Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Zhubei City and Taichung

For one person, living is cheaper in Zhubei City: $1,055 a month against $1,145 in Taichung, rent and utilities included – about $1,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

51

Cost of Living Index in Zhubei City
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Zhubei City Living Index
56

Cost of Living Index in Taichung
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Taichung Living Index

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Zhubei City

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,055

/mo nomad

Taichung

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,145

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Zhubei City and in Taichung

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,055 in Zhubei City versus $1,145 in Taichung.

Zhubei City $1,055
Taichung $1,145

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,841 in Zhubei City versus $1,901 in Taichung.

Zhubei City $1,841
Taichung $1,901

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,627 in Zhubei City versus $2,657 in Taichung.

Zhubei City $2,627
Taichung $2,657

Living in Zhubei City costs roughly 8% less than in Taichung, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities sit below the global median: Zhubei City 22% lower, Taichung 15% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.83 NT$157

$4.67 NT$151

3.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$28.00 NT$908

$31.15 NT$1,010

-10.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.07 NT$164

$4.60 NT$149

10.22%

Cappuccino

$2.89 NT$93.8

$2.71 NT$87.8

6.64%

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

$0.91 NT$29.41

$0.99 NT$31.98

-8.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.59 NT$19.02

$0.71 NT$23.04

-16.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.93 NT$62.5

$1.58 NT$51.4

22.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 NT$75.6

$2.89 NT$93.6

-19.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.79 NT$90.4

$3.14 NT$102

-11.15%

White Bread (500g)

$1.87 NT$60.7

$1.74 NT$56.6

7.47%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.59 NT$149

$2.59 NT$84.0

77.22%

Eggs

$2.85 NT$92.5

$2.59 NT$83.9

10.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$24.76 NT$803

$28.15 NT$913

-12.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.37 NT$271

$7.89 NT$256

6.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$25.93 NT$841

$16.90 NT$548

53.43%

Apples (1kg)

$4.04 NT$131

$4.22 NT$137

-4.27%

Banana (1kg)

$2.42 NT$78.5

$1.96 NT$63.4

23.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.69 NT$87.3

$3.00 NT$97.4

-10.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.27 NT$106

$2.16 NT$69.9

51.39%

Potato (1kg)

$3.02 NT$97.9

$1.19 NT$38.55

153.78%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 NT$65.5

$1.89 NT$61.4

6.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.06 NT$66.9

$2.32 NT$75.1

-11.21%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.33 NT$43.25

$0.91 NT$29.66

46.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.88 NT$126

$3.78 NT$122

2.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.23 NT$299

$15.59 NT$506

-40.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.43 NT$46.36

$1.57 NT$50.8

-8.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 NT$75.4

$2.46 NT$79.8

-5.28%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.61 NT$19.85

$0.67 NT$21.69

-8.96%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$31.36 NT$1,017

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.10 NT$101

$2.67 NT$86.7

16.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 NT$20.76

$0.97 NT$31.57

-34.02%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.25 NT$300

$9.65 NT$313

-4.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.99 NT$32.17

$1.06 NT$34.36

-6.60%

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

$33.5K NT$1.1M

$33.9K NT$1.1M

-1.38%

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

$24.8K NT$805.7K

$22.7K NT$735.4K

9.55%

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

$103 NT$3,331

$122 NT$3,945

-15.57%

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

$18.96 NT$615

$15.08 NT$489

25.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$22.80 NT$739

$21.01 NT$681

8.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.40 NT$1,018

$31.97 NT$1,037

-1.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.54 NT$374

Cinema Ticket

$9.99 NT$324

$9.53 NT$309

4.83%

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

$646 NT$20.9K

$333 NT$10.8K

93.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K NT$533.8K

$16.6K NT$537.7K

-0.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.7 NT$1,870

$71.7 NT$2,326

-19.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.13 NT$1,010

$35.65 NT$1,156

-12.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.8 NT$2,946

$83.4 NT$2,706

8.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$99.0 NT$3,209

$116 NT$3,768

-14.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$501 NT$16.2K

$391 NT$12.7K

28.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$217 NT$7,032

$281 NT$9,111

-22.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,100 NT$35.7K

$1,218 NT$39.5K

-9.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$768 NT$24.9K

$758 NT$24.6K

1.38%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$16.2K NT$525.9K

$8,582 NT$278.3K

88.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$9,751 NT$316.2K

$5,309 NT$172.2K

83.67%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,391 NT$77.5K

$1,443 NT$46.8K

65.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.4

2.27

5.73%

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

Last update for Zhubei City: October 13, 2026

Last update for Taichung: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Zhubei City

$400 37.9%

Taichung

$371 32.4% 7.1% $28

Accommodation & Living

Zhubei City

$217 20.6%

Taichung

$281 24.5% 29.6% $64

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Zhubei City

$144 13.7%

Taichung

$158 13.8% 9.2% $13

Clothing & Footwear

Zhubei City

$125 11.9%

Taichung

$138 12.1% 10.2% $13

Eating Out

Zhubei City

$109 10.3%

Taichung

$104 9.1% 4.3% $4.7

Sport & Entertainment

Zhubei City

$51 4.9%

Taichung

$51 4.5% 0.7% $0.3

Getting Around

Zhubei City

$8.8 * 0.8%

Taichung

$42 3.6% 375% $33

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $501 in Zhubei City and $391 in Taichung. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Zhubei City pays 66% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $28.00 in Zhubei City vs $31.00 in Taichung. Groceries flip the comparison at $400 vs $371, with Taichung cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇼 Zhubei City

🇹🇼 Taichung

🕒 Local time

07:27 7:27 AM

Same time as Zhubei City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

211,746

2,767,239

💱 Currency

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

📈 Exchange rate

100 TWD = 3.08 USD

100 TWD = 2.74 EUR

100 TWD = 3.08 USD

100 TWD = 2.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Zhubei City Taichung 83 km

From you

Zhubei City
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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

Zhubei City vs Taichung: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Zhubei City wins on cost – living expenses run 8% lower than in Taichung. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Zhubei City the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 66% higher in Zhubei City, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $501 in Zhubei City versus $391 in Taichung. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $646 in Zhubei City versus $333 in Taichung. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Zhubei City – a meal for two runs $28.00 versus $31.00 in Taichung. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,055 in Zhubei City versus $1,145 in Taichung, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Zhubei City but tight or insufficient in Taichung. The gap between the two cities makes Zhubei City 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.

Safety-wise, Zhubei City and Taichung are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Zhubei City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 8% less than in Taichung. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.