% $237

Eating Out

Sydney

$299 9.4%

Kunshan

$85 11.8% 71.6% $214

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$176 5.6%

Kunshan

$98 13.6% 44.7% $79

Getting Around

Sydney

$174 5.5%

Kunshan

$21 2.9% 87.9% $153

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$110 3.5%

Kunshan

$54 7.5% 51.1% $56

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,514 in Sydney versus $273 in Kunshan. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $97.0 in Sydney versus $21.00 in Kunshan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $380 vs $199 – making Kunshan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇨🇳 Kunshan

🕒 Local time

20:43 8:43 PM

17:43 5:43 PM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

2,092,496

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.696 USD

1 AUD = 0.623 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 13, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.696 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.623 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.46 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

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Sydney Kunshan 7,920 km ≈ 10 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 Kunshan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Sydney is pricier by about 348%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,774 per month in Sydney and $1,065 in Kunshan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

A mid-range dinner for two costs $97.0 in Sydney and $21.00 in Kunshan. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,182 in Sydney and $710 in Kunshan. That's a gap of about 348%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Kunshan, where all-in costs run around $710, than in Sydney at $3,182. In Kunshan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sydney it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Kunshan – 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 Kunshan. 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.