18k is barely enough. Yes, if you buy the cheapest sh*t it is enough, but if you want quality anything, it will cost the same or more than in America.

18 is plenty.

I pay 2,700 rent for a huge, modern place, but it's way out in the 'burbs.

I used to pay the same for a smaller place near Wukesong, though.

Tax will be about 2,000.

That leaves you with about 13,000.

If you eat out every single day of the month and take taxis everywhere, let's say you'll spend 300 a day. That's 9,000 a month, leaving you 4,000 for this and that.

But- seriously- spend 100-200rmb at Wu Mei or wherever and take home a huge bag of groceries that'll keep you going for days.

I spend about 50rmb a day on average, unless I go to a restaurant, but that's only about once a week.

That leaves lots left over for entertainment, shopping etc.

Are you Chinese? If you are that is not bad, above average, if you are not Chinese then that salary really sucks! ! !

I can get 12k a month by hardly working, if I was not such a lazy f#@k I could easily get 18k.

Bait + sockpuppets = watch it!

Oh, well, in that case double your pay, everybody loves an American!

Don't forget to say happy birthday USA tomorrow!

You mentioned that you'll be working at Oriental Plaza. I was going to suggest that you live there as well, but that will pretty eat up your entire savings. Seriously, you can start by looking at the ShuangJing area. Not too far from where you'll be working, and rent should be more reasonable.

If you don't mind a longer commute, you can look further east (towards Tongzhou).

what?renmin?
go out! i fight you!

No allowance from your company, such as accommodation? Why is tht ? The company where i work for provides housing allowance for foreigners. I think 18K is just barely enough to live in beijing.Everything is incredibly expensive

If you dont mind, you could consider renting your apartment somewhere near sihui (close to subway)。Might take you about 40mins to your office.

On line group-buying is a good way to save your money. You can have a lot of choices to eat at some good restaurants at a very reasonable price or incredibly lower price.

How did you find this job offer? And how many hours are you going to have to teach?

Dunno why everyone has decided that life in Beijing is suddenly expensive as hell. We eat fresh food every day and at most it'll cost something like 40RMB, but usually something around 20ish. Load up a cart full of groceries and it *might* hit 300, but it's typically around 200 because we grab a few nice things that were on sale. House is owned outright, car is owned outright, maybe drop a few hundred on gas each month. Utilities are pretty much a joke. Average expenses are around 2500 a month for 2 people, and you can rent a pretty nice place for 4000-5000ish if you don't own. If you are pissing away money on stupid sh*t, I guess that's your own damned fault.

we get our food from the morning market, or use the proxy delivery service who sells (including delivery) at the same price (sometimes lower). fresh food every day. generally drink water or tea. some treats here and there, but nothing crazy. it's not really all that hard and we could probably cut it back more if we actually tried and used fans more than the air con and other small lifestyle changes.

it's not like we need to live like this, combined we bring in around 6~7w a month. but why waste that on b.s. when we can save it and use it for real things later?

Also, actually knowing how to do things saves quite a bit as well and is far more satisfying. Last summer I got tired of the crap wiring in the bathroom, tore it all out and redid it. It was cheap and it just makes me want to do it for the rest of the house now too. Car repairs and maintenance = my job. I track gas usage to identify the best gas in the area crossed with cost of said gas. Daily usage non-perishables are bought in bulk for a discount. I don't get sh*t brands though, I get nice stuff and use it until there is nothing usable left... then it gets repurposed for another task before it gets pitched. It's all cost-benefit to be honest. Acting like this at home enables us to go on great vacations and not even think about the expenses.

Everything else, save it, invest it. When I got my first job here, I was pulling in 8000 a month. I rarely had more than 10,000 to my name. Friend next office over was earning 7500. Difference was that I was living in a place for 2000 a month, while she lived in a shithole for around 200 (shared divided hutong-like thing). After 3 years, I was pretty much where I started. She had stashed away 30w with some extra from freelancing and bought a house (was cheaper back then). f*** the fashion fads, screw name brands, don't buy things you dont need! (and this is coming from a market researcher of all people) and you will see your life improve as long as you put in some effort and are smart with your finances. Living in Beijing is only as expensive as YOU decide to make it.