Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tianjin and Sydney

For one person, living is cheaper in Tianjin: $885 a month against $3,182 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $27,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

43

Cost of Living Index in Tianjin
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Tianjin Living Index
155

Cost of Living Index in Sydney
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Sydney Living Index

Jump to prices

Tianjin

🇨🇳 China

$885

/mo nomad

Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,182

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Tianjin and in Sydney

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Tianjin and in Sydney actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $885 per month in Tianjin vs $3,182 in Sydney, rent included.

Tianjin $885
Sydney $3,182

A couple spends around $1,352 per month in Tianjin vs $4,696 in Sydney, rent included.

Tianjin $1,352
Sydney $4,696

A family of three spends $1,820 per month in Tianjin vs $6,210 in Sydney, rent included.

Tianjin $1,820
Sydney $6,210

Tianjin is about 72% cheaper than Sydney, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Tianjin sits 34% below the global median, while Sydney is 137% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.11 ¥27.46

$17.66 A$25.28

-76.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.08 ¥161

$97.1 A$139

-75.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.09 ¥40.69

$11.94 A$17.09

-48.99%

Cappuccino

$4.09 ¥27.32

$4.00 A$5.72

2.25%

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

$0.47 ¥3.12

$2.84 A$4.06

-83.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.28 ¥1.88

$2.27 A$3.25

-87.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.93 ¥6.21

$7.89 A$11.29

-88.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.76 ¥11.79

$7.13 A$10.20

-75.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 ¥9.81

$1.66 A$2.38

-11.45%

White Bread (500g)

$2.24 ¥14.99

$2.79 A$4.00

-19.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.66 ¥11.07

$2.32 A$3.33

-28.45%

Eggs

$1.31 ¥8.76

$5.53 A$7.92

-76.31%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.11 ¥101

$12.08 A$17.28

25.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.68 ¥24.57

$9.84 A$14.09

-62.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.81 ¥65.5

$16.61 A$23.78

-40.94%

Apples (1kg)

$1.61 ¥10.78

$4.02 A$5.76

-59.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.59 ¥10.61

$3.15 A$4.51

-49.52%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.73 ¥11.55

$3.50 A$5.01

-50.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.18 ¥7.87

$4.47 A$6.39

-73.60%

Potato (1kg)

$0.90 ¥6.03

$3.32 A$4.76

-72.89%

Onion (1kg)

$1.18 ¥7.87

$2.30 A$3.30

-48.70%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.67 ¥4.49

$2.34 A$3.35

-71.37%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.69 ¥4.64

$1.15 A$1.65

-40.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.23 ¥34.98

$45.02 A$64.4

-88.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.58 ¥90.8

$13.96 A$19.97

-2.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.01 ¥6.75

$3.98 A$5.70

-74.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 ¥16.81

$4.07 A$5.82

-38.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.29 ¥1.93

$3.16 A$4.52

-90.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.97 ¥59.9

$150 A$215

-94.02%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.62 ¥10.84

$3.45 A$4.94

-53.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.36 ¥2.40

$1.63 A$2.33

-77.91%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.22 ¥41.56

$39.98 A$57.2

-84.44%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.24 ¥8.26

$1.40 A$2.01

-11.43%

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

$19.5K ¥130.0K

$28.4K A$40.7K

-31.54%

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

$17.6K ¥117.5K

$29.4K A$42.1K

-40.19%

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

$92.9 ¥621

$220 A$315

-57.73%

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

$6.36 ¥42.51

$27.70 A$39.64

-77.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$7.34 ¥49.08

$55.5 A$79.5

-86.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$16.57 ¥111

$74.3 A$106

-77.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.50 ¥70.2

$23.95 A$34.28

-56.16%

Cinema Ticket

$7.57 ¥50.6

$17.73 A$25.37

-57.30%

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

$638 ¥4,262

$2,157 A$3,087

-70.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.3K A$40.5K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.5 ¥364

$78.4 A$112

-30.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.27 ¥196

$70.5 A$101

-58.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 ¥735

$111 A$159

-1.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$140 ¥938

$132 A$189

6.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$337 ¥2,254

$2,514 A$3,598

-86.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$246 ¥1,641

$1,732 A$2,478

-85.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$641 ¥4,284

$4,889 A$6,996

-86.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$454 ¥3,032

$3,039 A$4,349

-85.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,339 ¥35.7K

$13.2K A$18.9K

-59.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,335 ¥15.6K

$8,117 A$11.6K

-71.24%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,164 ¥7,776

$4,082 A$5,842

-71.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.54

5.84

-39.38%

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

Last update for Tianjin: October 4, 2026

Last update for Sydney: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Tianjin

$246 27.8%

Sydney

$1.7K 54.5% 605% $1.5K

Groceries & Markets

Tianjin

$226 25.5%

Sydney

$380 12% 68.4% $155

Clothing & Footwear

Tianjin

$150 17%

Sydney

$176 5.6% 17.3% $26

Eating Out

Tianjin

$111 12.6%

Sydney

$299 9.4% 169% $188

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tianjin

$107 12.1%

Sydney

$303 9.6% 184% $196

Sport & Entertainment

Tianjin

$32 3.6%

Sydney

$110 3.5% 246% $78

Getting Around

Tianjin

$14 1.5%

Sydney

$174 5.5% 1186% $161

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $337 in Tianjin versus $2,514 in Sydney. 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 251% 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 $24.00 in Tianjin versus $97.0 in Sydney. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $226 vs $380 – making Tianjin the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Tianjin

🇦🇺 Sydney

🕒 Local time

16:48 4:48 PM

19:48 7:48 PM

3 h ahead of Tianjin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

13,866,009

4,840,600

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

1 AUD = 0.699 USD

1 AUD = 0.623 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

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).

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).

USD to CNY in detail →

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Between locations

Tianjin Sydney 8,840 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Tianjin
Sydney

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

Tianjin vs Sydney: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $885 in Tianjin, $3,182 in Sydney – roughly 260% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,327 per month in Tianjin and $4,774 in Sydney. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Tianjin, 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 $24.00 in Tianjin and $97.0 in Sydney. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $885 in Tianjin and $3,182 in Sydney. That's a gap of about 260%.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Tianjin, where all-in costs run around $885, than in Sydney at $3,182. In Tianjin it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sydney it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Tianjin – 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 Tianjin. 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.