Beijing vs Washington, D.C.: Income & Cost of Living Comparison

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Cost of Living & Income: Beijing vs Washington, D.C.

ℹ️ About the data: the figures for Beijing and Washington, D.C. are averages compiled from millions of user-contributed income and living-cost entries worldwide over the last 12 months (updated July 2026), converted to Chinese yuan (CNY, ¥). Green 🟢 marks a higher income or a lower price. Source: NUMBEO, which is widely cited by international media; the Seapoe team compiled, translated and processed the data.

Income comparison

Metric	Beijing	Washington, D.C.	Beijing vs Washington, D.C.
💰 Average monthly net salary	¥10,657	¥46,068	Washington, D.C. earns 4.3× the salary in Beijing

Daily expenses

Metric	Beijing	Washington, D.C.	Beijing vs Washington, D.C.
🍜 Meal, inexpensive restaurant	¥30	¥179	Washington, D.C. costs 5.96× the price in Beijing
🍝 Meal for two, mid-range restaurant (3 courses)	¥200	¥810	Washington, D.C. costs 4.05× the price in Beijing
🍔 McMeal at McDonald's (or equivalent)	¥35	¥81	Washington, D.C. costs 2.31× the price in Beijing
💧 Utilities, 85 m² apartment (monthly)	¥387.9	¥1,359.3	Washington, D.C. costs 3.50× the price in Beijing
💻 Broadband internet, 60 Mbps+ (monthly)	¥98.2	¥519.7	Washington, D.C. costs 5.29× the price in Beijing
📱 Mobile plan, calls + 10 GB+ data (monthly)	¥64.9	¥540.0	Washington, D.C. costs 8.32× the price in Beijing
💪 Gym membership (monthly)	¥263.0	¥772.9	Washington, D.C. costs 2.94× the price in Beijing
🎬 Cinema ticket, international release	¥50.0	¥118.1	Washington, D.C. costs 2.36× the price in Beijing
⛽ Petrol (1 litre)	¥8.5	¥7.1	Beijing costs 1.19× the price in Washington, D.C.

Supermarket prices

Metric	Beijing	Washington, D.C.	Beijing vs Washington, D.C.
🥩 Beef round (1 kg)	¥74.5	¥125.5	Washington, D.C. costs 1.68× the price in Beijing
🥚 Eggs (12)	¥13.9	¥40.7	Washington, D.C. costs 2.92× the price in Beijing
🥛 Milk (1 litre)	¥12.5	¥8.8	Beijing costs 1.43× the price in Washington, D.C.
🍞 Bread (500 g)	¥11.8	¥27.6	Washington, D.C. costs 2.33× the price in Beijing
🍏 Apples (1 kg)	¥14.0	¥45.9	Washington, D.C. costs 3.27× the price in Beijing
🥔 Potatoes (1 kg)	¥5.3	¥19.2	Washington, D.C. costs 3.61× the price in Beijing
🍅 Tomatoes (1 kg)	¥10.9	¥37.9	Washington, D.C. costs 3.48× the price in Beijing
🍺 Domestic beer (500 ml)	¥6.7	¥22.2	Washington, D.C. costs 3.29× the price in Beijing
🍷 Wine, mid-range bottle	¥100.0	¥108.0	Washington, D.C. costs 1.08× the price in Beijing

Rent & property prices

Metric	Beijing	Washington, D.C.	Beijing vs Washington, D.C.
🛌 Rent, 1-bedroom in city centre (monthly)	¥6,538	¥17,981	Washington, D.C. costs 2.75× the price in Beijing
🛌 Rent, 1-bedroom outside centre (monthly)	¥3,506	¥14,518	Washington, D.C. costs 4.14× the price in Beijing
🚪 Rent, 3-bedroom in city centre (monthly)	¥16,500	¥37,259	Washington, D.C. costs 2.26× the price in Beijing
🚪 Rent, 3-bedroom outside centre (monthly)	¥7,584	¥30,869	Washington, D.C. costs 4.07× the price in Beijing
🏡 Apartment price per m², city centre	¥83,613	¥58,154	Beijing costs 1.44× the price in Washington, D.C.
🏡 Apartment price per m², outside centre	¥42,337	¥24,427	Beijing costs 1.73× the price in Washington, D.C.