Cost of living comparison
compared to
Taichung vs. Taiwan Cost of Living Summary
Taichung is 2.9% more expensive than Taiwan overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 7.9% more in Taichung
- Groceries
-
pay 3.2% less in Taichung
- Transportation
-
pay 2.5% more in Taichung
- Housing
-
pay 6.8% more in Taichung
- Childcare
-
pay 5.7% less in Taichung
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 6.3% less in Taichung
- Clothing
-
pay 18.5% more in Taichung
The cost of clothing, restaurants, housing, and transportation in Taichung are more expensive than in Taiwan. Expenses including entertainment and sports, childcare, and groceries are lower in Taichung.
Taichung vs. Taiwan Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Taichung instead of Taiwan, you would:
pay 7.9% more for restaurants
|
Taiwan
|
Taichung
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$4.82
NT$150.73
|
$4.92
NT$153.80
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$5.16
NT$161.46
|
$5.23
NT$163.55
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.98
NT$30.60
|
$1.08
NT$33.84
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.67
NT$20.95
|
$0.79
NT$24.69
|
|
Taiwan vs. Taichung - Cost of restaurants
pay 3.2% less for groceries
|
Taiwan
|
Taichung
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.77
NT$55.29
|
$1.69
NT$52.98
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$9.29
NT$290.64
|
$15.02
NT$469.96
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$11.90
NT$372.19
|
$13.37
NT$418.22
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.61
NT$81.79
|
$2.82
NT$88.18
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.56
NT$111.34
|
$3.63
NT$113.67
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.03
NT$63.43
|
$2.03
NT$63.56
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.00
NT$31.23
|
$0.78
NT$24.47
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.25
NT$39.04
|
$0.98
NT$30.70
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.55
NT$48.45
|
$1.51
NT$47.36
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.20
NT$37.69
|
$0.58
NT$18.02
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.03
NT$32.13
|
$0.84
NT$26.32
|
|
Taiwan vs. Taichung - Cost of groceries
pay 2.5% more for transportation
|
Taiwan
|
Taichung
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.78
NT$118.39
|
$3.78
NT$118.32
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$34.06
NT$1,065.82
|
$27.84
NT$871.05
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$35,728.87
NT$1,117,920.78
|
$34,999.18
NT$1,095,089.33
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$9.18
NT$287.24
|
$11.96
NT$374.26
|
|
Taiwan vs. Taichung - Cost of transportation
pay 6.8% more for housing
|
Taiwan
|
Taichung
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$21.10
NT$660.25
|
$22.70
NT$710.28
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$429.29
NT$13,432.05
|
$344.30
NT$10,772.74
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$295.73
NT$9,253.01
|
$301.96
NT$9,448.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$54.85
NT$1,716.21
|
$75.27
NT$2,355.03
|
|
Taiwan vs. Taichung - Cost of housing
pay 5.7% less for childcare
|
Taiwan
|
Taichung
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$519.45
NT$16,253.17
|
$355.02
NT$11,108.12
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$16,665.76
NT$521,454.83
|
$20,072.09
NT$628,035.78
|
|
Taiwan vs. Taichung - Cost of childcare
pay 6.3% less for entertainment and sports
|
Taiwan
|
Taichung
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.97
NT$61.59
|
$1.67
NT$52.29
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.00
NT$93.94
|
$3.02
NT$94.42
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$4.54
NT$142.18
|
$3.93
NT$123.04
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$37.49
NT$1,172.88
|
$34.17
NT$1,069.16
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$10.04
NT$314.27
|
$10.57
NT$330.68
|
|
Taiwan vs. Taichung - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 18.5% more for clothing
|
Taiwan
|
Taichung
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$65.08
NT$2,036.43
|
$81.88
NT$2,561.95
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$31.24
NT$977.48
|
$36.00
NT$1,126.44
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$79.60
NT$2,490.50
|
$83.84
NT$2,623.22
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$96.29
NT$3,012.97
|
$122.89
NT$3,845.12
|
|
Taiwan vs. Taichung - Cost of clothing
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: December 2025
Change currency:
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
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Taichung or Taiwan. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.