Shanghai

City Overview

Shanghai is China's most international city with a large international community. The French Concession and Jing'an areas have abundant international restaurants and schools. Home to the world's longest metro network. DiDi is the dominant ride-hailing app. VPN and some foreign services require advance preparation.

Cost of Living Snapshot

Source: RichBay editorial estimate — indicative, not guaranteed Estimate baseline: 2026-07-20 · Actual costs vary by location, timing, and personal lifestyle.

Getting Around Shanghai

20 metro lines cover the whole city. Transit card for metro/bus. HSR to Beijing (4.5h), Hangzhou (1h). Pudong and Hongqiao airports.

Main transport

• Metro ↗ The world’s largest network by length — 20+ lines with distance-based fares; the Metro app QR code, Alipay/WeChat transit codes or a transport card all open the gates.
• Buses ¥2 flat on most urban routes with the same cards and QR codes — useful for the last kilometre beyond the metro.
• Maglev & Airport Link Line The 430 km/h Maglev reaches Longyang Road from Pudong Airport in 8 minutes; the newer Airport Link Line joins Pudong and Hongqiao airports directly.
• Taxis & Didi Didi is the standard hailing app; taxis start around ¥16 — affordable, but traffic is slow at peak.
• Shared bikes Meituan (yellow) and HelloBike (blue) are everywhere and ideal for flat Shanghai — ≈ ¥1.5–2 per short ride, unlocked in the payment apps.

Typical costs

Airport access

• Pudong (PVG) ↗ The international hub ~45 km out: Metro Line 2, the Maglev, the Airport Link Line and late-night airport buses.
• Hongqiao (SHA) ↗ Domestic and short-haul flights, integrated with Hongqiao Railway Station — Metro Lines 2, 10 and 17 run straight into town.

Good to know for newcomers

• Set up Alipay or WeChat Pay with your foreign card first — their transit QR codes replace a physical transport card entirely.
• Install Amap (Gaode) or Baidu Maps — Google Maps cannot route transit in mainland China.
• The metro closes early by global standards (≈ 22:30–23:30 on most lines) — plan late evenings around Didi.
• Transferring between the two airports? The Airport Link Line now joins Pudong and Hongqiao directly.

Commuting & where to live

• Rent drops quickly outside the Inner Ring Road — homes near a metro interchange in Minhang, Putuo or inner Pudong balance cost against a 30–50 minute commute.
• Rush hour on Line 2 and the other trunk lines is intense — a direct line to your workplace matters more than raw distance.
• Transport is very cheap relative to salaries — a typical metro commute costs ¥100–300 a month, so the housing decision is about time, not fare.
• Bike + metro is a mainstream combination — shared bikes cover the station-to-door legs, and e-bikes carry a big share of short commutes.

Housing & Neighborhoods

Universities in Shanghai (2)

• Fudan University
• Shanghai Jiao Tong University

Deep Dive Guides

Why Live Here

• Mature international community; French Concession is internationally vibrant
• World's longest metro network, extremely convenient
• Well-equipped international schools and hospitals