Cost of living comparison
compared to
Columbia vs. Beijing Cost of Living Summary
Columbia is 2.1 times more expensive than Beijing.
- Restaurants
-
pay 4.4 times more in Columbia
- Groceries
-
pay 83.6% more in Columbia
- Transportation
-
pay 71.5% more in Columbia
- Housing
-
pay 2.7 times more in Columbia
- Childcare
-
pay 12.6% more in Columbia
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 89.1% more in Columbia
- Clothing
-
pay 12.1% less in Columbia
The cost of restaurants, housing, entertainment and sports, groceries, transportation, and childcare in Columbia are more expensive than in Beijing. Notably, restaurants, housing, and entertainment and sports are significantly more expensive in Columbia.
Columbia vs. Beijing Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Columbia instead of Beijing, you would:
pay 4.4 times more for restaurants
|
Beijing
|
Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$4.21
CN¥29.18
|
$17.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$4.91
CN¥34.05
|
$10.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.48
CN¥3.33
|
$2.45
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.31
CN¥2.13
|
$2.00
|
|
Beijing vs. Columbia - Cost of restaurants
pay 83.6% more for groceries
|
Beijing
|
Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.71
CN¥11.84
|
$3.40
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.47
CN¥51.82
|
$5.37
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.64
CN¥46.09
|
$4.34
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$1.78
CN¥12.33
|
$2.97
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$1.53
CN¥10.63
|
$4.08
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$0.98
CN¥6.82
|
$1.88
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.77
CN¥5.34
|
$0.59
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.80
CN¥5.55
|
$1.36
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.60
CN¥4.18
|
$1.99
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.35
CN¥2.42
|
$0.70
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.41
CN¥2.86
|
$1.16
|
|
Beijing vs. Columbia - Cost of groceries
pay 71.5% more for transportation
|
Beijing
|
Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.21
CN¥29.22
|
$2.89
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$31.54
CN¥218.89
|
?? | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$18,225.66
CN¥126K
|
$37,111.37
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$4.63
CN¥32.10
|
$11.20
|
|
Beijing vs. Columbia - Cost of transportation
pay 2.7 times more for housing
|
Beijing
|
Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$12.93
CN¥89.73
|
$59.80
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$935.23
CN¥6,489.54
|
$1,025.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$504.41
CN¥3,500.05
|
$783.33
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$39.27
CN¥272.46
|
$139.63
|
|
Beijing vs. Columbia - Cost of housing
pay 12.6% more for childcare
|
Beijing
|
Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$710.76
CN¥4,931.96
|
$1,200.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$23,242.73
CN¥161K
|
$13,100.00
|
|
Beijing vs. Columbia - Cost of childcare
pay 89.1% more for entertainment and sports
|
Beijing
|
Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.12
CN¥7.78
|
$4.50
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.90
CN¥20.14
|
$4.60
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.21
CN¥29.18
|
$7.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$57.84
CN¥401.32
|
$27.22
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$8.41
CN¥58.37
|
$14.50
|
|
Beijing vs. Columbia - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 12.1% less for clothing
|
Beijing
|
Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$62.30
CN¥432.29
|
$50.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$36.37
CN¥252.39
|
$33.33
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$81.74
CN¥567.19
|
$79.17
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$105.53
CN¥732.27
|
$87.50
|
|
Beijing vs. Columbia - Cost of clothing
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: February 2026
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