Student living costs across Chinese cities

These figures are published by the universities for the 2026 intake or in a current application portal. They show the scale of variation but are not city-wide averages and cannot be carried into 2027 automatically.

• Beijing, USTB: undergraduate tuition CNY 23,300/year, application CNY 600, dormitory CNY 750 or 1,500/month per bed, insurance CNY 800/year; dormitory supply is limited.
• Shanghai University: dormitory CNY 12,700/year for a four-bed room, 25,000 for a double and 51,000 for a single; the portal separately shows off-campus housing at 30,000 and living expenses around CNY 35,000/year as references.
• Chengdu University: undergraduate tuition CNY 14,000/year for humanities, 16,000 for science and engineering, and 21,000 for art, sport and medicine; dormitory 5,000 or 8,000, insurance 800 and registration CNY 400.

Compare not only the room price but also billing period, deposit, utilities, campus and availability to international students. A daily rate and an academic-year rate cannot be compared without using the same stay period.

Add a separate arrival reserve for deposits, bedding, SIM card, transport card, medical recheck, residence permit, study materials and living costs before the first scholarship stipend. Even a full award can leave upfront costs.

Select the exact programme, study period and dormitory option. Add tuition, housing, insurance, university fee, visa and residence permit, flight and support. Show known amounts, official ranges and estimates separately so one unknown does not hide inside a falsely precise total.