NavoyNostos

Chengdu vs Tianjin

for digital nomads

Under balanced weights Chengdu edges it, 52 to 50, winning 3 of the 9 factors. Chengdu is stronger on air quality; Tianjin on nothing outright. Change the weights in the ranker to see which one wins for you.

Cost of living: 3.9 of 52 points (scores 35/100)Safety: 8.4 of 52 points (scores 76/100)Healthcare: 9.0 of 52 points (scores 81/100)Internet: 5.7 of 52 points (scores 51/100)Visa ease: 1.7 of 52 points (scores 15/100)Getting there & around: 8.1 of 52 points (scores 73/100)Climate: 4.6 of 52 points (scores 42/100)Air quality: 4.4 of 52 points (scores 40/100)Quality of life: 6.1 of 52 points (scores 55/100)52
Chengdu
out of 100

Sichuan's laid-back megacity of tea houses and hotpot

Full Chengdu profile →Where to stay in Chengdu →
Cost of living: 4.0 of 50 points (scores 36/100)Safety: 8.4 of 50 points (scores 76/100)Healthcare: 9.0 of 50 points (scores 81/100)Internet: 6.3 of 50 points (scores 57/100)Visa ease: 1.7 of 50 points (scores 15/100)Getting there & around: 7.9 of 50 points (scores 71/100)Climate: 3.7 of 50 points (scores 33/100)Air quality: 2.9 of 50 points (scores 26/100)Quality of life: 6.1 of 50 points (scores 55/100)50
Tianjin
out of 100

Beijing's port city, with European concessions and lower rents

Full Tianjin profile →Where to stay in Tianjin →

Factor scores (0–100, balanced weights)

MetricChengduTianjin
Cost of living3536 ✓
Safety7676
Healthcare8181
Internet5157 ✓
Visa ease1515
Getting there & around73 ✓71
Climate42 ✓33
Air quality40 ✓26
Quality of life5555

Cost

MetricChengduTianjin
Monthly cost, one personcountry-level estimate for at least one city$1,896$1,850 ✓
Central one-bedroom rentno datano data

Safety and health (country-level)

MetricChengduTianjin
Homicides per 100k0.50.5
Political stability (0–100)6666
UHC service coverage (0–100)8585
Life expectancy77.6 yrs77.6 yrs

Internet (M-Lab measured medians)

MetricChengduTianjin
Download12.9 Mbps17 Mbps ✓
Upload8.4 Mbps12.3 Mbps ✓

Visa

MetricChengduTianjin
Nomad visanone listednone listed
Minimum income for the visano datano data
Entry, US passportvisa requiredvisa required
Entry, EU passport30 days30 days
Entry, UK passportvisa requiredvisa required

Getting there and around

MetricChengduTianjin
Non-stop airport destinations78103 ✓
Walkability (1–5, editorial)33
Transit (1–5, editorial)5 ✓4

Climate and air

MetricChengduTianjin
Comfortable months per year5 ✓4
Annual mean PM2.532 µg/m³ ✓38.4 µg/m³

✓ marks the better value in each row; ties and missing data are left unmarked.

Frequently asked

Which is cheaper, Chengdu or Tianjin?
Tianjin is cheaper: about $1,850 per month versus $1,896 for one person.
Is Chengdu or Tianjin safer?
Chengdu scores higher on safety (76 vs 76), based on national homicide rates and World Bank political-stability scores.
Where is the internet faster, Chengdu or Tianjin?
Tianjin: a measured median of 17 Mbps versus 12.9 Mbps (M-Lab, 2024).

More comparisons

Sources: Cost of Living Global 2026 (city rows); 2026 Cost of Living Index (country level); Digital Nomad Visas 2026; Worldwide Governance Indicators — Political Stability and Absence of Violence (score 0–100); Victims of intentional homicide per 100,000 population (national data, latest year); UHC service coverage index; Life expectancy at birth (years), both sexes; M-Lab NDT statistics (city aggregates, 2024); Airport destinations (Wikipedia airline and destination tables); NASA POWER climatology (2001–2020 monthly means); WHO Ambient Air Quality Database, June 2026 update (V8); Human Development Index (HDR 2025, HDI 2023); EF English Proficiency Index 2024 (band); Walkability and transit ratings (editorial); Passport Index dataset (visa requirements, 199 passports × 199 destinations); Official entry rules that changed after the Passport Index snapshot; WhereNext city cost estimates 2026 (city pages); OpenStreetMap restaurants (Overpass API); Starlink availability map. Dataset 2026.10.7. See each city page for per-metric footnotes and the methodology.