Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tonghua and Shanghai

For one person, living is cheaper in Tonghua: $643 a month against $1,244 in Shanghai, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

31

Cost of Living Index in Tonghua
Learn more

Tonghua Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Shanghai
Learn more

Shanghai Living Index

Jump to prices

Tonghua

🇨🇳 China

$643

/mo nomad

Shanghai

🇨🇳 China

$1,244

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Tonghua and in Shanghai

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $643 in Tonghua versus $1,244 in Shanghai.

Tonghua $643
Shanghai $1,244

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,053 in Tonghua versus $1,999 in Shanghai.

Tonghua $1,053
Shanghai $1,999

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,463 in Tonghua versus $2,755 in Shanghai.

Tonghua $1,463
Shanghai $2,755

Living in Tonghua costs roughly 48% less than in Shanghai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Tonghua 52% lower, Shanghai 8% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.22 ¥14.84

$4.56 ¥30.47

-51.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.59 ¥151

$30.21 ¥202

-25.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.20 ¥34.77

$5.25 ¥35.13

-0.95%

Cappuccino

$2.31 ¥15.41

$3.28 ¥21.94

-29.57%

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

$0.46 ¥3.09

$0.57 ¥3.84

-19.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.39 ¥2.58

$0.36 ¥2.39

8.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.76 ¥5.08

$1.23 ¥8.23

-38.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 ¥12.64

$2.27 ¥15.18

-16.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.69 ¥11.28

$1.84 ¥12.30

-8.15%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 ¥14.07

$1.96 ¥13.08

7.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.04 ¥6.93

$1.03 ¥6.87

0.97%

Eggs

$1.05 ¥7.03

$1.67 ¥11.16

-37.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.65 ¥98.0

$16.96 ¥113

-13.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.08 ¥20.56

$3.19 ¥21.33

-3.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.85 ¥45.81

$12.90 ¥86.3

-46.90%

Apples (1kg)

$0.94 ¥6.26

$2.24 ¥15.00

-58.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.07 ¥7.18

$1.66 ¥11.13

-35.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.85 ¥5.68

$2.02 ¥13.54

-57.92%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.08 ¥7.22

$1.66 ¥11.08

-34.94%

Potato (1kg)

$0.94 ¥6.30

$0.77 ¥5.17

22.08%

Onion (1kg)

$1.02 ¥6.83

$0.93 ¥6.21

9.68%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.58 ¥3.86

$0.63 ¥4.19

-7.94%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.65 ¥4.34

$0.60 ¥3.99

8.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.70 ¥24.77

$3.80 ¥25.44

-2.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.00 ¥80.2

$10.87 ¥72.7

10.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 ¥4.39

$0.82 ¥5.51

-19.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.11 ¥7.41

$1.61 ¥10.76

-31.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 ¥2.10

$0.61 ¥4.11

-49.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.28 ¥122

$29.40 ¥197

-37.82%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.92 ¥6.14

$2.11 ¥14.11

-56.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.38 ¥2.55

$0.43 ¥2.87

-11.63%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.98 ¥19.92

$9.06 ¥60.6

-67.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.24 ¥8.28

$1.33 ¥8.89

-6.77%

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

$19.2K ¥128.5K

$19.0K ¥127.2K

1.01%

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

$17.0K ¥113.5K

$18.7K ¥125.1K

-9.25%

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

$23.07 ¥154

$57.8 ¥387

-60.09%

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

$5.90 ¥39.44

$8.09 ¥54.1

-27.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.71 ¥58.2

$10.48 ¥70.0

-16.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.35 ¥283

$65.7 ¥439

-35.53%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.88 ¥99.5

$17.82 ¥119

-16.50%

Cinema Ticket

$5.94 ¥39.73

$8.95 ¥59.9

-33.63%

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

$297 ¥1,989

$1,414 ¥9,451

-78.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ¥98.8K

$27.9K ¥186.2K

-46.98%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$22.26 ¥149

$54.0 ¥361

-58.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.18 ¥229

$37.09 ¥248

-7.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$60.2 ¥403

$74.3 ¥496

-18.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$68.8 ¥460

$106 ¥706

-34.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$301 ¥2,011

$1,055 ¥7,056

-71.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$183 ¥1,224

$585 ¥3,910

-68.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$625 ¥4,178

$2,485 ¥16.6K

-74.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$383 ¥2,560

$1,232 ¥8,240

-68.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,437 ¥23.0K

$13.9K ¥93.1K

-75.32%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,956 ¥13.1K

$6,253 ¥41.8K

-68.72%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$518 ¥3,462

$1,711 ¥11.4K

-69.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.36

19.05%

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

Last update for Tonghua: October 10, 2026

Last update for Shanghai: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Tonghua

$191 29.6%

Shanghai

$235 18.9% 23.2% $44

Accommodation & Living

Tonghua

$183 28.5%

Shanghai

$585 47% 220% $402

Clothing & Footwear

Tonghua

$83 13%

Shanghai

$122 9.8% 46.1% $38

Eating Out

Tonghua

$72 11.2%

Shanghai

$106 8.5% 47.3% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Tonghua

$54 8.4%

Shanghai

$84 6.7% 54.2% $29

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tonghua

$38 5.9%

Shanghai

$76 6.1% 103% $39

Getting Around

Tonghua

$22 3.5%

Shanghai

$36 2.9% 61.5% $14

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $301 in Tonghua and $1,055 in Shanghai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Shanghai pays 230% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $23.00 in Tonghua vs $30.00 in Shanghai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $191 vs $235 per month, with Tonghua cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Tonghua

🇨🇳 Shanghai

🕒 Local time

17:16 5:16 PM

Same time as Tonghua

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

446,917

24,870,895

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Tonghua Shanghai 1,230 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Tonghua
Shanghai

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

Tonghua vs Shanghai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Tonghua and Shanghai differ by about 93% in total monthly costs ($643 vs $1,244 including rent). Tonghua is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 230% lower in Shanghai. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $301 in Tonghua versus $1,055 in Shanghai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $297 in Tonghua versus $1,414 in Shanghai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 23% higher in Shanghai. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $643 in Tonghua versus $1,244 in Shanghai, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Tonghua but tight or insufficient in Shanghai. The gap between the two cities makes Tonghua the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Tonghua gentler on the wallet – expenses run 93% less than in Shanghai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.