Cost of living comparison

compared to

China vs. Laos Cost of Living Summary

China is 4.8% cheaper than Laos overall.

Restaurants: pay 13.0% less in China
Groceries: pay 23.8% less in China
Transportation: pay 41.7% less in China
Housing: pay 38.8% less in China
Childcare: pay 49.4% more in China
Entertainment and Sports: pay 34.6% more in China
Clothing: pay 0.1% less in China

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

China vs. Laos Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 13.0% less for restaurants

	Laos	China
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$2.08 LAK44,969	$2.90 CN¥20.50	+39.5%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.54 LAK119,918	$5.02 CN¥35.49	-9.5%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.76 LAK16,444	$0.47 CN¥3.36	-37.6%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.50 LAK10,719	$0.28 CN¥1.96	-44.2%
Average			-13.0%

Laos vs. China - Cost of restaurants

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pay 23.8% less for groceries

	Laos	China
Bread 1 loaf	$1.13 LAK24,565	$1.63 CN¥11.52	+43.5%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$13.26 LAK287,052	$6.32 CN¥44.71	-52.3%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.91 LAK149,607	$6.70 CN¥47.44	-3.0%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.11 LAK45,585	$1.56 CN¥11.05	-25.8%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.10 LAK45,372	$1.52 CN¥10.78	-27.3%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.76 LAK16,405	$0.74 CN¥5.25	-2.0%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.75 LAK16,239	$0.55 CN¥3.86	-27.3%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.97 LAK20,985	$0.62 CN¥4.41	-35.7%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.30 LAK28,222	$0.50 CN¥3.57	-61.3%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.70 LAK15,261	$0.30 CN¥2.13	-57.3%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.46 LAK9,907	$0.39 CN¥2.79	-13.8%
Average			-23.8%

Laos vs. China - Cost of groceries

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pay 41.7% less for transportation

	Laos	China
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.72 LAK102,231	$4.34 CN¥30.68	-8.2%
Monthly public transit pass	$54.89 LAK1,188,115	$20.32 CN¥143.78	-63.0%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$28,639.89 LAK619,954,342	$19,143.98 CN¥135,449.43	-33.2%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$10.51 LAK227,448	$3.94 CN¥27.89	-62.5%
Average			-41.7%

Laos vs. China - Cost of transportation

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pay 38.8% less for housing

	Laos	China
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$9.16 LAK198,197	$11.18 CN¥79.08	+22.1%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,004.64 LAK21,746,980	$304.90 CN¥2,157.22	-69.7%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$817.42 LAK17,694,410	$195.65 CN¥1,384.25	-76.1%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$59.90 LAK1,296,718	$41.04 CN¥290.39	-31.5%
Average			-38.8%

Laos vs. China - Cost of housing

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pay 49.4% more for childcare

	Laos	China
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$296.67 LAK6,421,775	$390.25 CN¥2,761.13	+31.5%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$9,267.93 LAK200,618,663	$15,493.57 CN¥109,621.66	+67.2%
Average			+49.4%

Laos vs. China - Cost of childcare

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pay 34.6% more for entertainment and sports

	Laos	China
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.42 LAK30,727	$1.04 CN¥7.37	-26.7%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$1.66 LAK35,850	$2.84 CN¥20.07	+71.3%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$1.98 LAK42,885	$3.36 CN¥23.77	+69.6%
Monthly membership at local gym	$67.50 LAK1,461,149	$41.13 CN¥290.99	-39.1%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$3.02 LAK65,430	$5.98 CN¥42.33	+97.9%
Average			+34.6%

Laos vs. China - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 0.1% less for clothing

	Laos	China
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$50.20 LAK1,086,754	$45.93 CN¥324.95	-8.5%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$65.21 LAK1,411,532	$30.93 CN¥218.85	-52.6%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$66.39 LAK1,437,049	$71.26 CN¥504.18	+7.3%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$47.52 LAK1,028,728	$72.88 CN¥515.65	+53.4%
Average			-0.1%

Laos 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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