A recent survey by the National Bureau of Statistics reported a per capital monthly income of 998.53 Yuan on average, for urban households nationwide in July. The figure for Beijing stood at 1822.26 Yuan, ranked as first and closely followed by Shanghai.

The survey reportedly covered 31 provinces, municipalities (Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin and Chongqing) and autonomous regions nationwide, in which a total number of 56,090 urban households, around 2,000 in each region, were surveyed.

The survey found that Beijing and Shanghai lead the nation in both total and disposable income, Beijing has the highest capital monthly income (1822.26 Yuan) and the second highest disposable income (1612.56 Yuan). Shanghai has the second highest total income (12.42 Yuan less than Beijing) but has the highest disposable income (12.96 Yuan more than Beijing).

The Bureau explained that the total income includes parts which are not disposable, such as public funds, social benefits, funds for infrastructure construction and reproduction. Beijing has a different system from Shanghai so it has a higher reported total income but a lower disposable income.

Zhejiang province in Eastern China ranked third in terms of total amount (1566 Yuan) and Guangdong the fourth (1300 Yuan). Jiangsu, Fujian, Tianjin and Shandong also registered a per capita monthly income surpassing 1000 Yuan.

By People's Daily Online