Cost of living comparison
Sioux City vs. Shanghai Cost of Living Summary
Sioux City is 50.0% more expensive than Shanghai.
- Restaurants
-
pay 3.3 times more in Sioux City
- Groceries
-
pay 61.9% more in Sioux City
- Transportation
-
pay 26.8% more in Sioux City
- Housing
-
pay 48.7% more in Sioux City
- Childcare
-
pay 42.8% less in Sioux City
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 2.1 times more in Sioux City
- Clothing
-
pay 20.7% less in Sioux City
The cost of restaurants, entertainment and sports, groceries, housing, and transportation in Sioux City are more expensive than in Shanghai. Expenses including childcare and clothing are lower in Sioux City. Notably, restaurants and entertainment and sports are significantly more expensive in Sioux City.
Sioux City vs. Shanghai Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Sioux City instead of Shanghai, you would:
pay 3.3 times more for restaurants
|
Shanghai
|
Sioux City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| 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
|
$10.62
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.60
CN¥4.00
|
$2.14
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.37
CN¥2.47
|
$1.76
|
|
pay 61.9% more for groceries
|
Shanghai
|
Sioux City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.98
CN¥13.19
|
$2.89
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.60
CN¥57.39
|
$4.07
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.88
CN¥45.91
|
$3.38
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$1.70
CN¥11.33
|
$3.62
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$1.48
CN¥9.87
|
$3.49
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$0.99
CN¥6.63
|
$2.12
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.77
CN¥5.14
|
$0.70
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.90
CN¥6.03
|
$1.87
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.77
CN¥5.14
|
$1.84
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.36
CN¥2.39
|
$0.88
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.43
CN¥2.89
|
$2.16
|
|
pay 26.8% more for transportation
|
Shanghai
|
Sioux City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.96
CN¥33.13
|
$3.32
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$29.83
CN¥199.12
|
$48.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$19,374.76
CN¥129K
|
$35,908.50
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$5.67
CN¥37.83
|
$11.94
|
|
pay 48.7% more for housing
|
Shanghai
|
Sioux City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$10.55
CN¥70.42
|
$69.67
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,036.96
CN¥6,921.79
|
$936.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$588.71
CN¥3,929.69
|
$930.50
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$44.06
CN¥294.08
|
$128.07
|
|
pay 42.8% less for childcare
|
Shanghai
|
Sioux City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,413.50
CN¥9,435.22
|
$1,083.33
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$27,686.22
CN¥185K
|
$11,812.00
|
|
pay 2.1 times more for entertainment and sports
|
Shanghai
|
Sioux City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.19
CN¥7.96
|
$5.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.35
CN¥22.36
|
$6.17
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$3.73
CN¥24.89
|
$8.89
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$65.69
CN¥438.48
|
$100.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$8.95
CN¥59.74
|
$15.00
|
|
pay 20.7% less for clothing
|
Shanghai
|
Sioux City
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$54.37
CN¥362.93
|
$43.33
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$37.09
CN¥247.61
|
$21.50
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$75.49
CN¥503.90
|
$77.50
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$105.70
CN¥705.59
|
$88.33
|
|
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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