Cost of living comparison

China

compared to

United States

East Providence vs. Shanghai Cost of Living Summary

East Providence is 95.2% more expensive than Shanghai.

Restaurants: pay 3.9 times more in East Providence
Groceries: pay 88.4% more in East Providence
Transportation: pay 19.5% more in East Providence
Housing: pay 2.7 times more in East Providence
Childcare: pay 18.6% more in East Providence
Entertainment and Sports: pay 73.5% more in East Providence
Clothing: pay 23.0% less in East Providence

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

Planning a move to United States? Get up to 5 free, no-obligation quotes from vetted international movers. Get free quotes →

East Providence vs. Shanghai Cost Breakdown

If you lived in East Providence instead of Shanghai, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 3.9 times more for restaurants

	Shanghai	East Providence
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$4.47 CN¥29.87	$20.00	+347.0%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.22 CN¥34.85	$13.50	+158.6%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.60 CN¥4.00	$2.83	+372.6%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.37 CN¥2.47	$2.50	+575.9%
Average			+286.8%

Shanghai vs. East Providence - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 88.4% more for groceries

	Shanghai	East Providence
Bread 1 loaf	$1.98 CN¥13.19	$4.02	+103.7%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$8.60 CN¥57.39	$5.64	-34.4%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.88 CN¥45.91	$3.90	-43.3%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.70 CN¥11.33	$4.80	+182.6%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.48 CN¥9.87	$6.50	+339.5%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.99 CN¥6.63	$2.50	+151.6%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.77 CN¥5.14	$0.80	+3.4%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.90 CN¥6.03	$3.03	+235.1%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.77 CN¥5.14	$1.40	+82.0%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.36 CN¥2.39	$1.00	+179.3%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.43 CN¥2.89	$1.10	+153.9%
Average			+88.4%

Shanghai vs. East Providence - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 19.5% more for transportation

	Shanghai	East Providence
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.96 CN¥33.13	$4.01	-19.3%
Monthly public transit pass	$29.83 CN¥199.12	??
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$19,374.76 CN¥129K	$36,619.00	+89.0%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$5.67 CN¥37.83	??
Average			+19.5%

Shanghai vs. East Providence - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 2.7 times more for housing

	Shanghai	East Providence
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$10.55 CN¥70.42	$77.50	+634.6%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,036.96 CN¥6,921.79	$1,850.00	+78.4%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$588.71 CN¥3,929.69	$1,600.00	+171.8%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$44.06 CN¥294.08	$243.64	+453.0%
Average			+168.5%

Shanghai vs. East Providence - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 18.6% more for childcare

	Shanghai	East Providence
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$1,413.50 CN¥9,435.22	$1,833.33	+29.7%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$27,686.22 CN¥185K	$30,000.00	+8.4%
Average			+18.6%

Shanghai vs. East Providence - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 73.5% more for entertainment and sports

	Shanghai	East Providence
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.19 CN¥7.96	$6.00	+402.8%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.35 CN¥22.36	$5.47	+63.4%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.73 CN¥24.89	$13.24	+255.1%
Monthly membership at local gym	$65.69 CN¥438.48	$40.00	-39.1%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$8.95 CN¥59.74	$14.88	+66.2%
Average			+73.5%

Shanghai vs. East Providence - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 23.0% less for clothing

	Shanghai	East Providence
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$54.37 CN¥362.93	$38.50	-29.2%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$37.09 CN¥247.61	$16.33	-56.0%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$75.49 CN¥503.90	$100.00	+32.5%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$105.70 CN¥705.59	$90.00	-14.9%
Average			-23.0%

Shanghai vs. East Providence - 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 November 2026). How we calculate this

Compare further: Shanghai vs. East Providence

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in East Providence?

More cost comparisons

Shanghai vs.

Beijing

Shanghai vs.

Lima

Shanghai vs.

Warsaw

Shanghai vs.

Bangkok

Shanghai vs.

Berlin

Shanghai vs.

Sydney

Shanghai vs.

Rome

Shanghai vs.

London

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in China vs. United States. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within China and United States.

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 Shanghai

Add prices for East Providence

Ask the Elsewhere Community

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