Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Qingdao, Shandong

For one person, living is cheaper in Qingdao, Shandong: $756 a month against $3,182 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $29,100 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
37

Cost of Living Index in Qingdao, Shandong
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Qingdao, Shandong Living Index

Jump to prices

Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,182

/mo nomad

Qingdao, Shandong

🇨🇳 China

$756

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Qingdao, Shandong

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

A single person spends $3,182 per month in Sydney vs $756 in Qingdao, Shandong, rent included.

Sydney $3,182
Qingdao, Shandong $756

A couple spends around $4,696 per month in Sydney vs $1,233 in Qingdao, Shandong, rent included.

Sydney $4,696
Qingdao, Shandong $1,233

A family of three spends $6,210 per month in Sydney vs $1,709 in Qingdao, Shandong, rent included.

Sydney $6,210
Qingdao, Shandong $1,709

Sydney costs about 321% more than Qingdao, Shandong, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sydney sits 137% above the global median, while Qingdao, Shandong is 44% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.66 A$25.28

$2.91 ¥19.43

506.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$97.1 A$139

$17.98 ¥120

439.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.94 A$17.09

$4.46 ¥29.79

167.71%

Cappuccino

$4.00 A$5.72

$2.66 ¥17.78

50.38%

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

$2.84 A$4.06

$0.54 ¥3.64

425.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 A$3.25

$0.32 ¥2.15

609.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.89 A$11.29

$1.11 ¥7.42

610.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.13 A$10.20

$2.67 ¥17.82

167.04%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 A$2.38

$1.91 ¥12.73

-13.09%

White Bread (500g)

$2.79 A$4.00

$1.35 ¥9.05

106.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.32 A$3.33

$0.97 ¥6.50

139.18%

Eggs

$5.53 A$7.92

$1.29 ¥8.63

328.68%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.08 A$17.28

$16.27 ¥109

-25.75%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.84 A$14.09

$4.36 ¥29.12

125.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.61 A$23.78

$9.66 ¥64.6

71.95%

Apples (1kg)

$4.02 A$5.76

$1.41 ¥9.43

185.11%

Banana (1kg)

$3.15 A$4.51

$1.20 ¥7.99

162.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.50 A$5.01

$1.73 ¥11.55

102.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.47 A$6.39

$1.26 ¥8.39

254.76%

Potato (1kg)

$3.32 A$4.76

$0.68 ¥4.53

388.24%

Onion (1kg)

$2.30 A$3.30

$0.96 ¥6.44

139.58%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.34 A$3.35

$0.94 ¥6.26

148.94%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 A$1.65

$0.61 ¥4.09

88.52%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$45.02 A$64.4

$3.79 ¥25.34

1087.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.96 A$19.97

$14.69 ¥98.2

-4.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.98 A$5.70

$1.01 ¥6.75

294.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.07 A$5.82

$1.57 ¥10.50

159.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.16 A$4.52

$0.31 ¥2.10

919.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$150 A$215

$18.25 ¥122

721.70%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.45 A$4.94

$1.50 ¥10.03

130.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.63 A$2.33

$0.41 ¥2.74

297.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.98 A$57.2

$9.06 ¥60.5

341.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 A$2.01

$1.31 ¥8.74

6.87%

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

$28.4K A$40.7K

$19.1K ¥127.4K

49.14%

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

$29.4K A$42.1K

$16.6K ¥110.7K

77.55%

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

$220 A$315

$69.2 ¥463

217.62%

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

$27.70 A$39.64

$6.73 ¥44.95

311.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.5 A$79.5

$7.73 ¥51.7

618.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.3 A$106

$20.95 ¥140

254.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.95 A$34.28

$18.21 ¥122

31.52%

Cinema Ticket

$17.73 A$25.37

$6.25 ¥41.79

183.68%

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

$2,157 A$3,087

$365 ¥2,439

491.01%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.3K A$40.5K

$17.6K ¥117.4K

61.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 A$112

$52.5 ¥351

49.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$70.5 A$101

$49.25 ¥329

43.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$159

$93.9 ¥628

18.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$132 A$189

$91.2 ¥609

44.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,514 A$3,598

$353 ¥2,362

611.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,732 A$2,478

$199 ¥1,328

771.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,889 A$6,996

$757 ¥5,056

546.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,039 A$4,349

$418 ¥2,796

626.30%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.2K A$18.9K

$3,573 ¥23.9K

269.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,117 A$11.6K

$2,172 ¥14.5K

273.67%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,082 A$5,842

$1,196 ¥7,995

241.22%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

3.37

73.29%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 5, 2026

Last update for Qingdao, Shandong: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.7K 54.5%

Qingdao, Shandong

$199 25.7% 88.5% $1.5K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$380 12%

Qingdao, Shandong

$221 28.7% 41.8% $159

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$303 9.6%

Qingdao, Shandong

$84 10.8% 72.4% $219

Eating Out

Sydney

$299 9.4%

Qingdao, Shandong

$83 10.7% 72.3% $216

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$176 5.6%

Qingdao, Shandong

$129 16.7% 26.8% $47

Getting Around

Sydney

$174 5.5%

Qingdao, Shandong

$23 3% 86.8% $151

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$110 3.5%

Qingdao, Shandong

$33 4.3% 69.5% $76

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,514 in Sydney versus $353 in Qingdao, Shandong. 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 241% 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 $97.0 in Sydney versus $18.00 in Qingdao, Shandong. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $380 vs $221 – making Qingdao, Shandong the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇨🇳 Qingdao, Shandong

🕒 Local time

22:47 10:47 PM

19:47 7:47 PM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

10,071,722

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.699 USD

1 AUD = 0.624 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.699 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.624 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 10, 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 →

On the map

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Between locations

Sydney Qingdao, Shandong 8,410 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Sydney
Qingdao, Shandong

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 Qingdao, Shandong: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Sydney is pricier by about 321%, 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 $1,134 in Qingdao, Shandong. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Groceries cost about 72% 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 $97.0 in Sydney and $18.00 in Qingdao, Shandong. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Qingdao, Shandong, where all-in costs run around $756, than in Sydney at $3,182. In Qingdao, Shandong it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sydney it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Qingdao, Shandong – 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 Qingdao, Shandong. 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.