Cost of Living in Chengdu, 🇨🇳 China - For Locals, Nomads, and Tourists

AI estimate Updated Mar 22, 2026 About costs

Cost breakdown

Digital nomad: short-term stay (1-3 months). Furnished Airbnb or coliving near center, coworking, eating out ~3x/day, travel health insurance.

Expat: long-term resident (1+ years). Renting apartment in center, mix of cooking and dining out, local health insurance, settled lifestyle.

Family: middle-class 4-person family. 2-3 bedroom in suburbs, groceries for 4, international school, car/transport, family health plan.

Local: budget-conscious local resident. Renting outside center, cooking at home, public transport, local phone plan.

Tourist: short-stay visitor (1-14 days). Hotel/Airbnb nightly, all meals at restaurants, taxis, sightseeing.

CategoryCost

Housing $797 $551 $1,087 $319 $80

Utilities $72 $87 $159 $43 —

Internet & Mobile $41 $22 $51 $12 $4

Groceries $87 $319 $725 $174 $6

Transportation $58 $87 $261 $22 $17

Dining Out $522 $362 $652 $87 $51

Leisure Activities $319 $261 $507 $58 $26

Health Insurance $80 $159 $507 $41 —

Visa & Legal Fees $58 $29 $116 — $1

Total $2,034 $1,877 $4,065 $756 $185

Itemized prices

Local prices converted to the selected currency.

Housing

Apartment (1 bedroom) $463.82 per month

Coworking Space $173.93 per month

Airbnb (1 month) $942.14 per month

Coliving Space $652.25 per month

Food & Dining

Coffee $4.06 per cup

Beer $1.74 per pint

Meal (Inexpensive) $3.62 per meal

Fast Food Combo $6.09 per meal

Apples $2.03 per kg

Bread $2.61 per loaf

Milk $2.17 per liter

Rice $1.09 per kg

Chicken Fillets $4.64 per kg

Beef $13.77 per kg

Wine (Mid-range) $17.39 per bottle

Meal (Mid-range, 2 people) $31.89 per meal

Water (1.5L bottle) $0.65 per bottle

Transportation

Taxi Start $1.30 per trip

Taxi per km $0.32 per km

Monthly Transport Pass $21.74 per month

Gasoline $1.22 per liter

Ride-hailing (5km) $2.61 per trip

Scooter Rental $0.43 per month

Services

Mobile Plan $15.65 per month

Internet (60 Mbps+) $13.77 per month

Gym Membership $50.73 per month

Tennis Court (Weekend) $17.39 per hour

SIM Card (Tourist, prepaid) $21.74 one-time

Entertainment

Cinema Ticket $7.25 per ticket

Clothing

Jeans $65.23 per pair

Summer Dress $40.58 per dress

Running Shoes $94.21 per pair

Personal Care

Haircut $11.60 per visit

Laundry $2.17 per kg

Healthcare

Doctor Visit (GP) $43.48 per visit

Pharmacy (basic meds) $6.52 per purchase

About these costs

Method: AI estimate
Last updated: Mar 22, 2026
Generated by: Model not recorded
Last changed: None yet
Exchange rate: 1 USD = 6.8992 CNY

Generated by an AI model without cited sources and not yet checked by research. A research pass replaces these values with sourced ones, compared with similar cities.

Chengdu cost of living