Where to Live as Expat in Beijing?

Beijing is a great capital city with over 20 million populations and a region of over 6000 square miles. Its great size and many close districts can make it overwhelming when determining where to live in Beijing. 

Here are five key aspects you can consider while deciding on an area where you should live in Beijing. However, as with many things in life, it depends on personal preferences. 

Commutes

Beijing is a huge city, so getting from one corner to another can certainly take over an hour or more extended with public transportation or heavy traffic. No matter whether you are traveling on a car, bus, or subway, rush time can slow down the traffic to public transportation further than its capability. 

So it is important to consider the distance between where you live and where you work. If you have kids you also have to consider the distance to international schools. 

However, finding a home close to a subway station is a great idea. There are many new subway extensions added in Beijing that are working on more new stops and new lines. You can check out the Beijing subway map on the internet. 

Access to Western Amenities

Easy access to Western amenities will make living more expedient for foreigners in Beijing. So you should try to find a home in an expats compound where the western restaurants, bars, shops, and cafes are available. 

If you consider living in a flat far away from a western supermarket, keep in mind that it may take a half-hour to get the western supermarket to buy some cheese or cream. So if you don’t want to waste your time and money, you should decide living close to the typical expat compound. 

Chaoyang and Shunyi districts in East of Beijing are the high-end expat areas that are famous for foreigners living. There are many expat areas in Beijing, but most expats prefer to live in Chaoyang and Shunyi because that is where most foreigners live. 

These are the area where you can find international schools for your kids. There are many high standard international schools in Chaoyang. You will find all the expat amenities there. 

Price

There are many less expensive areas outside of the city center. However many factors have a strong impact on the price, for example, the distance to the subway station and how maintained and new the building compounds are. Expat apartments are normally expensive in Beijing. Though, the traditional Chinese apartments are cheaper than the foreign expat apartment.

Language

Many foreigners are living in Beijing for many years without speaking much Chinese. But if you can’t speak Chinese much you would have to stay closer to the typical expat areas or have to make some friends who can speak some Chinese. 

So everyone should at least learn some basic Chinese, it will make your life easier. So if you are moving to Beijing for a longer period or have to live far away from the expat area, you must have to learn the basic language. 

Immersion

If you want to keep your housing cost within budget and don’t care about Western amenities, you can definitely find a good traditional Chinese apartment at a low price. In fact, this can be great to live with Chinese neighborhoods. 

While moving to a typical Chinese apartment, don’t expect the people around you to speak much English. And remember that in local areas foreigners are not very common, especially around typical Chinese compounds. Typical Chinese people may stare at you strangely, especially rural people. They may not have seen any foreigners in their area. 

Here I would like to share my experience when I moved around Chinese streets; I found some children outside pointed towards me and call Chinese words for foreigners. That is the immersion and you may not find that easily in expat areas where foreigners are very common. 

While living in China you should always consider making both foreigners and Chinese friends. If you want to make Chinese connections and improve your language skills, you should make Chinese friends in your neighborhood. 

Question Yourself

While planning to move to China, you should ask some crucial questions to yourself and your family. 

What is my budget?

Where is my workplace located in China?

How much time you can stay in China?

Am I willing to learn the Chinese language or culture?

Will my family is willing to live without easy access to western amenities?

Where we will live after moving to China?