Cost of living comparison
compared to
Los Angeles vs. Shanghai Cost of Living Summary
Los Angeles is 2.6 times more expensive than Shanghai.
- Restaurants
-
pay 4.7 times more in Los Angeles
- Groceries
-
pay 2.2 times more in Los Angeles
- Transportation
-
pay 99.1% more in Los Angeles
- Housing
-
pay 3.5 times more in Los Angeles
- Childcare
-
pay 17.4% more in Los Angeles
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 2.3 times more in Los Angeles
- Clothing
-
pay 72.7% more in Los Angeles
Los Angeles vs. Shanghai Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Los Angeles instead of Shanghai, you would:
pay 4.7 times more for restaurants
|
Shanghai
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$4.47
CN¥29.95
|
$26.50
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$5.22
CN¥34.94
|
$15.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.60
CN¥4.01
|
$3.72
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.37
CN¥2.48
|
$2.72
|
|
Shanghai vs. Los Angeles - Cost of restaurants
pay 2.2 times more for groceries
|
Shanghai
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.98
CN¥13.22
|
$4.81
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.60
CN¥57.54
|
$5.75
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.88
CN¥46.03
|
$4.95
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$1.70
CN¥11.36
|
$5.99
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$1.48
CN¥9.89
|
$7.26
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$0.99
CN¥6.65
|
$2.32
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.77
CN¥5.16
|
$1.03
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.90
CN¥6.05
|
$2.16
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.77
CN¥5.15
|
$2.57
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.36
CN¥2.40
|
$1.46
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.43
CN¥2.90
|
$1.30
|
|
Shanghai vs. Los Angeles - Cost of groceries
pay 99.1% more for transportation
|
Shanghai
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.96
CN¥33.22
|
$5.97
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$29.83
CN¥199.65
|
$105.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$19,374.76
CN¥130K
|
$36,998.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$5.67
CN¥37.93
|
$17.91
|
|
Shanghai vs. Los Angeles - Cost of transportation
pay 3.5 times more for housing
|
Shanghai
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$10.55
CN¥70.61
|
$80.07
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,036.96
CN¥6,940.04
|
$2,544.44
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$588.71
CN¥3,940.05
|
$2,413.33
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$44.06
CN¥294.86
|
$217.11
|
|
Shanghai vs. Los Angeles - Cost of housing
pay 17.4% more for childcare
|
Shanghai
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,413.50
CN¥9,460.10
|
$1,676.09
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$27,686.22
CN¥185K
|
$32,155.00
|
|
Shanghai vs. Los Angeles - Cost of childcare
pay 2.3 times more for entertainment and sports
|
Shanghai
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.19
CN¥7.99
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.35
CN¥22.42
|
$5.95
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$3.73
CN¥24.96
|
$13.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$65.69
CN¥439.64
|
$75.47
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$8.95
CN¥59.89
|
$19.75
|
|
Shanghai vs. Los Angeles - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 72.7% more for clothing
|
Shanghai
|
Los Angeles
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$54.37
CN¥363.89
|
$89.92
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$37.09
CN¥248.26
|
$64.92
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$75.49
CN¥505.23
|
$119.25
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$105.70
CN¥707.45
|
$205.45
|
|
Shanghai vs. Los Angeles - Cost of clothing
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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