Cost of living comparison

compared to

Alberton vs. Beijing Cost of Living Summary

Alberton is 29.8% more expensive than Beijing.

Restaurants
pay 2.0 times more in Alberton
Transportation
pay 2.2 times more in Alberton
Housing
pay 60.1% more in Alberton
Childcare
pay 86.2% less in Alberton
Entertainment and Sports
pay 3.4% less in Alberton
Clothing
pay 10.2% less in Alberton

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

Alberton vs. Beijing Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Alberton instead of Beijing, you would:

pay 2.0 times more for restaurants

 
Beijing
Alberton
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $4.21
CN¥29.74
$8.64
ZAR146.29
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$4.91
CN¥34.69
$4.61
ZAR78.02
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $0.48
CN¥3.39
$1.08
ZAR18.30

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pay (unknown) more for groceries

 
Beijing
Alberton
Bread
1 loaf
$1.71
CN¥12.07
$1.06
ZAR17.96
Local cheese (8 oz) $7.47
CN¥52.80
$4.04
ZAR68.38
Milk (1 gallon) $6.64
CN¥46.96
$4.14
ZAR70.14

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pay 2.2 times more for transportation

 
Beijing
Alberton
Gasoline (1 gallon) $4.21
CN¥29.77
$4.85
ZAR82.17
Monthly public transit pass $31.54
CN¥223.02
$115.24
ZAR1,950.53
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $18,225.66
CN¥128,857.25
$20,166.39
ZAR341,342.35

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pay 60.1% more for housing

 
Beijing
Alberton
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$12.93
CN¥91.43
$36.76
ZAR622.22
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $935.23
CN¥6,612.19
$417.73
ZAR7,070.66
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $504.41
CN¥3,566.20
$316.90
ZAR5,363.95

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pay 86.2% less for childcare

 
Beijing
Alberton
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $710.76
CN¥5,025.17
$144.05
ZAR2,438.16
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $23,242.73
CN¥164,328.40
$1,728.55
ZAR29,257.92

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pay 3.4% less for entertainment and sports

 
Beijing
Alberton
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $1.12
CN¥7.93
$2.30
ZAR39.01
Cappuccino in mid-range area $2.90
CN¥20.52
$2.15
ZAR36.32
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$4.21
CN¥29.74
$2.88
ZAR48.76

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pay 10.2% less for clothing

 
Beijing
Alberton
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$62.30
CN¥440.46
$50.50
ZAR854.72
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$36.37
CN¥257.16
$31.69
ZAR536.40
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$81.74
CN¥577.91
$89.07
ZAR1,507.60

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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: December 2025
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