Cost of Living Comparison Between Xiamen and Shanghai Cost of Living Comparison Between Xiamen and Shanghai

🙂 Solo nomad: Xiamen is 19.2% cheaper than Shanghai without rent, and 35.1% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Xiamen is 23% cheaper than Shanghai without rent, and 34.2% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.76 ¥19.79

$4.73 ¥33.92

-41.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.39 ¥168

$36.17 ¥259

-35.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.63 ¥40.41

$5.6 ¥40.18

0.54%

Cappuccino

$2.75 ¥19.74

$3.56 ¥25.53

-22.75%

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

$0.51 ¥3.62

$0.54 ¥3.9

-5.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ¥2.25

$0.36 ¥2.59

-13.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.41 ¥10.12

$1.43 ¥10.25

-1.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.52 ¥25.26

$2.76 ¥19.81

27.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.86 ¥13.37

$2.18 ¥15.66

-14.68%

White Bread (500g)

$2.14 ¥15.37

$1.81 ¥13

18.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.75 ¥5.41

$1.1 ¥7.9

-31.82%

Eggs

$1.35 ¥9.68

$1.69 ¥12.1

-20.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.04 ¥79.2

$15.79 ¥113

-30.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.36 ¥16.91

$3.17 ¥22.76

-25.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.06 ¥79.4

$10.88 ¥78.1

1.65%

Apples (1kg)

$2.45 ¥17.55

$2.26 ¥16.24

8.41%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 ¥9.88

$1.67 ¥11.98

-17.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.56 ¥11.17

$1.78 ¥12.78

-12.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.82 ¥13.09

$1.52 ¥10.94

19.74%

Potato (1kg)

$0.9 ¥6.48

$0.85 ¥6.09

5.88%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 ¥12.28

$1.17 ¥8.37

46.15%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.81 ¥5.84

$0.68 ¥4.84

19.12%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ¥3.65

$0.6 ¥4.29

-15.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.77 ¥19.85

$2.87 ¥20.56

-3.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.51 ¥75.4

$11.16 ¥80

-5.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.8 ¥5.72

$0.8 ¥5.73

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.64 ¥11.77

$1.56 ¥11.22

5.13%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.22 ¥1.58

$0.4 ¥2.89

-45.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.1 ¥79.6

$35.15 ¥252

-68.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.37 ¥9.79

$2.29 ¥16.45

-40.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.28 ¥2.03

$0.37 ¥2.69

-24.32%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.61 ¥47.44

$8.14 ¥58.4

-18.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.13 ¥8.1

$1.09 ¥7.81

3.67%

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

$16.3K ¥116.7K

$19.5K ¥140.1K

-16.73%

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

$17.8K ¥127.7K

$18.2K ¥130.5K

-2.12%

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

$39.45 ¥283

$51.6 ¥370

-23.47%

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

$9.96 ¥71.4

$8.68 ¥62.2

14.75%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.71 ¥69.7

$13.5 ¥96.8

-28.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.63 ¥313

$46.42 ¥333

-6.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.98 ¥71.6

$20.44 ¥147

-51.17%

Cinema Ticket

$9.6 ¥68.8

$8.58 ¥61.5

11.89%

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

$459 ¥3,292

$1,307 ¥9,378

-64.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.7K ¥163K

$31.4K ¥225.4K

-27.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.43 ¥304

$58.8 ¥422

-27.83%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.41 ¥197

$36.99 ¥265

-25.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.5 ¥599

$77.7 ¥558

7.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.3 ¥569

$98.5 ¥706

-19.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$335 ¥2,403

$952 ¥6,827

-64.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$249 ¥1,784

$574 ¥4,115

-56.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$844 ¥6,056

$2,518 ¥18.1K

-66.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$508 ¥3,646

$1,201 ¥8,614

-57.68%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,753 ¥62.8K

$14.4K ¥103.2K

-39.17%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,019 ¥36K

$7,106 ¥51K

-29.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$847 ¥6,073

$1,534 ¥11K

-44.80%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.56

3.58

-0.56%

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

Last update for Xiamen: October 28, 2025

Last update for Shanghai: October 28, 2025

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