Cost of living comparison

compared to

Ankeny vs. Shanghai Cost of Living Summary

Ankeny is 60.9% more expensive than Shanghai.

Restaurants
pay 3.6 times more in Ankeny
Groceries
pay 67.8% more in Ankeny
Transportation
pay 23.4% more in Ankeny
Housing
pay 70.8% more in Ankeny
Childcare
pay 42.4% less in Ankeny
Entertainment and Sports
pay 88.7% more in Ankeny
Clothing
pay 2.2% more in Ankeny

The cost of restaurants, entertainment and sports, housing, groceries, transportation, and clothing in Ankeny are more expensive than in Shanghai. Notably, restaurants and entertainment and sports are significantly more expensive in Ankeny.

Ankeny vs. Shanghai Cost Breakdown

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

pay 3.6 times more for restaurants

 
Shanghai
Ankeny
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $4.47
CN¥29.87
$20.00
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$5.22
CN¥34.85
$12.00
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $0.60
CN¥4.00
$3.00
 

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pay 67.8% more for groceries

 
Shanghai
Ankeny
Bread
1 loaf
$1.98
CN¥13.19
$2.95
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $8.60
CN¥57.39
$4.77
 
Milk (1 gallon) $6.88
CN¥45.91
$3.38
 

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pay 23.4% more for transportation

 
Shanghai
Ankeny
Gasoline (1 gallon) $4.96
CN¥33.13
$3.71
 
Monthly public transit pass $29.83
CN¥199.12
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New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $19,374.76
CN¥129K
$35,908.50
 

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pay 70.8% more for housing

 
Shanghai
Ankeny
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$10.55
CN¥70.42
$65.33
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,036.96
CN¥6,921.79
$1,102.50
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $588.71
CN¥3,929.69
$1,144.00
 

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pay 42.4% less for childcare

 
Shanghai
Ankeny
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $1,413.50
CN¥9,435.22
$1,100.00
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $27,686.22
CN¥185K
$11,812.00
 

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pay 88.7% more for entertainment and sports

 
Shanghai
Ankeny
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $1.19
CN¥7.96
$5.00
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $3.35
CN¥22.36
$5.50
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$3.73
CN¥24.89
$8.89
 

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pay 2.2% more for clothing

 
Shanghai
Ankeny
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$54.37
CN¥362.93
$48.00
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$37.09
CN¥247.61
$35.00
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$75.49
CN¥503.90
$89.00
 

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We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated November 2026). How we calculate this

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