Cost of living comparison

China

compared to

United States

Eau Claire vs. Shanghai Cost of Living Summary

Eau Claire is 56.5% more expensive than Shanghai.

Restaurants: pay 3.2 times more in Eau Claire
Groceries: pay 73.3% more in Eau Claire
Transportation: pay 36.8% more in Eau Claire
Housing: pay 55.9% more in Eau Claire
Childcare: pay 22.6% less in Eau Claire
Entertainment and Sports: pay 56.3% more in Eau Claire
Clothing: pay 5.3% less in Eau Claire

The cost of restaurants, groceries, entertainment and sports, housing, and transportation in Eau Claire are more expensive than in Shanghai. Expenses including childcare and clothing are lower in Eau Claire. Notably, restaurants is significantly more expensive in Eau Claire.

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Eau Claire vs. Shanghai Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Eau Claire instead of Shanghai, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 3.2 times more for restaurants

	Shanghai	Eau Claire
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$4.47 CN¥29.94	$18.50	+313.5%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.22 CN¥34.93	$10.00	+91.6%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.60 CN¥4.01	$2.78	+363.2%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.37 CN¥2.47	$1.50	+305.5%
Average			+218.8%

Shanghai vs. Eau Claire - Cost of restaurants

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pay 73.3% more for groceries

	Shanghai	Eau Claire
Bread 1 loaf	$1.98 CN¥13.22	$3.47	+75.8%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$8.60 CN¥57.52	$6.39	-25.7%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.88 CN¥46.02	$3.00	-56.4%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.70 CN¥11.36	$3.67	+116.0%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.48 CN¥9.89	$5.98	+304.8%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.99 CN¥6.65	$2.13	+114.8%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.77 CN¥5.16	$0.56	-26.9%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.90 CN¥6.05	$1.50	+65.9%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.77 CN¥5.15	$2.20	+186.2%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.36 CN¥2.40	$1.28	+258.8%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.43 CN¥2.90	$1.38	+219.0%
Average			+73.3%

Shanghai vs. Eau Claire - Cost of groceries

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pay 36.8% more for transportation

	Shanghai	Eau Claire
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.96 CN¥33.21	$3.45	-30.5%
Monthly public transit pass	$29.83 CN¥199.59	$50.00	+67.6%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$19,374.76 CN¥130K	$35,957.00	+85.6%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$5.67 CN¥37.92	$20.00	+252.9%
Average			+36.8%

Shanghai vs. Eau Claire - Cost of transportation

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pay 55.9% more for housing

	Shanghai	Eau Claire
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$10.55 CN¥70.59	$69.50	+558.8%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,036.96 CN¥6,938.07	$1,012.50	-2.4%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$588.71 CN¥3,938.93	$887.50	+50.8%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$44.06 CN¥294.77	$162.10	+267.9%
Average			+55.9%

Shanghai vs. Eau Claire - Cost of housing

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pay 22.6% less for childcare

	Shanghai	Eau Claire
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$1,413.50 CN¥9,457.42	$1,000.00	-29.3%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$27,686.22 CN¥185K	$23,429.75	-15.4%
Average			-22.6%

Shanghai vs. Eau Claire - Cost of childcare

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pay 56.3% more for entertainment and sports

	Shanghai	Eau Claire
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.19 CN¥7.98	$4.00	+235.2%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.35 CN¥22.41	$5.33	+59.2%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.73 CN¥24.95	$10.00	+168.2%
Monthly membership at local gym	$65.69 CN¥439.52	$55.00	-16.3%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$8.95 CN¥59.88	$11.25	+25.7%
Average			+56.3%

Shanghai vs. Eau Claire - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 5.3% less for clothing

	Shanghai	Eau Claire
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$54.37 CN¥363.79	$48.33	-11.1%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$37.09 CN¥248.19	$30.00	-19.1%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$75.49 CN¥505.08	$107.16	+42.0%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$105.70 CN¥707.25	$83.33	-21.2%
Average			-5.3%

Shanghai vs. Eau Claire - Cost of clothing

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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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