Cost of living comparison
compared to
Qingdao vs. China Cost of Living Summary
Qingdao is 3.4% more expensive than China overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 5.7% more in Qingdao
- Groceries
-
pay 10.6% more in Qingdao
- Transportation
-
pay 1.4% less in Qingdao
- Housing
-
pay 2.3% more in Qingdao
- Childcare
-
pay 21.6% less in Qingdao
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 3.0% less in Qingdao
- Clothing
-
pay 31.5% more in Qingdao
The cost of clothing, groceries, restaurants, and housing in Qingdao are more expensive than in China. Expenses including childcare, entertainment and sports, and transportation are lower in Qingdao.
Qingdao vs. China Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Qingdao instead of China, you would:
pay 5.7% more for restaurants
|
China
|
Qingdao
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$2.90
CN¥20.44
|
$3.08
CN¥21.76
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$5.02
CN¥35.39
|
$4.91
CN¥34.62
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.47
CN¥3.35
|
$0.54
CN¥3.82
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.28
CN¥1.95
|
$0.29
CN¥2.03
|
|
China vs. Qingdao - Cost of restaurants
pay 10.6% more for groceries
|
China
|
Qingdao
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.63
CN¥11.49
|
$1.50
CN¥10.55
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.32
CN¥44.58
|
$8.12
CN¥57.28
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.70
CN¥47.30
|
$7.26
CN¥51.24
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$1.56
CN¥11.02
|
$1.85
CN¥13.06
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$1.52
CN¥10.75
|
$2.00
CN¥14.13
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$0.74
CN¥5.24
|
$0.60
CN¥4.26
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.55
CN¥3.85
|
$0.54
CN¥3.78
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.62
CN¥4.40
|
$0.85
CN¥5.98
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.50
CN¥3.56
|
$0.48
CN¥3.36
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.30
CN¥2.12
|
$0.33
CN¥2.31
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.39
CN¥2.78
|
$0.47
CN¥3.32
|
|
China vs. Qingdao - Cost of groceries
pay 1.4% less for transportation
|
China
|
Qingdao
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.34
CN¥30.59
|
$4.35
CN¥30.71
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$20.32
CN¥143.36
|
$16.82
CN¥118.68
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$19,143.98
CN¥135,051.24
|
$20,258.52
CN¥142,913.76
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$3.94
CN¥27.81
|
$4.15
CN¥29.28
|
|
China vs. Qingdao - Cost of transportation
pay 2.3% more for housing
|
China
|
Qingdao
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$11.18
CN¥78.85
|
$10.51
CN¥74.18
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$304.90
CN¥2,150.88
|
$329.46
CN¥2,324.20
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$195.65
CN¥1,380.18
|
$194.52
CN¥1,372.27
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$41.04
CN¥289.54
|
$44.11
CN¥311.21
|
|
China vs. Qingdao - Cost of housing
pay 21.6% less for childcare
|
China
|
Qingdao
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$390.25
CN¥2,753.01
|
$294.41
CN¥2,076.95
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$15,493.57
CN¥109,299.39
|
$12,617.77
CN¥89,012.03
|
|
China vs. Qingdao - Cost of childcare
pay 3.0% less for entertainment and sports
|
China
|
Qingdao
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.04
CN¥7.34
|
$0.91
CN¥6.43
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.84
CN¥20.01
|
$3.14
CN¥22.13
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$3.36
CN¥23.70
|
$3.93
CN¥27.69
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$41.13
CN¥290.14
|
$26.64
CN¥187.91
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$5.98
CN¥42.21
|
$6.31
CN¥44.51
|
|
China vs. Qingdao - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 31.5% more for clothing
|
China
|
Qingdao
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$45.93
CN¥323.99
|
$63.07
CN¥444.90
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$30.93
CN¥218.20
|
$42.06
CN¥296.71
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$71.26
CN¥502.70
|
$86.92
CN¥613.19
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$72.88
CN¥514.13
|
$95.31
CN¥672.34
|
|
China vs. Qingdao - 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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