The Cost of Living in China

If it wasn’t for the language issue, and the consistently bad air, I would seriously think about retiring in China. The daily cost of living is hard to beat in most parts of the country. Even in the large centers of Beijing and Shanghai, inexpensive stuff is always close at hand.

To begin with, you have to realize there is (1) no tipping and (2) no sales taxes of any kind. The other thing you need to remember is that it is strictly a cash economy. You can use a credit card in some of the larger places but they are few and far between for anyone living as a local on a day-to-day basis. We have not used our credit card once since we arrived over four years ago. You can use a local bank debit card in many shops once you get a bank account set up by the employer. And not that it matters, but cheques are unheard of. Very few people even know what they are! You get used to carrying around large bundles of cash if a major purchase is imminent.

You obviously cannot use a foreign debit card to purchase items here but the ATMs throughout the city will accept them so it is possible to withdraw cash from your foreign account. Most ATMs have a limit of 3000 RMB per transaction. Just be sure to pocket your card again before you leave the machine. Here, the card remains in the ATM until you are finished. Then you have 30 seconds to retrieve it after you click on EXIT. It is a pain to get another local card or track down your foreign card if the machine eats it! (speaking from experience).

I have used the term RMB throughout this entry, but it can be interchanged with yuan or kwai (similar to the usage of “buck”). As I write this, the exchange rate is roughly 6:1 for USD or CAN. Bills come in 1, 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100; coins in .1, .2, .5 and 1.

Transportation

There are two options for public transportation, bus or taxi. Both are very inexpensive. A bus fare is listed and shown as 1.20 or 1.60 RMB on the box which is translated as 1 or 2 RMB!.

Bus Tips

Pay with exact change at the front, even if you have to get on through the back door. Don’t be afraid to push and shove your way on and off! If the bus doesn’t stop at your exit, yell”yao”, (pronounced yow), which means, “want”.

A taxi ride to most places you would want to go is usually around 15-20 yuan, at the most. The meter starts ticking at 6 or 8 RMB so that is the minimum you will pay to go anywhere. To go the furthest distance you will ever want to travel within a city will rarely cost you more than 45-50 yuan. But a trip that long or expensive would not happen very often. So you are looking at $2 or $3 most of the time and maybe a maximum of $7 or $8, “once in a blue moon”. Cab drivers don’t like dealing with small change so they will always round up or down to the nearest whole yuan from the displayed fare. Of course, if you are sharing the cab with others….well it can get pretty cheap!! But remember that the law states there should be no more than four passengers in a cab. It is rare that cabbies will bend this rule.

Taxi Tip

As with buses, be aggressive when hailing a taxi. Locals will assume you are a wimp and beat you out every time.

Don’t ever leave until the meter is down or you have agreed on a price.

Bicycles are cheap and readily available. You can pick up your own new electric or gas scooter for under $500. This is the way to go if you want to be able to get around the city on your own. If you are an avid motorcyclist like myself, you can basically purchase any bike you want for a price. A good foreign motorcycle will cost you upwards of 15-20 000 yuan. For $100,000, you can even purchase a legally licensed Harley Davidson out of Beijing! Apartment complexes have outdoor outlets and scooter parking lots so people can plug in their vehicles to recharge when necessary. For any fuel powered vehicle, you will currently pay around $1/liter for gas.

It is possible to get a Chinese driving license if you already have a license in another country. You will have a bunch of paperwork to fill out and will need to write a 100 question multiple choice test. For several thousand RMB, it is possible to obtain a completely legal driving license for car or motorcycle without taking any test, etc.

Food

For what you spend on food in most of the world on a weekly basis, you would be able to eat out here like a celebrity every day! A great meal in a local restaurant with more than enough food for two and a couple of beers is rarely more than 40-50 RMB (6 or 7 bucks). The “street food” is incredible and much cheaper than the restaurants. Again, we would never spend more than 10 RMB for lunch on the street, including a drink. If you go to the western places like KFC, McDonalds, or Starbucks, you will pay premium prices. But even a good Pizza Hut meal for two people will be 100-150 RMB at the most, which is still not too bad. The times we have gone, we usually spend around 100.

Rent

Rent is anywhere from $200 – 400 per month and a one year lease is the most common. You will need to pay 3 months rent plus damage deposit up front. We are currently paying about $600 per month for a new 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom condo, complete with Jacuzzi. Gas is very cheap and usually requires one or two refills per year depending on how much you cook. How much electricity you use will depend on what temperature you keep your apartment throughout the year. You can probably count on spending at least 200 RMB per month on the average and more if you are trying to keep a large apartment warm in the winter or cool in the summer.

Clothing

If you are coming to live here for a year or more, don’t even bother packing any clothes! Ok, that is exagerating. But you have never seen so many shops or so much variety in shoes, boots, clothing, and accessories in your life. If you can picture anything in your head that you would like to wear, you will find it. If you can’t find it, you will be able to get it tailor-made for a cheap price. Have a special dress you would like? Just bring a photograph or picture of it and you will be able to get one made!! And like everything else, it is all very inexpensive. Of course, if you want to buy Nike runners or another name brand outfit, you will pay a good price. But if you throw away those preconceived ideas, you can build an incredible wardrobe for next to nothing. If you are a large man or woman, you may have problems finding clothing to fit. If you are small in stature, it is a shopper’s paradise.

Cell Phones

Technology and gadgets are everywhere. There is a lot of stuff here that hasn’t reached North America yet and maybe never will. Laptops and computers are not a lot cheaper but available everywhere. There are city blocks of six storey buildings of gadgets, hardware, software, and cell phones. I think every Wuhan resident has a cell phone. You can spend anywhere from 100 to several thousand RMB for a phone, depending on how many bells and whistles you want. I started with a very cheap one and now have a Nokia 5800 XpressMusic. I not only bought it for the music capabilities but also for the built in GPS which comes in handy finding my way around the city on my motorcycle.

Everyone has an unlocked phone. 100 RMB refill cards are available at most stores and you can do it yourself or have the storekeeper call for you. The phone message walks you through the refill message in English so it is very easy. You have to remember that not only are cell phones great for communicating with friends here but they also are useful for getting directions from people (including getting through their front gate on the way to a party) and putting you in contact with friends who can speak Chinese and translate in times of “need “. The regular telephones are rarely used. Everybody keeps in touch with their friends and family back home with Skype, which is about 2 cents a minute for computer to phone.

When you buy a SIM card, most of them are restricted to the city or province you buy them in, and they also have built-in expiry dates. So every time you go to another city, or else when the card expires (and you can’t tell when that is), it means another localized SIM card to add to the collection, if this is the route you take.

The China Mobile system is very complex to figure out, but from what I’ve learned so far, it appears you need to:

1) Make sure you buy a SIM card plan which allows you to dial and receive calls from other cities, AND it works when you actually go to other cities. The catch phrase is ‘wai di’, meaning outside the area. Better go with a Chinese friend for the translations because we’re dealing with two issues and it gets very complicated:

a) if you’re in Wuhan and you make or receive calls from other cities — usually no problem, just pay long distance rates.
b) if you go outside the area and you want to use your phone or recharge the amount

i] some numbers completely shut down outside of Wuhan, you lose all signals and ability to recharge
ii] some numbers you can still use outside, but you can’t recharge
iii] some numbers you can use and recharge, just pay roaming charges — these are the ones you want.

In the bigger cities like Beijing, Shanghai, etc. it is easy to get those “national usage” numbers but here in Wuhan it’s a real problem. To make sure you’re getting the right plan you need, go with a Chinese friend.

2) Go to the nearest China Mobile office and get the SIM card directly from them. Then, register it with your passport there. Don’t buy the plans from street vendors outside luxiang because they are unregistered and can suddenly expire.

Movies/Computer Games

It is a pirate economy. Most legally sold CDs are 20-30 RMB (3 bucks!). But why would you do that? We rarely spend more than 5-10 RMB for movies we get from street vendors, way cheaper than renting in Canada! We recently picked up a bunch of “first three seasons” of several TV series for less than 10 RMB each. Part of the fun is picking through the piles of CDs looking for the English ones! They are usually pretty good about it and point you to the English selections they have. The Wii games we buy are 5 RMB apiece! And these are in the store… We all share the stuff we get so it makes its rounds and results in an even all around lower price.

Booze and Cigarettes

For all you smokers out there, cigarettes can be found for as low as 1 or 2 RMB a pack but 5.0 – 10 is more normal for decent ones. So that means you are looking at one or two dollars for a pack of smokes. Wine varies in price from 24 to 100 RMB. Most of the stuff we get is about 40-50, which is still the equivalent of 7 or 8 dollars a bottle. You can get even cheaper stuff but we haven’t gone that low yet! Local beer is really inexpensive as well and tastes as good as beer anywhere else but the alcohol content is lower. Most of the hard liquor available in North America is available here for roughly the same prices or a little less.

Well, that is about it for basic items. If anyone has any questions about other prices or what is available or not available, feel free to leave a message.