Cost of living comparison

Brunei

compared to

China

Shanghai vs. Kuala Belait Cost of Living Summary

Shanghai is 10.1% cheaper than Kuala Belait.

Restaurants: pay 37.0% less in Shanghai
Groceries: pay 42.4% less in Shanghai
Transportation: pay 19.5% more in Shanghai
Housing: pay 1.2% less in Shanghai
Childcare: pay 4.4 times more in Shanghai
Entertainment and Sports: pay 18.8% less in Shanghai
Clothing: pay 34.2% less in Shanghai

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

If you lived in Shanghai instead of Kuala Belait, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 37.0% less for restaurants

	Kuala Belait	Shanghai
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$7.81 BND9.99	$4.47 CN¥29.86	-42.7%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$7.66 BND9.79	$5.22 CN¥34.84	-31.8%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.92 BND1.18	$0.60 CN¥4.00	-35.2%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.52 BND0.66	$0.37 CN¥2.47	-28.3%
Average			-37.0%

Kuala Belait vs. Shanghai - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 42.4% less for groceries

	Kuala Belait	Shanghai
Bread 1 loaf	$2.47 BND3.16	$1.98 CN¥13.18	-20.1%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$9.46 BND12.10	$8.60 CN¥57.38	-9.2%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.05 BND9.01	$6.88 CN¥45.90	-2.5%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.66 BND3.40	$1.70 CN¥11.33	-36.1%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$4.41 BND5.64	$1.48 CN¥9.86	-66.5%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.15 BND2.75	$0.99 CN¥6.63	-53.9%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.99 BND1.27	$0.77 CN¥5.14	-22.4%
Oranges (1 lb)	$2.22 BND2.84	$0.90 CN¥6.03	-59.4%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.15 BND1.47	$0.77 CN¥5.13	-33.2%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.77 BND0.99	$0.36 CN¥2.39	-53.6%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.28 BND1.64	$0.43 CN¥2.89	-66.3%
Average			-42.4%

Kuala Belait vs. Shanghai - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 19.5% more for transportation

	Kuala Belait	Shanghai
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$1.39 BND1.78	$4.96 CN¥33.13	+257.1%
Monthly public transit pass	??	$29.83 CN¥199.09
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$31,264.80 BND39,966.17	$19,374.76 CN¥129K	-38.0%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$30.48 BND38.96	$5.67 CN¥37.83	-81.4%
Average			+19.5%

Kuala Belait vs. Shanghai - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 1.2% less for housing

	Kuala Belait	Shanghai
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$65.12 BND83.25	$10.55 CN¥70.41	-83.8%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$742.24 BND948.81	$1,036.96 CN¥6,920.65	+39.7%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$781.30 BND998.75	$588.71 CN¥3,929.04	-24.7%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$29.87 BND38.19	$44.06 CN¥294.03	+47.5%
Average			-1.2%

Kuala Belait vs. Shanghai - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 4.4 times more for childcare

	Kuala Belait	Shanghai
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$216.85 BND277.20	$1,413.50 CN¥9,433.67	+551.8%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$9,323.57 BND11,918.43	$27,686.22 CN¥185K	+196.9%
Average			+340.0%

Kuala Belait vs. Shanghai - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 18.8% less for entertainment and sports

	Kuala Belait	Shanghai
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.95 BND2.50	$1.19 CN¥7.96	-38.9%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$4.53 BND5.79	$3.35 CN¥22.36	-26.0%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$7.81 BND9.99	$3.73 CN¥24.89	-52.3%
Monthly membership at local gym	$97.67 BND124.85	$65.69 CN¥438.41	-32.7%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$5.47 BND6.99	$8.95 CN¥59.73	+63.6%
Average			-18.8%

Kuala Belait vs. Shanghai - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 34.2% less for clothing

	Kuala Belait	Shanghai
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$76.20 BND97.40	$54.37 CN¥362.87	-28.6%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$101.33 BND129.54	$37.09 CN¥247.57	-63.4%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$154.15 BND197.06	$75.49 CN¥503.82	-51.0%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$72.29 BND92.40	$105.70 CN¥705.47	+46.2%
Average			-34.2%

Kuala Belait 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: Kuala Belait vs. Shanghai

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Shanghai?

More cost comparisons

Kuala Belait vs.

Ho Chi Minh City

Kuala Belait vs.

Madrid

Kuala Belait vs.

Bangkok

Kuala Belait vs.

New York City

Kuala Belait vs.

Reykjavik

Kuala Belait vs.

Sydney

Kuala Belait vs.

Dublin

Kuala Belait vs.

Paris

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in Brunei vs. China. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Brunei 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 Kuala Belait

Add prices for Shanghai

Ask the Elsewhere Community

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