Cost of living comparison
compared to
Beijing vs. Kingston Cost of Living Summary
Beijing is 39.9% more expensive than Kingston.
- Restaurants
-
pay 51.3% less in Beijing
- Groceries
-
pay 46.6% less in Beijing
- Transportation
-
pay 46.8% less in Beijing
- Housing
-
pay 32.9% less in Beijing
- Childcare
-
pay 5.3 times more in Beijing
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 39.0% less in Beijing
- Clothing
-
pay 65.6% more in Beijing
The cost of childcare and clothing in Beijing are more expensive than in Kingston. Expenses including restaurants, transportation, groceries, entertainment and sports, and housing are lower in Beijing. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Beijing.
Beijing vs. Kingston Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Beijing instead of Kingston, you would:
pay 51.3% less for restaurants
|
Kingston
|
Beijing
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$7.50
JMD1,197.76
|
$4.21
CN¥29.76
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$8.13
JMD1,297.57
|
$4.91
CN¥34.72
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.28
JMD205.07
|
$0.48
CN¥3.39
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.75
JMD119.39
|
$0.31
CN¥2.17
|
|
Kingston vs. Beijing - Cost of restaurants
pay 46.6% less for groceries
|
Kingston
|
Beijing
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.66
JMD584.33
|
$1.71
CN¥12.07
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.66
JMD904.00
|
$7.47
CN¥52.84
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$15.29
JMD2,441.49
|
$6.64
CN¥46.99
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.51
JMD560.95
|
$1.78
CN¥12.57
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.84
JMD452.74
|
$1.53
CN¥10.83
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.72
JMD434.68
|
$0.98
CN¥6.95
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.39
JMD221.70
|
$0.77
CN¥5.44
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.91
JMD304.79
|
$0.80
CN¥5.66
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.37
JMD218.47
|
$0.60
CN¥4.26
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.93
JMD149.03
|
$0.35
CN¥2.47
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.89
JMD142.44
|
$0.41
CN¥2.92
|
|
Kingston vs. Beijing - Cost of groceries
pay 46.8% less for transportation
|
Kingston
|
Beijing
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.78
JMD762.53
|
$4.21
CN¥29.80
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$48.93
JMD7,811.45
|
$31.54
CN¥223.19
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$42,823.81
JMD6,837,189.04
|
$18,225.66
CN¥128,952.02
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$26.10
JMD4,167.19
|
$4.63
CN¥32.73
|
|
Kingston vs. Beijing - Cost of transportation
pay 32.9% less for housing
|
Kingston
|
Beijing
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$51.15
JMD8,167.17
|
$12.93
CN¥91.49
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$919.69
JMD146,835.98
|
$935.23
CN¥6,617.06
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$457.93
JMD73,113.01
|
$504.41
CN¥3,568.82
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$124.70
JMD19,908.78
|
$39.27
CN¥277.81
|
|
Kingston vs. Beijing - Cost of housing
pay 5.3 times more for childcare
|
Kingston
|
Beijing
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$229.23
JMD36,598.09
|
$710.76
CN¥5,028.87
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$3,094.57
JMD494,074.24
|
$23,242.73
CN¥164,449.26
|
|
Kingston vs. Beijing - Cost of childcare
pay 39.0% less for entertainment and sports
|
Kingston
|
Beijing
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$2.50
JMD399.25
|
$1.12
CN¥7.94
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.55
JMD727.21
|
$2.90
CN¥20.53
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$8.75
JMD1,397.38
|
$4.21
CN¥29.76
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$68.77
JMD10,979.43
|
$57.84
CN¥409.21
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.13
JMD2,096.07
|
$8.41
CN¥59.52
|
|
Kingston vs. Beijing - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 65.6% more for clothing
|
Kingston
|
Beijing
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$23.44
JMD3,742.99
|
$62.30
CN¥440.79
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$25.53
JMD4,075.70
|
$36.37
CN¥257.35
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$70.85
JMD11,312.14
|
$81.74
CN¥578.34
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$76.06
JMD12,143.91
|
$105.53
CN¥746.66
|
|
Kingston vs. Beijing - 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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