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

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

ℹ️ About the data: the figures for Shanghai 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	Shanghai	Washington, D.C.	Shanghai vs Washington, D.C.
💰 Average monthly net salary	¥11,735	¥46,068	Washington, D.C. earns 3.9× the salary in Shanghai

Daily expenses

Metric	Shanghai	Washington, D.C.	Shanghai vs Washington, D.C.
🍜 Meal, inexpensive restaurant	¥30	¥179	Washington, D.C. costs 5.96× the price in Shanghai
🍝 Meal for two, mid-range restaurant (3 courses)	¥200	¥810	Washington, D.C. costs 4.05× the price in Shanghai
🍔 McMeal at McDonald's (or equivalent)	¥35	¥81	Washington, D.C. costs 2.31× the price in Shanghai
💧 Utilities, 85 m² apartment (monthly)	¥429.8	¥1,359.3	Washington, D.C. costs 3.16× the price in Shanghai
💻 Broadband internet, 60 Mbps+ (monthly)	¥76.5	¥519.7	Washington, D.C. costs 6.80× the price in Shanghai
📱 Mobile plan, calls + 10 GB+ data (monthly)	¥52.7	¥540.0	Washington, D.C. costs 10.26× the price in Shanghai
💪 Gym membership (monthly)	¥462.0	¥772.9	Washington, D.C. costs 1.67× the price in Shanghai
🎬 Cinema ticket, international release	¥60.0	¥118.1	Washington, D.C. costs 1.97× the price in Shanghai
⛽ Petrol (1 litre)	¥8.6	¥7.1	Shanghai costs 1.20× the price in Washington, D.C.

Supermarket prices

Metric	Shanghai	Washington, D.C.	Shanghai vs Washington, D.C.
🥩 Beef round (1 kg)	¥88.8	¥125.5	Washington, D.C. costs 1.41× the price in Shanghai
🥚 Eggs (12)	¥12.3	¥40.7	Washington, D.C. costs 3.30× the price in Shanghai
🥛 Milk (1 litre)	¥13.6	¥8.8	Shanghai costs 1.55× the price in Washington, D.C.
🍞 Bread (500 g)	¥13.0	¥27.6	Washington, D.C. costs 2.12× the price in Shanghai
🍏 Apples (1 kg)	¥15.5	¥45.9	Washington, D.C. costs 2.96× the price in Shanghai
🥔 Potatoes (1 kg)	¥5.6	¥19.2	Washington, D.C. costs 3.44× the price in Shanghai
🍅 Tomatoes (1 kg)	¥12.0	¥37.9	Washington, D.C. costs 3.16× the price in Shanghai
🍺 Domestic beer (500 ml)	¥6.1	¥22.2	Washington, D.C. costs 3.65× the price in Shanghai
🍷 Wine, mid-range bottle	¥77.5	¥108.0	Washington, D.C. costs 1.39× the price in Shanghai

Rent & property prices

Metric	Shanghai	Washington, D.C.	Shanghai vs Washington, D.C.
🛌 Rent, 1-bedroom in city centre (monthly)	¥6,371	¥17,981	Washington, D.C. costs 2.82× the price in Shanghai
🛌 Rent, 1-bedroom outside centre (monthly)	¥3,832	¥14,518	Washington, D.C. costs 3.79× the price in Shanghai
🚪 Rent, 3-bedroom in city centre (monthly)	¥16,000	¥37,259	Washington, D.C. costs 2.33× the price in Shanghai
🚪 Rent, 3-bedroom outside centre (monthly)	¥8,594	¥30,869	Washington, D.C. costs 3.59× the price in Shanghai
🏡 Apartment price per m², city centre	¥93,933	¥58,154	Shanghai costs 1.62× the price in Washington, D.C.
🏡 Apartment price per m², outside centre	¥44,760	¥24,427	Shanghai costs 1.83× the price in Washington, D.C.