Macao SAR, China

Cost of Living in Macao SAR, China

East Asia & Pacific687KHigh incomeExpat-friendly

Image credit: Melvin Loi from Macau, Macau

Purchasing Power vs. United States

Your money goes 1.77x further

Based on GDP per capita (PPP). Macao SAR, China: $111,694/capita.

Income Category

High
World Bank GNI

GDP per Capita

$111,694
PPP, International $

Population

687K

How Far Your Money Goes

Prices are 70% lower than the global benchmark (New York City = 100).

Overall
3.3x further
Prices are 70% lower than the global benchmark (New York City = 100).
Rent
9.6x further
Prices are 90% lower than the global benchmark (New York City = 100).
Groceries
2.9x further
Prices are 65% lower than the global benchmark (New York City = 100).
Restaurants
4.8x further
Prices are 79% lower than the global benchmark (New York City = 100).

Child Education

Public-schooling rules are not sourced for Macao SAR, China yet. Country-level enrollment, instruction-language, and homeschool notes will appear here once verified.

Childcare & Domestic Help

Nanny, housekeeper, and driver pricing is not yet sourced for Macao SAR, China. We publish this section only when we can tie it to verified local samples or a clearly marked country fallback.

Healthcare

System strength, outcome signals, facility coverage, and self-pay visibility in Macao SAR, China.

Method: country metrics come from public system indicators, facility coverage reflects mapped providers we can inventory, direct pricing only reflects observed self-pay pages, and relative care cost can fall back to broad cost-of-living healthcare indices. Sparse pricing does not imply sparse healthcare availability.

32 facilities tracked across 2 cities
Facilities updated 1 month ago

Healthcare system

Good

Solid hospital-bed capacity and low out-of-pocket burden help, but coverage looks thinner.

Public care

Limited

Relatively low patient cost-sharing and a visible public hospital footprint help, but public coverage looks thinner and public funding looks lighter.

Private care

Limited

Self-pay pricing transparency is still sparse weigh on this rating.

UHC coverage

0/100

2025

Physicians

1.56/1k

1987

Hospital beds

5.30/1k

1970

Out of pocket

0%

2025

Outcome signals

Life expectancy

83.3 yrs

2024

International patient readiness

Limited

Price transparency is still sparse weigh on this rating.

Pricing transparency

Limited

Published self-pay prices are scarce weigh on this rating.

Facility coverage

Hospital: 14Clinic: 7Doctor: 6Pharmacy: 5

Self-pay pricing visibility

No verified self-pay prices are published for the tracked facilities in Macao SAR, China yet.

This usually reflects low online price transparency rather than a lack of healthcare providers.

Notable facilities

广东省中医院珠海医院
Hospital · Emergency
Website
仁伯爵綜合醫院離島急診站 Serviço de Urgências da Taipa do Centro Hospitalar de Conde S. Januário
Hospital · Emergency
離島醫療綜合體北京協和醫院澳門醫學中心 Complexo de Cuidados de Saúde das Ilhas (Construção)
Hospital · Emergency
广州医科大学附属第一医院横琴医院
Hospital · Emergency
珠海市妇幼保健院(柠溪院区)
Hospital · Emergency
珠海市慢性病防治中心
Hospital · Emergency

System metrics: World Bank WDI · Updated 2026-06-01

Safety & Governance

Street Safety

Safety Index73/100
Crime Index27/100

Source: Numbeo where a city row is matched; otherwise World Bank WGI and country-level safety context.

Political Stability

Political Stability+1.23
Rule of Law+0.97
Gov. Effectiveness+1.16
Control of Corruption+0.67

World Bank WGI scale: -2.5 to +2.5.

Wages by Sector

SectorMedian
Agriculture & Farming
Arts, Entertainment & Recreation
Construction
Education
Finance & Insurance
Healthcare & Social Work
Hospitality & Food Service
Information & Technology
Manufacturing
Mining & Quarrying
Other Services
Professional & Scientific Services
Real Estate
Retail & Wholesale Trade
Transport & Logistics
Utilities

2024 annual wages in Macao SAR, China · Source: Territory estimate (parent: CN)

Visa Information (US passport)

Short-stay entry

visa freeUp to 30 days

US passport holders can stay up to 30 days without a visa.

About Macao SAR, China

Macao SAR, China is a compact, high-income Special Administrative Region in East Asia and the Pacific, with about 687,000 residents and living costs that sit well above the regional average. For relocators, the comparison point is less mainland China than Singapore or Hong Kong: housing and daily expenses can be very high, while public safety, healthcare, broadband, and urban services are strong enough to support a high-convenience lifestyle. Macao itself is walkable, but its job market and immigration rules are not especially casual; work visas are moderately restrictive and usually tied to employer sponsorship, while tourist entry is easier for many nationalities. Cantonese is the main everyday language, with Portuguese and English also present. The climate is another real tradeoff: hot, humid summers, mild dry winters, and typhoon risk from June through September.

Languages: Chinese (Cantonese), Portuguese, EnglishVisa: Moderately restrictive—work visas require employer sponsorship; tourist visas available for most nationalitiesCost: Very high—among Asia's most expensive cities; comparable to Singapore and Hong KongSafety: Excellent—very low crime rate, stable political environmentHealthcare: World-class—advanced facilities, mix of public and private providersInternet: Excellent—high-speed broadband widely available (100+ Mbps common)Climate: Subtropical—hot, humid summers; mild, dry winters; typhoon season June-September

Common questions about Macao SAR, China

Sourced from SortaRich's public-data ranking engine — every figure links to its institutional source.

How much does it cost to live in Macao SAR, China?

The cost of living in Macao SAR, China is about 69% cheaper than the global benchmark (New York City), with an overall cost-of-living index of 31. SortaRich personalizes these numbers to your home city's purchasing power so the comparison is real, not nominal.

Sources: SortaRich Cost of Living, World Bank ICP 2021

How far does $1 go in Macao SAR, China?

$1 goes about 1.8x further in Macao SAR, China than in the baseline market — your home-country income stretches that much more (current PPP ratio: 1.77). The figure adjusts every year as exchange rates and local prices shift. SortaRich uses World Bank ICP 2021 as the anchor and Penn World Tables 11.0 for cross-validation.

Sources: World Bank ICP 2021, Penn World Tables 11.0

What visa do I need to move to Macao SAR, China?

To move to Macao SAR, China you have these visa options: Tourist entry: visa_free (30 days). Visa rules change frequently — confirm the current terms with the official immigration authority before booking flights.

Source: SortaRich Visa Database

What are the best cities to live in Macao SAR, China?

The best cities to live in Macao SAR, China are Macau — those are the most-searched options among the 1 cities profiled in the SortaRich database. Each city page includes a personalized PPP comparison versus your home city plus subnational price data where available.

Source: SortaRich City Index