Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Nanchong

For one person, living is cheaper in Nanchong: $685 a month against $3,245 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $30,700 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
33

Cost of Living Index in Nanchong
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Nanchong Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,245

/mo nomad

Nanchong

🇨🇳 China

$685

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Nanchong

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

A single person spends $3,245 per month in Sydney vs $685 in Nanchong, rent included.

Sydney $3,245
Nanchong $685

A couple spends around $4,803 per month in Sydney vs $1,108 in Nanchong, rent included.

Sydney $4,803
Nanchong $1,108

A family of three spends $6,362 per month in Sydney vs $1,530 in Nanchong, rent included.

Sydney $6,362
Nanchong $1,530

Sydney costs about 374% more than Nanchong, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sydney sits 139% above the global median, while Nanchong is 49% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.41 A$25.05

$1.81 ¥12.11

861.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$90.3 A$130

$22.47 ¥150

301.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.92 A$17.15

$2.95 ¥19.72

304.07%

Cappuccino

$4.03 A$5.80

$2.02 ¥13.50

99.50%

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

$2.88 A$4.15

$0.47 ¥3.11

512.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 A$3.20

$0.31 ¥2.09

619.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.89 A$11.36

$1.21 ¥8.12

552.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.78 A$9.76

$1.76 ¥11.80

285.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 A$2.45

$2.04 ¥13.63

-16.18%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$1.63 ¥10.89

80.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 A$3.61

$0.64 ¥4.29

292.19%

Eggs

$5.55 A$7.99

$2.24 ¥14.98

147.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.77 A$16.94

$17.80 ¥119

-33.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 A$13.35

$3.33 ¥22.24

178.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.70 A$24.03

$9.90 ¥66.2

68.69%

Apples (1kg)

$3.92 A$5.64

$1.55 ¥10.35

152.90%

Banana (1kg)

$3.16 A$4.55

$1.30 ¥8.69

143.08%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.48 A$5.00

$1.24 ¥8.29

180.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.38 A$6.31

$1.22 ¥8.15

259.02%

Potato (1kg)

$3.33 A$4.79

$0.62 ¥4.15

437.10%

Onion (1kg)

$2.40 A$3.46

$1.02 ¥6.79

135.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.31 A$3.32

$0.84 ¥5.60

175.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 A$1.65

$0.67 ¥4.48

71.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.34 A$63.8

$2.93 ¥19.57

1413.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.71 A$19.72

$9.10 ¥60.9

50.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.00 A$5.75

$0.76 ¥5.06

426.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.03 A$5.80

$1.72 ¥11.48

134.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.22 A$4.63

$0.30 ¥1.98

973.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$154 A$222

$16.96 ¥113

808.61%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.57 A$5.14

$1.52 ¥10.19

134.87%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.58 A$2.27

$0.29 ¥1.92

444.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.44 A$56.8

$2.93 ¥19.60

1246.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.13

$1.32 ¥8.83

12.12%

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

$29.6K A$42.5K

$19.6K ¥130.8K

51.01%

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

$27.7K A$39.8K

$17.0K ¥114.0K

62.24%

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

$241 A$347

$45.73 ¥306

427.84%

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

$27.57 A$39.67

$7.14 ¥47.74

286.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$56.3 A$81.0

$7.15 ¥47.84

687.27%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$78.1 A$112

$42.10 ¥281

85.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.26 A$33.47

$16.22 ¥108

43.40%

Cinema Ticket

$17.55 A$25.26

$5.83 ¥38.97

201.03%

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

$2,185 A$3,144

$285 ¥1,908

665.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$27.8K A$40.0K

$25.6K ¥171.2K

8.49%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$38.66 ¥258

106.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$70.7 A$102

$30.39 ¥203

132.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$159

$63.9 ¥427

73.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 A$186

$64.2 ¥429

101.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,477 A$3,564

$300 ¥2,003

726.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,777 A$2,557

$186 ¥1,245

854.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,885 A$7,030

$614 ¥4,102

696.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,093 A$4,451

$369 ¥2,467

738.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.4K A$19.3K

$3,544 ¥23.7K

278.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,375 A$12.1K

$1,958 ¥13.1K

327.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,074 A$5,862

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.92

3.34

77.25%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 20, 2026

Last update for Nanchong: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.8K 54.8%

Nanchong

$186 27.2% 89.5% $1.6K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$378 11.7%

Nanchong

$215 31.4% 43.1% $163

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$325 10%

Nanchong

$60 8.8% 81.5% $265

Eating Out

Sydney

$297 9.2%

Nanchong

$60 8.8% 79.7% $237

Getting Around

Sydney

$178 5.5%

Nanchong

$21 3.1% 88.2% $157

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$176 5.4%

Nanchong

$89 13% 49.5% $87

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$113 3.5%

Nanchong

$54 7.9% 52.5% $59

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,477 in Sydney versus $300 in Nanchong. 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 $90.0 in Sydney versus $22.00 in Nanchong. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $378 vs $215 – making Nanchong the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇨🇳 Nanchong

🕒 Local time

01:16 1:16 AM

22:16 10:16 PM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

5,607,565

💱 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 →

On the map

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Between locations

Sydney Nanchong 8,610 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Sydney
Nanchong

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 Nanchong: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $3,245 in Sydney, $685 in Nanchong – roughly 374% 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 $1,028 in Nanchong. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Kindergarten costs $2,185 per month in Sydney and $285 in Nanchong. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 76% 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 $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Nanchong, where all-in costs run around $685, than in Sydney at $3,245. In Nanchong it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sydney it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Nanchong – 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 Nanchong. 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.