Cost of living comparison

China

compared to

Saudi Arabia

Riyadh vs. Shanghai Cost of Living Summary

Riyadh is 50.1% more expensive than Shanghai.

Restaurants: pay 41.4% more in Riyadh
Groceries: pay 28.2% more in Riyadh
Transportation: pay 64.7% more in Riyadh
Housing: pay 2.7 times more in Riyadh
Childcare: pay 64.8% less in Riyadh
Entertainment and Sports: pay 76.9% more in Riyadh
Clothing: pay 34.9% more in Riyadh

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

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

Riyadh vs. Shanghai Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 41.4% more for restaurants

	Shanghai	Riyadh
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$4.21 CN¥28.50	$8.00 SAR30.05	+90.2%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.61 CN¥37.99	$8.00 SAR30.05	+42.6%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.52 CN¥3.56	$0.75 SAR2.82	+43.2%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.33 CN¥2.21	$0.29 SAR1.10	-10.6%
Average			+41.4%

Shanghai vs. Riyadh - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 28.2% more for groceries

	Shanghai	Riyadh
Bread 1 loaf	$1.86 CN¥12.59	$1.31 SAR4.91	-29.6%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$8.08 CN¥54.74	$4.27 SAR16.03	-47.2%
Milk (1 gallon)	$8.27 CN¥56.02	$6.23 SAR23.41	-24.6%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.74 CN¥11.82	$2.81 SAR10.55	+61.0%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.36 CN¥9.22	$4.67 SAR17.55	+243.5%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.00 CN¥6.80	$1.03 SAR3.86	+2.4%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.78 CN¥5.28	$0.76 SAR2.87	-1.9%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.84 CN¥5.69	$0.82 SAR3.07	-2.6%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.66 CN¥4.48	$0.70 SAR2.63	+6.0%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.35 CN¥2.34	$0.58 SAR2.18	+67.7%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.49 CN¥3.32	$0.66 SAR2.49	+35.1%
Average			+28.2%

Shanghai vs. Riyadh - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 64.7% more for transportation

	Shanghai	Riyadh
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.24 CN¥28.71	$2.31 SAR8.66	-45.6%
Monthly public transit pass	$35.05 CN¥237.47	$37.33 SAR140.25	+6.5%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$19,627.64 CN¥133K	$33,328.67 SAR125K	+69.8%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$5.61 CN¥37.99	$18.40 SAR69.12	+228.1%
Average			+64.7%

Shanghai vs. Riyadh - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 2.7 times more for housing

	Shanghai	Riyadh
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$12.37 CN¥83.84	$74.49 SAR279.89	+502.0%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$926.30 CN¥6,275.90	$1,119.84 SAR4,207.41	+20.9%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$551.44 CN¥3,736.14	$846.11 SAR3,178.95	+53.4%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$40.55 CN¥274.71	$82.07 SAR308.36	+102.4%
Average			+169.7%

Shanghai vs. Riyadh - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 64.8% less for childcare

	Shanghai	Riyadh
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$1,229.70 CN¥8,331.47	$461.83 SAR1,735.15	-62.4%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$29,777.93 CN¥202K	$9,810.75 SAR36,860.40	-67.1%
Average			-64.8%

Shanghai vs. Riyadh - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 76.9% more for entertainment and sports

	Shanghai	Riyadh
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.40 CN¥9.50	$1.87 SAR7.01	+33.1%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.25 CN¥22.01	$4.10 SAR15.41	+26.3%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.80 CN¥19.00	$7.33 SAR27.55	+161.5%
Monthly membership at local gym	$57.60 CN¥390.24	$104.43 SAR392.36	+81.3%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$8.41 CN¥56.99	$15.33 SAR57.60	+82.3%
Average			+76.9%

Shanghai vs. Riyadh - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 34.9% more for clothing

	Shanghai	Riyadh
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$46.70 CN¥316.43	$59.01 SAR221.71	+26.3%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$37.62 CN¥254.91	$64.27 SAR241.48	+70.8%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$72.33 CN¥490.05	$110.52 SAR415.23	+52.8%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$109.50 CN¥741.92	$98.25 SAR369.15	-10.3%
Average			+34.9%

Shanghai vs. Riyadh - Cost of clothing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: July 2026

Compare further: Shanghai vs. Riyadh

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Riyadh?

More cost comparisons

Shanghai vs.

Athens

Shanghai vs.

Moscow

Shanghai vs.

Madrid

Shanghai vs.

Beijing

Shanghai vs.

Algiers

Shanghai vs.

Paris

Shanghai vs.

Reykjavik

Shanghai vs.

Hong Kong

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

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

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 Riyadh

Ask the Elsewhere Community

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