Cost of living comparison

Kazakhstan

compared to

China

Shanghai vs. Almaty Cost of Living Summary

Shanghai is 55.4% more expensive than Almaty.

Restaurants: pay 35.6% less in Shanghai
Groceries: pay 56.0% more in Shanghai
Transportation: pay 48.2% more in Shanghai
Housing: pay 10.6% more in Shanghai
Childcare: pay 3.9 times more in Shanghai
Entertainment and Sports: pay 37.6% more in Shanghai
Clothing: pay 15.7% less in Shanghai

The cost of childcare, groceries, transportation, entertainment and sports, and housing in Shanghai are more expensive than in Almaty. Expenses including restaurants and clothing are lower in Shanghai. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Shanghai.

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Shanghai vs. Almaty Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Shanghai instead of Almaty, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 35.6% less for restaurants

	Almaty	Shanghai
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$7.33 KZT3,459.35	$4.21 CN¥28.50	-42.6%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$6.41 KZT3,026.93	$5.61 CN¥37.99	-12.5%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.93 KZT438.12	$0.52 CN¥3.56	-43.4%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.58 KZT275.51	$0.33 CN¥2.21	-44.0%
Average			-35.6%

Almaty vs. Shanghai - Cost of restaurants

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pay 56.0% more for groceries

	Almaty	Shanghai
Bread 1 loaf	$0.53 KZT251.66	$1.86 CN¥12.59	+248.7%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$4.58 KZT2,164.10	$8.08 CN¥54.74	+76.2%
Milk (1 gallon)	$4.84 KZT2,286.21	$8.27 CN¥56.02	+70.7%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.66 KZT785.12	$1.74 CN¥11.82	+4.9%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.93 KZT908.98	$1.36 CN¥9.22	-29.4%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.59 KZT277.43	$1.00 CN¥6.80	+70.7%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.83 KZT390.49	$0.78 CN¥5.28	-5.9%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.82 KZT386.77	$0.84 CN¥5.69	+2.4%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.84 KZT396.42	$0.66 CN¥4.48	-21.3%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.27 KZT128.59	$0.35 CN¥2.34	+26.8%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.18 KZT85.07	$0.49 CN¥3.32	+171.9%
Average			+56.0%

Almaty vs. Shanghai - Cost of groceries

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pay 48.2% more for transportation

	Almaty	Shanghai
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$1.81 KZT854.51	$4.24 CN¥28.71	+134.1%
Monthly public transit pass	$18.14 KZT8,561.89	$35.05 CN¥237.47	+93.2%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$22,900.61 KZT11M	$19,627.64 CN¥133K	-14.3%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$7.01 KZT3,308.00	$5.61 CN¥37.99	-20.0%
Average			+48.2%

Almaty vs. Shanghai - Cost of transportation

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pay 10.6% more for housing

	Almaty	Shanghai
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$12.90 KZT6,090.05	$12.37 CN¥83.84	-4.1%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$645.61 KZT305K	$926.30 CN¥6,275.90	+43.5%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$437.19 KZT206K	$551.44 CN¥3,736.14	+26.1%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$52.67 KZT24,861.89	$40.55 CN¥274.71	-23.0%
Average			+10.6%

Almaty vs. Shanghai - Cost of housing

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pay 3.9 times more for childcare

	Almaty	Shanghai
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$258.77 KZT122K	$1,229.70 CN¥8,331.47	+375.2%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$9,972.39 KZT5M	$29,777.93 CN¥202K	+198.6%
Average			+286.9%

Almaty vs. Shanghai - Cost of childcare

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pay 37.6% more for entertainment and sports

	Almaty	Shanghai
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.28 KZT605.39	$1.40 CN¥9.50	+9.3%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.28 KZT1,074.69	$3.25 CN¥22.01	+42.7%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$1.83 KZT864.84	$2.80 CN¥19.00	+53.0%
Monthly membership at local gym	$48.33 KZT22,814.37	$57.60 CN¥390.24	+19.2%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$5.13 KZT2,421.54	$8.41 CN¥56.99	+64.0%
Average			+37.6%

Almaty vs. Shanghai - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 15.7% less for clothing

	Almaty	Shanghai
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$70.28 KZT33,178.30	$46.70 CN¥316.43	-33.5%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$40.36 KZT19,054.18	$37.62 CN¥254.91	-6.8%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$92.56 KZT43,693.07	$72.33 CN¥490.05	-21.9%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$109.97 KZT51,913.51	$109.50 CN¥741.92	-0.4%
Average			-15.7%

Almaty vs. Shanghai - Cost of clothing

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The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: July 2026

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