Cost of living comparison
compared to
Shanghai vs. Canada Cost of Living Summary
Shanghai is 17.0% cheaper than Canada overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 68.5% less in Shanghai
- Groceries
-
pay 32.7% less in Shanghai
- Transportation
-
pay 33.1% less in Shanghai
- Housing
-
pay 54.5% less in Shanghai
- Childcare
-
pay 2.1 times more in Shanghai
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 31.0% less in Shanghai
- Clothing
-
pay 7.9% less in Shanghai
Expenses including restaurants, housing, transportation, groceries, entertainment and sports, and clothing are lower in Shanghai. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Shanghai.
Shanghai vs. Canada Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Shanghai instead of Canada, you would:
pay 68.5% less for restaurants
|
Canada
|
Shanghai
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$16.68
CA$22.82
|
$4.21
CN¥29.47
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.26
CA$14.03
|
$5.61
CN¥39.29
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.01
CA$2.74
|
$0.52
CN¥3.68
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.66
CA$2.27
|
$0.33
CN¥2.29
|
|
Canada vs. Shanghai - Cost of restaurants
pay 32.7% less for groceries
|
Canada
|
Shanghai
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.50
CA$3.42
|
$1.86
CN¥13.02
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.32
CA$7.29
|
$8.08
CN¥56.61
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$8.12
CA$11.11
|
$8.27
CN¥57.93
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.44
CA$4.70
|
$1.74
CN¥12.22
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.30
CA$7.25
|
$1.36
CN¥9.53
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.78
CA$2.43
|
$1.00
CN¥7.03
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.66
CA$0.90
|
$0.78
CN¥5.46
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.62
CA$2.22
|
$0.84
CN¥5.88
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.77
CA$2.42
|
$0.66
CN¥4.63
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.15
CA$1.57
|
$0.35
CN¥2.42
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.14
CA$1.57
|
$0.49
CN¥3.43
|
|
Canada vs. Shanghai - Cost of groceries
pay 33.1% less for transportation
|
Canada
|
Shanghai
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.22
CA$5.78
|
$4.24
CN¥29.69
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$65.98
CA$90.28
|
$35.05
CN¥245.58
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$24,583.45
CA$33,636.30
|
$19,627.64
CN¥137,524.96
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$16.38
CA$22.41
|
$5.61
CN¥39.29
|
|
Canada vs. Shanghai - Cost of transportation
pay 54.5% less for housing
|
Canada
|
Shanghai
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$61.20
CA$83.73
|
$12.37
CN¥86.70
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,228.04
CA$1,680.27
|
$926.30
CN¥6,490.34
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,109.76
CA$1,518.43
|
$551.44
CN¥3,863.80
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$110.65
CA$151.40
|
$40.55
CN¥284.10
|
|
Canada vs. Shanghai - Cost of housing
pay 2.1 times more for childcare
|
Canada
|
Shanghai
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$720.23
CA$985.46
|
$1,229.70
CN¥8,616.15
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$12,062.51
CA$16,504.53
|
$29,777.93
CN¥208,645.00
|
|
Canada vs. Shanghai - Cost of childcare
pay 31.0% less for entertainment and sports
|
Canada
|
Shanghai
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.23
CA$7.16
|
$1.40
CN¥9.82
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.65
CA$4.99
|
$3.25
CN¥22.76
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$13.37
CA$18.30
|
$2.80
CN¥19.65
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$43.26
CA$59.19
|
$57.60
CN¥403.57
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.18
CA$15.30
|
$8.41
CN¥58.94
|
|
Canada vs. Shanghai - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 7.9% less for clothing
|
Canada
|
Shanghai
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$53.62
CA$73.37
|
$46.70
CN¥327.25
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$41.27
CA$56.47
|
$37.62
CN¥263.62
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$86.13
CA$117.85
|
$72.33
CN¥506.80
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$103.00
CA$140.93
|
$109.50
CN¥767.27
|
|
Canada vs. Shanghai - 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: December 2025
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