Cost of living comparison

compared to

Bristol vs. Shanghai Cost of Living Summary

Bristol is 2.1 times more expensive than Shanghai.

Restaurants
pay 3.5 times more in Bristol
Groceries
pay 42.3% more in Bristol
Transportation
pay 2.3 times more in Bristol
Housing
pay 2.5 times more in Bristol
Childcare
pay 19.3% more in Bristol
Entertainment and Sports
pay 96.2% more in Bristol
Clothing
pay 32.7% more in Bristol

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

Bristol vs. Shanghai Cost Breakdown

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

pay 3.5 times more for restaurants

 
Shanghai
Bristol
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $4.47
CN¥29.86
$21.14
£15.81
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$5.22
CN¥34.84
$10.57
£7.90
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $0.60
CN¥4.00
$2.62
£1.96

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pay 42.3% more for groceries

 
Shanghai
Bristol
Bread
1 loaf
$1.98
CN¥13.18
$1.68
£1.25
Local cheese (8 oz) $8.60
CN¥57.38
$4.12
£3.08
Milk (1 gallon) $6.88
CN¥45.90
$5.80
£4.33

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pay 2.3 times more for transportation

 
Shanghai
Bristol
Gasoline (1 gallon) $4.96
CN¥33.13
$7.95
£5.94
Monthly public transit pass $29.83
CN¥199.09
$120.25
£89.91
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $19,374.76
CN¥129K
$38,182.92
£28,549.06

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pay 2.5 times more for housing

 
Shanghai
Bristol
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$10.55
CN¥70.41
$38.47
£28.76
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,036.96
CN¥6,920.65
$1,912.48
£1,429.95
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $588.71
CN¥3,929.04
$1,449.18
£1,083.54

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pay 19.3% more for childcare

 
Shanghai
Bristol
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $1,413.50
CN¥9,433.67
$2,237.19
£1,672.73
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $27,686.22
CN¥185K
$24,907.43
£18,623.09

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pay 96.2% more for entertainment and sports

 
Shanghai
Bristol
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $1.19
CN¥7.96
$7.66
£5.73
Cappuccino in mid-range area $3.35
CN¥22.36
$5.12
£3.83
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$3.73
CN¥24.89
$23.19
£17.34

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pay 32.7% more for clothing

 
Shanghai
Bristol
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$54.37
CN¥362.87
$100.10
£74.84
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$37.09
CN¥247.57
$48.16
£36.01
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$75.49
CN¥503.82
$106.50
£79.63

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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 October 2026). How we calculate this

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