Cost of living comparison

Poland

compared to

China

Shanghai vs. Katowice Cost of Living Summary

Shanghai is 7.6% cheaper than Katowice.

Restaurants: pay 59.6% less in Shanghai
Groceries: pay 14.1% more in Shanghai
Transportation: pay 23.1% less in Shanghai
Housing: pay 3.9% less in Shanghai
Childcare: pay 2.4 times more in Shanghai
Entertainment and Sports: pay 2.7% less in Shanghai
Clothing: pay 2.9% less in Shanghai

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

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

Display currency: USD

pay 59.6% less for restaurants

	Katowice	Shanghai
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$10.23 PLN40.19	$4.47 CN¥29.86	-56.2%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$8.95 PLN35.17	$5.22 CN¥34.84	-41.7%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$2.71 PLN10.67	$0.60 CN¥4.00	-77.9%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$2.58 PLN10.13	$0.37 CN¥2.47	-85.6%
Average			-59.6%

Katowice vs. Shanghai - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 14.1% more for groceries

	Katowice	Shanghai
Bread 1 loaf	$1.23 PLN4.84	$1.98 CN¥13.18	+60.6%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$3.98 PLN15.64	$8.60 CN¥57.38	+116.1%
Milk (1 gallon)	$3.56 PLN13.99	$6.88 CN¥45.90	+93.2%
Eggs 1 dozen	$3.30 PLN12.96	$1.70 CN¥11.33	-48.5%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.49 PLN9.77	$1.48 CN¥9.86	-40.6%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.48 PLN1.88	$0.99 CN¥6.63	+107.7%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.64 PLN2.53	$0.77 CN¥5.14	+19.6%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.66 PLN2.59	$0.90 CN¥6.03	+37.4%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.17 PLN4.59	$0.77 CN¥5.13	-34.2%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.43 PLN1.70	$0.36 CN¥2.39	-17.1%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.39 PLN1.53	$0.43 CN¥2.89	+11.4%
Average			+14.1%

Katowice vs. Shanghai - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 23.1% less for transportation

	Katowice	Shanghai
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$6.40 PLN25.15	$4.96 CN¥33.13	-22.4%
Monthly public transit pass	$30.68 PLN120.58	$29.83 CN¥199.09	-2.8%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$30,681.73 PLN121K	$19,374.76 CN¥129K	-36.9%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$7.52 PLN29.54	$5.67 CN¥37.83	-24.6%
Average			-23.1%

Katowice vs. Shanghai - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 3.9% less for housing

	Katowice	Shanghai
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$17.50 PLN68.79	$10.55 CN¥70.41	-39.7%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$690.34 PLN2,713.11	$1,036.96 CN¥6,920.65	+50.2%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$511.93 PLN2,011.94	$588.71 CN¥3,929.04	+15.0%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$208.84 PLN820.77	$44.06 CN¥294.03	-78.9%
Average			-3.9%

Katowice vs. Shanghai - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 2.4 times more for childcare

	Katowice	Shanghai
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$566.76 PLN2,227.43	$1,413.50 CN¥9,433.67	+149.4%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$12,209.09 PLN47,983.09	$27,686.22 CN¥185K	+126.8%
Average			+137.8%

Katowice vs. Shanghai - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 2.7% less for entertainment and sports

	Katowice	Shanghai
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.58 PLN14.07	$1.19 CN¥7.96	-66.7%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.44 PLN13.53	$3.35 CN¥22.36	-2.7%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$5.69 PLN22.36	$3.73 CN¥24.89	-34.5%
Monthly membership at local gym	$30.94 PLN121.59	$65.69 CN¥438.41	+112.3%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$7.29 PLN28.64	$8.95 CN¥59.73	+22.8%
Average			-2.7%

Katowice vs. Shanghai - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 2.9% less for clothing

	Katowice	Shanghai
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$69.21 PLN272.02	$54.37 CN¥362.87	-21.4%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$31.48 PLN123.71	$37.09 CN¥247.57	+17.8%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$89.23 PLN350.69	$75.49 CN¥503.82	-15.4%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$92.99 PLN365.47	$105.70 CN¥705.47	+13.7%
Average			-2.9%

Katowice 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: Katowice vs. Shanghai

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Shanghai?

More cost comparisons

Katowice vs.

New York City

Katowice vs.

Cairo

Katowice vs.

Rome

Katowice vs.

Madrid

Katowice vs.

Reykjavik

Katowice vs.

Ho Chi Minh City

Katowice vs.

Paris

Katowice vs.

Toronto

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

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

Add prices for Shanghai

Ask the Elsewhere Community

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