Cost of living comparison

Japan

compared to

China

Shanghai vs. Hiroshima Cost of Living Summary

Shanghai is 39.6% more expensive than Hiroshima.

Restaurants: pay 20.3% less in Shanghai
Groceries: pay 24.9% less in Shanghai
Transportation: pay 8.1% less in Shanghai
Housing: pay 2.3 times more in Shanghai
Childcare: pay 8.5 times more in Shanghai
Entertainment and Sports: pay 14.1% less in Shanghai
Clothing: pay 64.9% more in Shanghai

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

Planning a move to China? Get up to 5 free, no-obligation quotes from vetted international movers. Get free quotes →

Shanghai vs. Hiroshima Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Shanghai instead of Hiroshima, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 20.3% less for restaurants

	Hiroshima	Shanghai
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$6.01 ¥950	$4.47 CN¥29.94	-25.6%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.00 ¥790	$5.22 CN¥34.93	+4.4%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.00 ¥157	$0.60 CN¥4.01	-39.8%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.66 ¥105	$0.37 CN¥2.47	-44.3%
Average			-20.3%

Hiroshima vs. Shanghai - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 24.9% less for groceries

	Hiroshima	Shanghai
Bread 1 loaf	$1.54 ¥244	$1.98 CN¥13.22	+28.1%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$2.53 ¥400	$8.60 CN¥57.52	+239.7%
Milk (1 gallon)	$5.58 ¥882	$6.88 CN¥46.02	+23.2%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.08 ¥329	$1.70 CN¥11.36	-18.5%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.75 ¥435	$1.48 CN¥9.89	-46.4%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.53 ¥241	$0.99 CN¥6.65	-34.9%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.89 ¥141	$0.77 CN¥5.16	-13.4%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.72 ¥271	$0.90 CN¥6.05	-47.4%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.72 ¥272	$0.77 CN¥5.15	-55.3%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.70 ¥110	$0.36 CN¥2.40	-48.6%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.61 ¥254	$0.43 CN¥2.90	-73.0%
Average			-24.9%

Hiroshima vs. Shanghai - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 8.1% less for transportation

	Hiroshima	Shanghai
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.09 ¥647	$4.96 CN¥33.21	+21.2%
Monthly public transit pass	$33.53 ¥5,298	$29.83 CN¥199.59	-11.0%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$21,725.38 ¥3M	$19,374.76 CN¥130K	-10.8%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$13.67 ¥2,159	$5.67 CN¥37.92	-58.5%
Average			-8.1%

Hiroshima vs. Shanghai - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 2.3 times more for housing

	Hiroshima	Shanghai
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$30.62 ¥4,838	$10.55 CN¥70.59	-65.5%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$243.57 ¥38,488	$1,036.96 CN¥6,938.07	+325.7%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$189.80 ¥29,991	$588.71 CN¥3,938.93	+210.2%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$106.02 ¥16,753	$44.06 CN¥294.77	-58.4%
Average			+133.3%

Hiroshima vs. Shanghai - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 8.5 times more for childcare

	Hiroshima	Shanghai
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$158.16 ¥24,992	$1,413.50 CN¥9,457.42	+793.7%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$3,416.34 ¥540K	$27,686.22 CN¥185K	+710.4%
Average			+751.0%

Hiroshima vs. Shanghai - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 14.1% less for entertainment and sports

	Hiroshima	Shanghai
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$2.69 ¥425	$1.19 CN¥7.98	-55.6%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.77 ¥437	$3.35 CN¥22.41	+21.0%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.92 ¥620	$3.73 CN¥24.95	-4.9%
Monthly membership at local gym	$53.56 ¥8,464	$65.69 CN¥439.52	+22.6%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$12.02 ¥1,899	$8.95 CN¥59.88	-25.6%
Average			-14.1%

Hiroshima vs. Shanghai - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 64.9% more for clothing

	Hiroshima	Shanghai
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$28.47 ¥4,499	$54.37 CN¥363.79	+91.0%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$25.10 ¥3,965	$37.09 CN¥248.19	+47.8%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$48.29 ¥7,631	$75.49 CN¥505.08	+56.3%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$63.05 ¥9,964	$105.70 CN¥707.25	+67.6%
Average			+64.9%

Hiroshima vs. Shanghai - Cost of clothing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this

Compare further: Hiroshima vs. Shanghai

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Shanghai?

More cost comparisons

Hiroshima vs.

Paris

Hiroshima vs.

Moscow

Hiroshima vs.

London

Hiroshima vs.

Bangkok

Hiroshima vs.

Ho Chi Minh City

Hiroshima vs.

Reykjavik

Hiroshima vs.

Vienna

Hiroshima vs.

Dublin

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in Japan vs. China. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Japan and China.

Help us improve these prices

MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate. Learn more

Add prices for Hiroshima

Add prices for Shanghai

Ask the Elsewhere Community

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Shanghai or Hiroshima. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.