🇨🇳 China · #402 of 546 cities · 2026

Cost of Living in Shanghai

6.4% above the China average

Ranked #402 of 546 cities · More expensive than 26.4% of cities worldwide

Compared to China average

Rent Prices

Rent Prices in Shanghai

Apartment City Centre Outside Centre You Save
1-Bedroom CNY 5,962/mo ≈ $879 CNY 3,717/mo ≈ $548 38%
3-Bedroom CNY 14,818/mo ≈ $2,185 CNY 7,714/mo ≈ $1,138 38%
Numbeo · 2026-03-12

Multi-Source Comparison

★★★ High Confidence

Shanghai has a composite cost index of 31.0 from 4 independent data sources.

31.0
Composite
4
Sources
1.4
Spread

Source Values (NYC = 100)

Numbeo
31.3
Expatistan
30.6
LivingCost
32.0
SIM
26.8
Eurostat Validation (EU27 = 100) Gov. Data
Eurostat
71.5

Based on 65 country PLI x 1.1 city factor

View all 127 cities | Data last updated: 2026-03-18

Cost Indices

Cost of Living
+6.4% Average
Rent
+11.3% Expensive
Groceries
+2.8% Average
Restaurants
+2.5% Average
Purchasing Power
-7.6% Average

Living in Shanghai: What to Expect

Shanghai is average by global standards (ranked #402 of 546 cities). It is 6.4% more expensive than the China average, based on 12 cities.

Groceries are average, while dining out is average. Restaurants offers the best value, while Rent is the priciest.

Local purchasing power is limited — residents can afford fewer goods and services than in most cities.

Workers in China earning CNY 388,132 gross take home CNY 22,463/month after tax (30.5% effective rate). See full China tax calculator →

Similar Cities

How Does Shanghai Compare?

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