Fremont vs. Shanghai Cost of Living Summary

Fremont is 2.6 times more expensive than Shanghai.

Restaurants
pay 3.7 times more in Fremont
Groceries
pay 2.4 times more in Fremont
Transportation
pay 95.4% more in Fremont
Housing
pay 4.0 times more in Fremont
Childcare
pay 36.1% more in Fremont
Entertainment and Sports
pay 87.7% more in Fremont
Clothing
pay 20.3% more in Fremont

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

Fremont vs. Shanghai Cost Breakdown

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

pay 3.7 times more for restaurants

 
Shanghai
Fremont
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
$2.70
 

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pay 2.4 times more for groceries

 
Shanghai
Fremont
Bread
1 loaf
$1.98
CN¥13.19
$4.44
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $8.60
CN¥57.39
$9.82
 
Milk (1 gallon) $6.88
CN¥45.91
$6.00
 

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pay 95.4% more for transportation

 
Shanghai
Fremont
Gasoline (1 gallon) $4.96
CN¥33.13
$5.87
 
Monthly public transit pass $29.83
CN¥199.12
$84.00
 
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $19,374.76
CN¥129K
$36,998.00
 

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pay 4.0 times more for housing

 
Shanghai
Fremont
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$10.55
CN¥70.42
$83.15
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,036.96
CN¥6,921.79
$2,910.00
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $588.71
CN¥3,929.69
$2,582.00
 

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pay 36.1% more for childcare

 
Shanghai
Fremont
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $1,413.50
CN¥9,435.22
$1,822.00
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $27,686.22
CN¥185K
$39,800.00
 

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pay 87.7% more for entertainment and sports

 
Shanghai
Fremont
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $1.19
CN¥7.96
$9.00
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $3.35
CN¥22.36
$5.43
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$3.73
CN¥24.89
$11.71
 

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pay 20.3% more for clothing

 
Shanghai
Fremont
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$54.37
CN¥362.93
$59.81
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$37.09
CN¥247.61
$51.33
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$75.49
CN¥503.90
$91.67
 

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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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