What do things cost in china

Main courses with meat can go from to RMB. Non-alcoholic drinks range between 30 and 60 RMB. Of course, this is not an every-day or even every-year experience! This is kind of a controversial topic in China.

Times have changed in this respect; tipping is absolutely common, accepted, appreciated, and in some cases expected.

However, rounding up is always polite. If you order RMB worth of pizza delivered to your door, give the delivery person an extra 10 Kuai note. They work hard, for tiny salaries, under difficult conditions. In a hotel, there will often be a service charge added to the bill, though this often does not actually end up in the pocket of the waiter who served you. Tipping in that case is up to you.

In small, local restaurants, a tip will not be expected and might be met with surprise, not offense. Be kind and reward good work when you can. Even well-to-do Chinese people will tip for good service after a massage, pedicure, or a nice meal. A couple should allot a budget of at least 1, RMB per month for bills and miscellaneous fees that might pop up. Expats generally spend — RMB a month for their phone package. If you need a landline internet connection, you should prepare to send another — RMB per month.

Electricity, water, and gas depends on how much you use per month. On average, you should expect to pay — RMB per month for a 2-bedroom apartment and another RMB for gas and water. When it comes to heating and cooling, most homes have free government central heating in the North part of China. In unheated homes, expect a higher electrical bill to supply your heating devices. Most homes come fitted with air conditioning units, running these can get costly but China does get very hot in the summer, so expect the bills to be higher in June, July, and August.

It is extremely common to get help around the home in China. They usually charge about 45 RMB an hour less in smaller cities or 6, RMB a month full-time and live-in, and possibly twice that if your Ayi is also your nanny. VPN is quite important in China since it increase your cyber security as well as allow you to access many websites blocked by the Chinese Government. Of course, our personal lifestyle will determine our overall cost of living.

Do you need regular massages or get your hair professionally done one a month? Do you need all of the latest high-tech equipment and only buy top brand clothing and shoes? Well, those things will certainly drive your expenses up.

Chinese apartments usually come furnished, so this will save you a whole bunch on your shipping in costs. Most people do some online shopping or hit the local mall to make their place more comfortable when they first arrive. They might get nice sheets, maybe a smart TV to hook up their Netflix account, perhaps a stereo system, and some bookshelves. For electronics, you are not going to save much money in China; good quality products either cost as much as, or be even more expensive than, the ones you will find in your home country.

Furniture, clothing, and other homewares will be really cheap. To give you a little perspective, Ikea is considered high-end in China because locally made homewares are so much more affordable. As you are perusing job ads for China and looking at salaries, here are some figures to keep in mind:.

This kind of money is okay for someone on a gap year or someone who knows they will need experience before they can progress in their career. On this salary, you are going to probably want a flatmate to share the rent and utilities with. You will want to limit your nights out at bars and restaurants and eat street food pretty regularly. But you can survive and have a great time in China even on a low salary like this. Some of the best times are had by cash-strapped youth!

This will allow you to eat out whenever you have the urge and take nice vacations to tropical counties a couple of times a year. It will afford you a clean, simple, safe apartment and you will be able to shop for small luxuries every now and then.

You will never have to decline a dinner invitation and you will be able to travel and take private cars wherever you need to go. This salary will easily take care of a couple, and with some considerations read the section on education to see how crazy school fees can be , will also work with a child.

You will be able to afford a nice 2-bedroom apartment and do your family shopping at import supermarkets with the occasional food delivery or night out at a restaurant. In , if you are contemplating a salary you have been offered to move to China, you should not accept less money than you would expect if you lived in any developed countries in Europe, North America, or Australasia.

Domestic flights are also usually inexpensive. There is some seasonal variation and prices rise during national holidays like Chinese New Year. To give you an idea of how teachers at English First in China spends their salary, here is a sample monthly budget with the cost of living in China:.

Additionally having your own studio can cost you around 4, RMB. Of course if you go to a tier 2 or tier 3 city the cost of living in China will drop accordingly. The salary is above average in China, so there's opportunity for you to save, pay off student loans, or put some money aside for holiday plans. We have responsibilities when living in China — rent, bills, all those things we probably all thought we could outrun one day.

Rent will be the greatest expense, even if you negotiate a decent price. Cost of living in China. Leisure activities. Do you know how much money you will need there to maintain your current standard of living?

Find out what is the real equivalent in China of your current salary and improve your chances of a happy relocation. Moving to China with your children? International Schools in China. Map of Cost of Living in China.

Price Index: To calculate each city's Price Index value, we start by assigning a value of to a central reference city that happens to be Prague. Get a salary calculation for: Shanghai. Make a different comparison: Compare cost of living between cities:. How does it work? Who are we?