Cost of living comparison

China

compared to

Laos

Vientiane vs. Beijing Cost of Living Summary

Vientiane is 3.4% more expensive than Beijing.

Restaurants: pay 8.1% more in Vientiane
Groceries: pay 23.8% more in Vientiane
Transportation: pay 68.6% more in Vientiane
Housing: pay 19.2% more in Vientiane
Childcare: pay 56.1% less in Vientiane
Entertainment and Sports: pay 26.0% less in Vientiane
Clothing: pay 13.5% less in Vientiane

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

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Vientiane vs. Beijing Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 8.1% more for restaurants

	Beijing	Vientiane
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$4.21 CN¥28.50	$2.31 LAK52,025	-45.1%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$4.91 CN¥33.25	$5.54 LAK125K	+12.9%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.48 CN¥3.25	$0.62 LAK13,971	+29.2%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.31 CN¥2.08	$0.42 LAK9,364	+35.4%
Average			+8.1%

Beijing vs. Vientiane - Cost of restaurants

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pay 23.8% more for groceries

	Beijing	Vientiane
Bread 1 loaf	$1.71 CN¥11.56	$1.17 LAK26,306	-31.6%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$7.47 CN¥50.60	$13.94 LAK314K	+86.6%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.64 CN¥45.00	$7.32 LAK165K	+10.2%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.78 CN¥12.04	$1.81 LAK40,828	+2.0%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.53 CN¥10.38	$2.99 LAK67,434	+95.4%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.98 CN¥6.66	$0.90 LAK20,189	-8.8%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.77 CN¥5.21	$0.50 LAK11,274	-35.0%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.80 CN¥5.42	$0.94 LAK21,159	+17.3%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.60 CN¥4.08	$0.61 LAK13,687	+0.9%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.35 CN¥2.36	$0.74 LAK16,676	+112.3%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.41 CN¥2.79	$0.47 LAK10,488	+12.8%
Average			+23.8%

Beijing vs. Vientiane - Cost of groceries

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pay 68.6% more for transportation

	Beijing	Vientiane
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.21 CN¥28.53	$5.18 LAK117K	+23.0%
Monthly public transit pass	$31.54 CN¥213.72	$50.18 LAK1M	+59.1%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$18,225.66 CN¥123K	$28,736.24 LAK648M	+57.7%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$4.63 CN¥31.35	$10.86 LAK245K	+134.7%
Average			+68.6%

Beijing vs. Vientiane - Cost of transportation

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pay 19.2% more for housing

	Beijing	Vientiane
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$12.93 CN¥87.61	$11.39 LAK257K	-11.9%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$935.23 CN¥6,336.39	$866.78 LAK20M	-7.3%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$504.41 CN¥3,417.45	$784.74 LAK18M	+55.6%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$39.27 CN¥266.03	$55.21 LAK1M	+40.6%
Average			+19.2%

Beijing vs. Vientiane - Cost of housing

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pay 56.1% less for childcare

	Beijing	Vientiane
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$710.76 CN¥4,815.57	$338.54 LAK8M	-52.4%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$23,242.73 CN¥157K	$9,334.55 LAK210M	-59.8%
Average			-56.1%

Beijing vs. Vientiane - Cost of childcare

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pay 26.0% less for entertainment and sports

	Beijing	Vientiane
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.12 CN¥7.60	$1.50 LAK33,816	+33.8%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.90 CN¥19.66	$1.73 LAK39,018	-40.3%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$4.21 CN¥28.50	$1.96 LAK44,221	-53.4%
Monthly membership at local gym	$57.84 CN¥391.85	$50.52 LAK1M	-12.6%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$8.41 CN¥56.99	$3.56 LAK80,202	-57.7%
Average			-26.0%

Beijing vs. Vientiane - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 13.5% less for clothing

	Beijing	Vientiane
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$62.30 CN¥422.09	$27.70 LAK624K	-55.5%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$36.37 CN¥246.43	$69.25 LAK2M	+90.4%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$81.74 CN¥553.81	$58.22 LAK1M	-28.8%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$105.53 CN¥714.99	$42.19 LAK951K	-60.0%
Average			-13.5%

Beijing vs. Vientiane - 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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