Cost of living comparison

China

compared to

United States

Saint Cloud vs. Shanghai Cost of Living Summary

Saint Cloud is 33.3% more expensive than Shanghai.

Restaurants: pay 2.9 times more in Saint Cloud
Groceries: pay 32.8% more in Saint Cloud
Transportation: pay 25.1% more in Saint Cloud
Housing: pay 32.8% more in Saint Cloud
Childcare: pay 49.2% less in Saint Cloud
Entertainment and Sports: pay 38.0% more in Saint Cloud
Clothing: pay 1.2% more in Saint Cloud

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

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Saint Cloud vs. Shanghai Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Saint Cloud instead of Shanghai, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 2.9 times more for restaurants

	Shanghai	Saint Cloud
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$4.47 CN¥29.87	$15.00	+235.2%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.22 CN¥34.85	$8.50	+62.8%
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	$2.21	+498.4%
Average			+185.5%

Shanghai vs. Saint Cloud - Cost of restaurants

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pay 32.8% more for groceries

	Shanghai	Saint Cloud
Bread 1 loaf	$1.98 CN¥13.19	$1.46	-26.3%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$8.60 CN¥57.39	$4.89	-43.1%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.88 CN¥45.91	$3.34	-51.5%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.70 CN¥11.33	$3.74	+120.1%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.48 CN¥9.87	$3.00	+103.0%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.99 CN¥6.63	$1.67	+68.1%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.77 CN¥5.14	$0.49	-36.4%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.90 CN¥6.03	$1.25	+38.3%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.77 CN¥5.14	$1.60	+108.0%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.36 CN¥2.39	$0.95	+165.4%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.43 CN¥2.89	$1.33	+207.0%
Average			+32.8%

Shanghai vs. Saint Cloud - Cost of groceries

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pay 25.1% more for transportation

	Shanghai	Saint Cloud
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.96 CN¥33.13	$3.34	-32.6%
Monthly public transit pass	$29.83 CN¥199.12	$60.00	+101.1%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$19,374.76 CN¥129K	$30,000.00	+54.8%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$5.67 CN¥37.83	$9.96	+75.8%
Average			+25.1%

Shanghai vs. Saint Cloud - Cost of transportation

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pay 32.8% more for housing

	Shanghai	Saint Cloud
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$10.55 CN¥70.42	$44.00	+317.1%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,036.96 CN¥6,921.79	$930.00	-10.3%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$588.71 CN¥3,929.69	$847.67	+44.0%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$44.06 CN¥294.08	$91.76	+108.3%
Average			+32.8%

Shanghai vs. Saint Cloud - Cost of housing

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pay 49.2% less for childcare

	Shanghai	Saint Cloud
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$1,413.50 CN¥9,435.22	$1,725.00	+22.0%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$27,686.22 CN¥185K	$5,850.00	-78.9%
Average			-49.2%

Shanghai vs. Saint Cloud - Cost of childcare

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pay 38.0% more for entertainment and sports

	Shanghai	Saint Cloud
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.19 CN¥7.96	$6.00	+402.8%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.35 CN¥22.36	$4.50	+34.3%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.73 CN¥24.89	$11.00	+195.0%
Monthly membership at local gym	$65.69 CN¥438.48	$25.00	-61.9%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$8.95 CN¥59.74	$12.00	+34.1%
Average			+38.0%

Shanghai vs. Saint Cloud - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 1.2% more for clothing

	Shanghai	Saint Cloud
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$54.37 CN¥362.93	$57.50	+5.8%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$37.09 CN¥247.61	$50.00	+34.8%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$75.49 CN¥503.90	$73.33	-2.9%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$105.70 CN¥705.59	$80.00	-24.3%
Average			+1.2%

Shanghai vs. Saint Cloud - 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 November 2026). How we calculate this

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