Cost of living in Taiwan
Summary of cost of living in Taiwan
- Family of four estimated monthly costs: 94,036 NT$
- Single person estimated monthly costs: 49,364 NT$
- Cost of living in Taiwan is more expensive than in 73% of countries in Asia (4 out of 11)
- Cost of living in Taiwan is more expensive than in 56% of countries in the World (31 out of 68)
Change the currency:
| Food | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic lunchtime menu (including a drink) in the business district | 129 NT$ | ||
| Combo meal in fast food restaurant (big mac meal or similar) | 145 NT$ | ||
| 500 gr (1 lb.) of boneless chicken breast | 146 NT$ | ||
| 1 liter (1 qt.) of whole fat milk | 99 NT$ | ||
| 12 eggs, large | 75 NT$ | ||
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of tomatoes | 111 NT$ | ||
| 500 gr (16 oz.) of local cheese | 295 NT$ | ||
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of apples | 144 NT$ | ||
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of potatoes | 87 NT$ | ||
| 0.5 l (16 oz) domestic beer in the supermarket | 50 NT$ | ||
| 1 bottle of red table wine, good quality | 462 NT$ | ||
| 2 liters of coca-cola | 44 NT$ | ||
| Bread for 2 people for 1 day | 34 NT$ | ||
| Housing | |||
| Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 sqft) furnished accommodation in expensive area | 44,916 NT$ | ||
| Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 sqft) furnished accommodation in normal area | 23,840 NT$ | ||
| Utilities 1 month (heating, electricity, gas ...) for 2 people in 85m2 flat | 2,985 NT$ | ||
| Monthly rent for a 45 m2 (480 sqft) furnished studio in expensive area | 19,425 NT$ | ||
| Monthly rent for a 45 m2 (480 sqft) furnished studio in normal area | 13,997 NT$ | ||
| Utilities 1 month (heating, electricity, gas ...) for 1 person in 45 m2 (480 sqft) studio | 2,013 NT$ | ||
| Internet 8 mbps (1 month) | 627 NT$ | ||
| 40” flat screen tv | 10,779 NT$ | ||
| Microwave 800/900 watt (bosch, panasonic, lg, sharp, or equivalent brands) | 3,604 NT$ | ||
| Laundry detergent (3 l. ~ 100 oz.) | 155 NT$ | ||
| Hourly rate for cleaning help | 293 NT$ | ||
| Clothes | |||
| 1 pair of jeans (levis 501 or similar) | 2,313 NT$ | ||
| 1 summer dress in a high street store (zara, h&m or similar retailers) | 884 NT$ | ||
| 1 pair of sport shoes (nike, adidas, or equivalent brands) | 2,677 NT$ | ||
| 1 pair of men’s leather business shoes | 3,195 NT$ | ||
| Transportation | |||
| Volkswagen golf 1.4 tsi 150 cv (or equivalent), with no extras, new | 595,803 NT$ | ||
| 1 liter (1/4 gallon) of gas | 28 NT$ | ||
| Monthly ticket public transport | 1,263 NT$ | ||
| Personal Care | |||
| Cold medicine for 6 days (tylenol, frenadol, coldrex, or equivalent brands) | 196 NT$ | ||
| 1 box of antibiotics (12 doses) | 158 NT$ | ||
| Short visit to private doctor (15 minutes) | 700 NT$ | ||
| 1 box of 32 tampons (tampax, ob, ...) | 279 NT$ | ||
| Deodorant, roll-on (50ml ~ 1.5 oz.) | 190 NT$ | ||
| Hair shampoo 2-in-1 (400 ml ~ 12 oz.) | 213 NT$ | ||
| 4 rolls of toilet paper | 52 NT$ | ||
| Tube of toothpaste | 84 NT$ | ||
| Standard men's haircut in expat area of the city | 287 NT$ | ||
| Entertainment | |||
| Basic dinner out for two in neighborhood pub | 716 NT$ | ||
| 2 tickets to the movies | 594 NT$ | ||
| 2 tickets to the theater (best available seats) | 11,330 NT$ | ||
| Dinner for two at an italian restaurant in the expat area including appetisers, main course, wine and dessert | 860 NT$ | ||
| 1 cocktail drink in downtown club | 292 NT$ | ||
| Cappuccino in expat area of the city | 99 NT$ | ||
| 1 beer in neighbourhood pub (500ml or 1pt.) | 54 NT$ | ||
| Ipad wi-fi 128gb | 12,208 NT$ | ||
| 1 min. of prepaid mobile tariff (no discounts or plans) | 4.91 NT$ | ||
| 1 month of gym membership in business district | 1,300 NT$ | ||
| 1 package of marlboro cigarettes | 160 NT$ | ||
Moving to Taiwan with your children?
International Schools in Taiwan
Map of Cost of Living in Taiwan
This map shows only the top cities in Taiwan. We also have on this page a list of all the cities available in Expatistan:
List of all the cities available in Expatistan
The color of each marker corresponds with the cost of living in the city red markers show more expensive cities green ones show cheaper cities
Moving the mouse on top of a city will show its name and the Cost of Living Index of that city.
What is the Cost of Living Index? To calculate each city's Price Index value, we start by assigning a value of 100 to a
central reference city (that happens to be Prague).
Once the reference point has been established, the Price Index value of every other city in the
database is calculated by comparing their cost of living to the cost of living in Prague.
Therefore, if a city has a Price Index of 134, that means that living there is 34% more expensive than living in Prague.
Cost of Living Ranking in Taiwan
(top cities by data quality)
| Ranking | City | Price Index * |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Taipei | 117 |
| 2nd | Tainan City | 93 |
| 3rd | Yun-lin | 0 |
Price Index:
To calculate each city's Price Index value, we start by assigning a value of 100 to a central reference city (that happens to be Prague). Once the reference point has been established, the Price Index value of every other city in the database is calculated by comparing their cost of living to the cost of living in Prague.Therefore, if a city has a Price Index of 134, that means that living there is 34% more expensive than living in Prague.
Are you moving to Taiwan? 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 Taiwan of your current salary and improve your chances of a happy relocation.
Get a salary calculation for:
List of all cities available in Taiwan
| Hsinchu City | Hualian | Kao-hsiung |
| Kaohsiung City | Taichung City | Tainan City |
| Taipei | Yun-lin |
Recent Comparisons
- Cost of living in Taipei is 11% cheaper than in San Antonio, Texas
- Cost of living in Taipei is 34% cheaper than in Denver, Colorado
- Cost of living in Taipei is 50% cheaper than in Hong Kong
- Cost of living in Taipei is 24% more expensive than in Jeddah
- Cost of living in Taipei is 7% cheaper than in Madrid
- Cost of living in Hsinchu City is 18% cheaper than in San Jose, California
- Cost of living in Taipei is 7% cheaper than in Hsinchu City
- Cost of living in Taipei is 25% cheaper than in Atlanta, Georgia
- Cost of living in Taipei is 37% more expensive than in Kuala Lumpur
- Cost of living in Taipei is 26% cheaper than in Tokyo
- Cost of living in Taipei is 20% cheaper than in Milan
- Cost of living in Taipei is 53% more expensive than in Bucharest
- Cost of living in Taipei is 26% cheaper than in Austin, Texas
- Cost of living in Taipei is 37% cheaper than in Santiago
- Cost of living in Taipei is 40% cheaper than in Singapore
- Cost of living in Taipei is 14% more expensive than in Bangkok
- Cost of living in Taipei is 26% cheaper than in Brisbane
- Cost of living in Tainan City is 24% more expensive than in Cebu City
- Cost of living in Taipei is 35% more expensive than in Santiago
- Cost of living in Taipei is 40% cheaper than in Seattle, Washington