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Shenzhen Decision Lab · 深圳决策
Choose faster. Regret less.
Find your neighbourhood. Understand your budget. Know what comes next.
Practical tools for a life in Shenzhen. Compare the options, see the assumptions, then test your shortlist in the real world.
More clarity.
A better start.
Your Shenzhen.
Orientation only · not to scale. These guide areas overlap; this is not a district-boundary map.
Check the actual metro journey →Your starting shortlist
Compare your shortlist 0/3
Estimated monthly range · RMB
Planning assumptions, not a quote or statistical interval.
Not included: health insurance, school extras and bus fees, deposits and annual bills. Our cost-of-living budgets list private health cover as a separate monthly cost.
How move-in cash is estimated
Low: 押一付三, one month’s deposit plus three months’ rent (4 × your low Housing amount), + ¥4,000 setup. High: two months’ deposit, three months’ rent and about half a month’s agency fee (5.5 × your high Housing amount), + ¥12,000 setup. The multipliers follow the conventions on our cost-of-living budgets page; the setup amounts are editorial allowances. Actual terms vary by landlord. This is not a required deposit. Annual tuition, international travel, debt and major medical costs are not included.
Where the monthly money goes
| Category | % | RMB |
|---|
Edit the amounts / sensitivity check
Change any lower or upper monthly amount. School is the total for all children, averaged across 12 months. Confirm actual fees and payment timing.
Understand the assumptions
How neighbourhood matching works
One point for each match: your chosen work/study area, lifestyle tag, family preference and Hong Kong access. Unselected preferences are ignored. Ties sort by area name. Budget is shown separately, not counted as a fit score. A guide label does not guarantee a commute, school place or border journey. Nanshan, Shekou and Qianhai are overlapping guide areas, not comparable administrative districts.
Budget scope, source dates & limitations
Household, home and metro/taxi presets are this tool’s own editorial planning ranges (23 August 2026); they are not live prices or an official cost index. The car preset uses the cost-of-living guide’s car costs (fuel, insurance, parking and maintenance, before depreciation or loan payments) plus a taxi allowance. The cost-of-living scenarios differ: they add private health cover and assume particular school tiers. The base case is the midpoint of each range. Low and high cases use all category endpoints together. The chart and CSV use the same calculations. Rent comparisons reuse the site’s area profiles (legacy guide estimates, undated and not re-checked), including their location-specific limitations. No missing figure is estimated. Tool layout and calculations reviewed 11 October 2026; this is not a fresh market-price verification.
School tuition, per child per month: “Premium bilingual” is Huitong School’s Fall 2026 annual tuition (¥263,000 for Grades 1–9, ¥285,000 for Grades 10–12) ÷ 12, rounded to the nearest ¥100: ¥21,900–23,800. The international high case is Harrow Shenzhen’s 2026/27 tuition for Years 9–13 (¥372,900) ÷ 12, rounded: ¥31,100. The ¥15,000 international low and the ¥5,000–12,000 “other private / bilingual” range are editorial estimates. Tuition only: bus, meals, boarding and one-off fees are extra. Sources: Huitong School tuition and fees, Fall 2026 ↗ (applies from Fall 2026; checked 11 Oct 2026); Harrow Shenzhen fees, 2026/27 ↗ (applies to the 2026/27 school year; checked 11 Oct 2026).
Action-plan deadlines: the 24-hour address registration (Article 39) and the 30-day residence-permit application (Article 30) come from the Exit and Entry Administration Law, in force since 1 July 2013: official text, National Immigration Administration ↗ (checked 11 Oct 2026).
Daily living is a broad household allowance, not measured spending. Check insurance premiums, school extras, school-bus fees, deposits, debt payments and any annual bills separately. Eligibility for visas, public schools and services must be confirmed with the relevant authority.