Cost of living comparison

compared to

China vs. Kingston Cost of Living Summary

China is 2.3% cheaper than Kingston.

Restaurants: pay 56.5% less in China
Groceries: pay 53.6% less in China
Transportation: pay 52.0% less in China
Housing: pay 67.3% less in China
Childcare: pay 3.4 times more in China
Entertainment and Sports: pay 50.5% less in China
Clothing: pay 28.4% more in China

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

China vs. Kingston Cost Breakdown

If you lived in China instead of Kingston, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 56.5% less for restaurants

	Kingston	China
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$7.50 JMD1,200.46	$2.90 CN¥20.40	-61.4%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$8.13 JMD1,300.50	$5.02 CN¥35.32	-38.3%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.28 JMD205.53	$0.47 CN¥3.34	-63.1%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.75 JMD119.66	$0.28 CN¥1.95	-63.0%
Average			-56.5%

Kingston vs. China - Cost of restaurants

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pay 53.6% less for groceries

	Kingston	China
Bread 1 loaf	$3.66 JMD585.65	$1.63 CN¥11.46	-55.5%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.66 JMD906.04	$6.32 CN¥44.49	+11.6%
Milk (1 gallon)	$15.29 JMD2,447.00	$6.70 CN¥47.21	-56.2%
Eggs 1 dozen	$3.51 JMD562.21	$1.56 CN¥11.00	-55.6%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.84 JMD453.77	$1.52 CN¥10.73	-46.3%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.72 JMD435.66	$0.74 CN¥5.23	-72.7%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.39 JMD222.20	$0.55 CN¥3.84	-60.7%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.91 JMD305.48	$0.62 CN¥4.39	-67.3%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.37 JMD218.97	$0.50 CN¥3.55	-63.2%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.93 JMD149.36	$0.30 CN¥2.12	-67.8%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.89 JMD142.76	$0.39 CN¥2.78	-55.8%
Average			-53.6%

Kingston vs. China - Cost of groceries

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pay 52.0% less for transportation

	Kingston	China
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.78 JMD764.25	$4.34 CN¥30.53	-9.2%
Monthly public transit pass	$48.93 JMD7,829.07	$20.32 CN¥143.09	-58.5%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$42,823.81 JMD6,852,612.29	$19,143.98 CN¥134,794.71	-55.3%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$26.10 JMD4,176.59	$3.94 CN¥27.76	-84.9%
Average			-52.0%

Kingston vs. China - Cost of transportation

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pay 67.3% less for housing

	Kingston	China
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$51.15 JMD8,185.60	$11.18 CN¥78.70	-78.2%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$919.69 JMD147,167.21	$304.90 CN¥2,146.80	-66.8%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$457.93 JMD73,277.93	$195.65 CN¥1,377.56	-57.3%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$124.70 JMD19,953.69	$41.04 CN¥288.99	-67.1%
Average			-67.3%

Kingston vs. China - Cost of housing

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pay 3.4 times more for childcare

	Kingston	China
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$229.23 JMD36,680.65	$390.25 CN¥2,747.78	+70.2%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$3,094.57 JMD495,188.77	$15,493.57 CN¥109,091.78	+400.7%
Average			+235.4%

Kingston vs. China - Cost of childcare

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pay 50.5% less for entertainment and sports

	Kingston	China
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$2.50 JMD400.15	$1.04 CN¥7.33	-58.4%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$4.55 JMD728.85	$2.84 CN¥19.97	-37.7%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$8.75 JMD1,400.53	$3.36 CN¥23.65	-61.6%
Monthly membership at local gym	$68.77 JMD11,004.19	$41.13 CN¥289.59	-40.2%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$13.13 JMD2,100.80	$5.98 CN¥42.13	-54.4%
Average			-50.5%

Kingston vs. China - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 28.4% more for clothing

	Kingston	China
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$23.44 JMD3,751.43	$45.93 CN¥323.38	+95.9%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$25.53 JMD4,084.89	$30.93 CN¥217.79	+21.2%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$70.85 JMD11,337.66	$71.26 CN¥501.74	+0.6%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$76.06 JMD12,171.31	$72.88 CN¥513.16	-4.2%
Average			+28.4%

Kingston vs. China - Cost of clothing

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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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