Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Suzhou

For one person, living is cheaper in Suzhou: $876 a month against $3,182 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $27,700 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
42

Cost of Living Index in Suzhou
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Suzhou Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,182

/mo nomad

Suzhou

🇨🇳 China

$876

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Suzhou

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

A single person spends $3,182 per month in Sydney vs $876 in Suzhou, rent included.

Sydney $3,182
Suzhou $876

A couple spends around $4,696 per month in Sydney vs $1,504 in Suzhou, rent included.

Sydney $4,696
Suzhou $1,504

A family of three spends $6,210 per month in Sydney vs $2,132 in Suzhou, rent included.

Sydney $6,210
Suzhou $2,132

Sydney costs about 263% more than Suzhou, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sydney sits 137% above the global median, while Suzhou is 35% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.66 A$25.28

$4.26 ¥28.48

314.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$97.1 A$139

$29.42 ¥197

230.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.94 A$17.09

$5.29 ¥35.36

125.71%

Cappuccino

$4.00 A$5.72

$3.38 ¥22.58

18.34%

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

$2.84 A$4.06

$0.73 ¥4.86

289.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 A$3.25

$0.39 ¥2.59

482.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.89 A$11.29

$2.25 ¥15.05

250.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.13 A$10.20

$4.60 ¥30.71

55.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 A$2.38

$1.89 ¥12.61

-12.17%

White Bread (500g)

$2.79 A$4.00

$2.04 ¥13.63

36.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.32 A$3.33

$1.29 ¥8.63

79.84%

Eggs

$5.53 A$7.92

$1.82 ¥12.19

203.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.08 A$17.28

$17.80 ¥119

-32.13%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.84 A$14.09

$3.50 ¥23.36

181.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.61 A$23.78

$8.57 ¥57.3

93.82%

Apples (1kg)

$4.02 A$5.76

$2.03 ¥13.58

98.03%

Banana (1kg)

$3.15 A$4.51

$1.28 ¥8.54

146.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.50 A$5.01

$1.39 ¥9.27

151.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.47 A$6.39

$1.50 ¥10.03

198.00%

Potato (1kg)

$3.32 A$4.76

$0.63 ¥4.21

426.98%

Onion (1kg)

$2.30 A$3.30

$1.17 ¥7.79

96.58%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.34 A$3.35

$0.83 ¥5.56

181.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 A$1.65

$0.55 ¥3.69

109.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$45.02 A$64.4

$4.56 ¥30.50

887.28%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.96 A$19.97

$9.01 ¥60.2

54.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.98 A$5.70

$1.06 ¥7.11

275.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.07 A$5.82

$2.06 ¥13.77

97.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.16 A$4.52

$0.39 ¥2.59

710.26%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$150 A$215

$43.93 ¥294

241.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.45 A$4.94

$1.73 ¥11.59

99.42%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.63 A$2.33

$0.36 ¥2.38

352.78%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.98 A$57.2

$10.20 ¥68.2

291.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 A$2.01

$1.28 ¥8.58

9.37%

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

$28.4K A$40.7K

$19.6K ¥131.3K

44.64%

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

$29.4K A$42.1K

$17.7K ¥118.6K

65.69%

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

$220 A$315

$99.4 ¥664

121.22%

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

$27.70 A$39.64

$12.81 ¥85.6

116.24%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.5 A$79.5

$11.12 ¥74.4

399.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.3 A$106

$33.16 ¥222

124.13%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.95 A$34.28

$18.47 ¥123

29.67%

Cinema Ticket

$17.73 A$25.37

$5.85 ¥39.09

203.08%

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

$2,157 A$3,087

$1,213 ¥8,105

77.83%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.3K A$40.5K

$21.4K ¥143.0K

32.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 A$112

$52.4 ¥350

49.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$70.5 A$101

$41.14 ¥275

71.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$159

$83.3 ¥557

33.61%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$132 A$189

$86.6 ¥578

52.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,514 A$3,598

$457 ¥3,057

449.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,732 A$2,478

$193 ¥1,292

795.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,889 A$6,996

$1,033 ¥6,902

373.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,039 A$4,349

$594 ¥3,971

411.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.2K A$18.9K

$5,329 ¥35.6K

147.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,117 A$11.6K

$2,773 ¥18.5K

192.74%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,082 A$5,842

$1,381 ¥9,231

195.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

3.53

65.44%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 5, 2026

Last update for Suzhou: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.7K 54.5%

Suzhou

$193 22.3% 88.8% $1.5K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$380 12%

Suzhou

$221 25.5% 41.9% $160

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$303 9.6%

Suzhou

$123 14.3% 59.3% $180

Eating Out

Sydney

$299 9.4%

Suzhou

$115 13.3% 61.4% $184

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$176 5.6%

Suzhou

$119 13.7% 32.8% $58

Getting Around

Sydney

$174 5.5%

Suzhou

$49 5.7% 71.9% $125

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$110 3.5%

Suzhou

$45 5.2% 59.1% $65

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,514 in Sydney versus $457 in Suzhou. 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 196% 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 $29.00 in Suzhou. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $380 vs $221 – making Suzhou the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇨🇳 Suzhou

🕒 Local time

19:27 7:27 PM

16:27 4:27 PM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

12,748,262

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.699 USD

1 AUD = 0.623 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.699 USD). 1 EUR = 1.61 AUD (1 AUD = 0.623 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.5 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

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Sydney Suzhou 7,930 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 Suzhou: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $3,182 in Sydney, $876 in Suzhou – roughly 263% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,774 per month in Sydney and $1,313 in Suzhou. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,182 in Sydney and $876 in Suzhou. That's a gap of about 263%.

Public transport costs about 241% less in Suzhou. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Suzhou, where all-in costs run around $876, than in Sydney at $3,182. In Suzhou it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sydney it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Suzhou – 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 Suzhou. 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.