Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Taiyuan

For one person, living is cheaper in Taiyuan: $589 a month against $3,152 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $30,800 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
28

Cost of Living Index in Taiyuan
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Taiyuan Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,152

/mo nomad

Taiyuan

🇨🇳 China

$589

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Taiyuan

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

A single person spends $3,152 per month in Sydney vs $589 in Taiyuan, rent included.

Sydney $3,152
Taiyuan $589

A couple spends around $4,710 per month in Sydney vs $913 in Taiyuan, rent included.

Sydney $4,710
Taiyuan $913

A family of three spends $6,268 per month in Sydney vs $1,238 in Taiyuan, rent included.

Sydney $6,268
Taiyuan $1,238

Sydney costs about 435% more than Taiyuan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Sydney sits 133% above the global median, while Taiyuan is 56% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.57 A$25.29

$2.28 ¥15.23

670.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.5 A$132

$14.73 ¥98.5

521.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.96 A$17.21

$4.40 ¥29.41

171.82%

Cappuccino

$4.07 A$5.85

$2.64 ¥17.62

54.17%

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

$2.85 A$4.10

$0.47 ¥3.12

506.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 A$3.24

$0.29 ¥1.92

675.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.60 A$10.94

$1.22 ¥8.13

522.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.43 A$10.69

$2.15 ¥14.38

245.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 A$2.38

White Bread (500g)

$2.78 A$4.00

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 A$3.49

$0.83 ¥5.52

191.57%

Eggs

$5.64 A$8.12

$1.01 ¥6.76

458.42%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.71 A$16.85

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.66 A$13.89

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.75 A$24.10

$13.02 ¥87.0

28.65%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 A$5.85

$1.87 ¥12.52

117.65%

Banana (1kg)

$3.25 A$4.68

$1.38 ¥9.21

135.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.44 A$4.96

$0.81 ¥5.41

324.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.28 A$6.16

$1.16 ¥7.77

268.97%

Potato (1kg)

$3.28 A$4.72

$0.48 ¥3.20

583.33%

Onion (1kg)

$2.30 A$3.30

$0.29 ¥1.91

693.10%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.30 A$3.31

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 A$1.74

$0.46 ¥3.08

163.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$43.71 A$62.9

$2.95 ¥19.75

1381.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.88 A$19.97

$7.56 ¥50.6

83.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.90 A$5.62

$0.87 ¥5.80

348.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 A$5.63

$1.45 ¥9.72

169.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.04 A$4.38

$0.31 ¥2.08

880.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$150 A$216

$13.65 ¥91.3

1000.59%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.38 A$4.86

$1.18 ¥7.90

186.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 A$2.24

$0.23 ¥1.53

578.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.01 A$57.6

$3.73 ¥24.91

972.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 A$2.01

$1.25 ¥8.34

12.00%

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

$29.1K A$41.9K

$20.0K ¥133.6K

45.76%

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

$30.1K A$43.4K

$17.5K ¥117.3K

71.81%

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

$223 A$320

$94.3 ¥631

136.01%

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

$27.16 A$39.08

$10.27 ¥68.7

164.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.8 A$80.3

$12.74 ¥85.2

338.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.6 A$107

$45.17 ¥302

65.18%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.99 A$34.52

$8.76 ¥58.6

173.86%

Cinema Ticket

$17.56 A$25.27

$6.64 ¥44.37

164.46%

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

$2,196 A$3,160

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.2K A$40.6K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 A$113

$27.60 ¥185

184.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$68.4 A$98.5

$67.2 ¥449

1.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$160

$74.0 ¥495

50.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 A$193

$59.4 ¥397

126.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,500 A$3,598

$223 ¥1,491

1021.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,709 A$2,460

$114 ¥760

1403.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,946 A$7,117

$556 ¥3,719

789.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,022 A$4,349

$259 ¥1,733

1065.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.2K A$18.9K

$2,629 ¥17.6K

400.95%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,370 A$12.0K

$1,252 ¥8,368

568.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,113 A$5,919

$928 ¥6,202

343.42%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

3.83

52.48%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 11, 2026

Last update for Taiyuan: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.7K 54.2%

Taiyuan

$114 19.3% 93.3% $1.6K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$379 12%

Taiyuan

$103 * 17.5% 72.8% $276

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$306 9.7%

Taiyuan

$117 19.9% 61.6% $188

Eating Out

Sydney

$299 9.5%

Taiyuan

$76 13% 74.4% $222

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$177 5.6%

Taiyuan

$103 17.4% 41.9% $74

Getting Around

Sydney

$174 5.5%

Taiyuan

$17 2.9% 90.1% $156

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$110 3.5%

Taiyuan

$58 9.9% 46.7% $51

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,500 in Sydney versus $223 in Taiyuan. 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 343% 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 $91.0 in Sydney versus $15.00 in Taiyuan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $379 vs $103 – making Taiyuan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇨🇳 Taiyuan

🕒 Local time

01:16 1:16 AM

22:16 10:16 PM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

3,525,300

💱 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 18, 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 18, 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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Sydney Taiyuan 8,920 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

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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 Taiyuan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $3,152 in Sydney, $589 in Taiyuan – roughly 435% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,728 per month in Sydney and $883 in Taiyuan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Taiyuan, 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 $3,152 in Sydney and $589 in Taiyuan. That's a gap of about 435%.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $91.0 in Sydney and $15.00 in Taiyuan. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Taiyuan, where all-in costs run around $589, than in Sydney at $3,152. In Taiyuan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sydney it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Taiyuan – 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 Taiyuan. 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.