Cost of living comparison

Lagos, Nigeria

compared to

Beijing, China

Beijing vs. Lagos Cost of Living Summary

Beijing is 2.5 times more expensive than Lagos.

Restaurants: pay 28.1% more in Beijing
Groceries: pay 16.2% less in Beijing
Transportation: pay 4.4% less in Beijing
Housing: pay 6.6% less in Beijing
Childcare: pay 9.6 times more in Beijing
Entertainment and Sports: pay 74.6% more in Beijing
Clothing: pay 77.6% more in Beijing

The cost of childcare, clothing, entertainment and sports, and restaurants in Beijing are more expensive than in Lagos. Expenses including groceries, housing, and transportation are lower in Beijing. Notably, childcare and clothing are significantly more expensive in Beijing.

Beijing vs. Lagos Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Beijing instead of Lagos, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 28.1% more for restaurants

	Lagos	Beijing
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$2.80 NGN4,457.43	$4.17 CN¥29.97	+48.9%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$6.85 NGN10,895.67	$5.57 CN¥39.97	-18.8%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.37 NGN592.53	$0.50 CN¥3.56	+33.1%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.21 NGN329.40	$0.31 CN¥2.22	+49.2%
Average			+28.1%

Lagos vs. Beijing - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 16.2% less for groceries

	Lagos	Beijing
Bread 1 loaf	$1.47 NGN2,330.96	$1.43 CN¥10.30	-2.2%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$2.80 NGN4,443.96	$7.31 CN¥52.47	+161.4%
Milk (1 gallon)	$9.93 NGN15,789.88	$7.17 CN¥51.48	-27.8%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.06 NGN3,271.96	$1.74 CN¥12.48	-15.5%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.19 NGN3,477.72	$1.53 CN¥10.99	-30.0%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.72 NGN2,734.08	$0.92 CN¥6.59	-46.7%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.25 NGN1,985.16	$0.71 CN¥5.11	-43.0%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.98 NGN1,563.99	$0.89 CN¥6.37	-9.8%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.24 NGN1,972.98	$0.58 CN¥4.18	-53.0%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.12 NGN1,774.33	$0.37 CN¥2.65	-67.0%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.85 NGN1,348.51	$0.47 CN¥3.38	-44.5%
Average			-16.2%

Lagos vs. Beijing - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 4.4% less for transportation

	Lagos	Beijing
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$2.67 NGN4,241.65	$4.36 CN¥31.31	+63.4%
Monthly public transit pass	$36.35 NGN57,788.46	$33.40 CN¥239.80	-8.1%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$20,362.82 NGN32,372,808.38	$20,872.18 CN¥149,874.77	+2.5%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$18.85 NGN29,974.44	$4.59 CN¥32.97	-75.6%
Average			-4.4%

Lagos vs. Beijing - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 6.6% less for housing

	Lagos	Beijing
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$40.12 NGN63,780.57	$13.28 CN¥95.38	-66.9%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$954.00 NGN1,516,664.30	$929.88 CN¥6,677.08	-2.5%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$474.61 NGN754,538.27	$492.44 CN¥3,536.03	+3.8%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$30.23 NGN48,059.86	$42.04 CN¥301.87	+39.1%
Average			-6.6%

Lagos vs. Beijing - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 9.6 times more for childcare

	Lagos	Beijing
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$81.97 NGN130,318.40	$763.49 CN¥5,482.35	+831.4%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$2,298.32 NGN3,653,870.05	$22,913.01 CN¥164,529.19	+896.9%
Average			+864.1%

Lagos vs. Beijing - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 74.6% more for entertainment and sports

	Lagos	Beijing
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$0.96 NGN1,521.57	$1.11 CN¥7.99	+16.3%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.31 NGN3,672.26	$3.60 CN¥25.87	+56.0%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$1.20 NGN1,905.91	$3.48 CN¥24.98	+190.2%
Monthly membership at local gym	$36.16 NGN57,481.91	$65.46 CN¥470.02	+81.0%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$6.46 NGN10,262.87	$8.35 CN¥59.95	+29.3%
Average			+74.6%

Lagos vs. Beijing - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 77.6% more for clothing

	Lagos	Beijing
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$21.48 NGN34,152.97	$62.65 CN¥449.90	+191.7%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$24.68 NGN39,231.02	$34.69 CN¥249.07	+40.6%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$72.27 NGN114,893.45	$83.45 CN¥599.24	+15.5%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$66.25 NGN105,316.45	$107.64 CN¥772.89	+62.5%
Average			+77.6%

Lagos vs. Beijing - Cost of clothing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

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: May 2025

More cost comparisons

Lagos vs.

Phnom Penh

Lagos vs.

Berlin

Lagos vs.

Canberra

Lagos vs.

Singapore

Lagos vs.

Bangkok

Lagos vs.

Hanoi

Lagos vs.

Mexico City

Lagos vs.

Cairo

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in Nigeria vs. China. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Nigeria and China.

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

Add prices for Lagos

Add prices for Beijing

ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Beijing or Lagos. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.

Ask a question about Lagos

Ask a question about Beijing