Cost of living comparison

Shanghai, China

compared to

Manila, Philippines

Manila vs. Shanghai Cost of Living Summary

Manila is 2.5% cheaper than Shanghai.

Restaurants: pay 31.4% more in Manila
Groceries: pay 49.2% more in Manila
Transportation: pay 26.7% less in Manila
Housing: pay 28.8% more in Manila
Childcare: pay 55.6% less in Manila
Entertainment and Sports: pay 14.5% less in Manila
Clothing: pay 29.8% less in Manila

The cost of groceries, restaurants, and housing in Manila are more expensive than in Shanghai. Expenses including childcare, clothing, transportation, and entertainment and sports are lower in Manila.

Manila vs. Shanghai Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Manila instead of Shanghai, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 31.4% more for restaurants

	Shanghai	Manila
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$4.17 CN¥30.44	$5.12 ₱292.50	+22.5%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.50 CN¥40.11	$4.26 ₱243.75	-22.5%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.51 CN¥3.75	$0.87 ₱49.92	+69.9%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.32 CN¥2.30	$0.49 ₱28.10	+55.8%
Average			+31.4%

Shanghai vs. Manila - Cost of restaurants

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pay 49.2% more for groceries

	Shanghai	Manila
Bread 1 loaf	$2.01 CN¥14.62	$1.35 ₱77.30	-32.6%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$7.94 CN¥57.90	$5.30 ₱303.27	-33.2%
Milk (1 gallon)	$8.61 CN¥62.76	$6.79 ₱388.44	-21.1%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.69 CN¥12.30	$2.08 ₱118.85	+23.3%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.52 CN¥11.07	$2.42 ₱138.33	+59.3%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.03 CN¥7.50	$1.52 ₱87.02	+48.0%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.73 CN¥5.35	$0.80 ₱45.97	+9.5%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.92 CN¥6.73	$1.52 ₱87.03	+64.9%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.74 CN¥5.41	$0.98 ₱55.85	+31.6%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.43 CN¥3.12	$1.20 ₱68.67	+180.9%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.48 CN¥3.48	$1.48 ₱84.91	+211.0%
Average			+49.2%

Shanghai vs. Manila - Cost of groceries

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pay 26.7% less for transportation

	Shanghai	Manila
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.40 CN¥32.07	$4.14 ₱236.80	-5.8%
Monthly public transit pass	$34.79 CN¥253.67	$9.93 ₱567.73	-71.5%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$20,844.35 CN¥152,001.16	$25,575.45 ₱1,462,480.87	+22.7%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$5.57 CN¥40.59	$2.67 ₱152.59	-52.1%
Average			-26.7%

Shanghai vs. Manila - Cost of transportation

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pay 28.8% more for housing

	Shanghai	Manila
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$16.44 CN¥119.91	$28.80 ₱1,647.15	+75.2%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,017.22 CN¥7,417.76	$468.88 ₱26,812.10	-53.9%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$526.38 CN¥3,838.44	$234.44 ₱13,406.07	-55.5%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$42.67 CN¥311.12	$106.33 ₱6,080.26	+149.2%
Average			+28.8%

Shanghai vs. Manila - Cost of housing

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pay 55.6% less for childcare

	Shanghai	Manila
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$1,147.00 CN¥8,364.18	$482.52 ₱27,592.14	-57.9%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$30,296.28 CN¥220,926.56	$14,127.39 ₱807,846.58	-53.4%
Average			-55.6%

Shanghai vs. Manila - Cost of childcare

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pay 14.5% less for entertainment and sports

	Shanghai	Manila
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.39 CN¥10.15	$1.36 ₱78.00	-2.0%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.53 CN¥25.72	$2.70 ₱154.23	-23.5%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.48 CN¥25.37	$3.07 ₱175.50	-11.8%
Monthly membership at local gym	$55.86 CN¥407.37	$40.61 ₱2,322.24	-27.3%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$8.35 CN¥60.88	$7.67 ₱438.74	-8.1%
Average			-14.5%

Shanghai vs. Manila - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 29.8% less for clothing

	Shanghai	Manila
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$59.36 CN¥432.88	$33.31 ₱1,904.90	-43.9%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$38.88 CN¥283.50	$26.60 ₱1,520.88	-31.6%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$77.91 CN¥568.16	$74.03 ₱4,232.99	-5.0%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$99.07 CN¥722.42	$60.89 ₱3,481.96	-38.5%
Average			-29.8%

Shanghai vs. Manila - Cost of clothing

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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: April 2025

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