In mid-January, a wave of U.S. users migrated to China’s platform Xiaohongshu due to the TikTok ban, engaging in an unexpected “cost-of-living comparison” with Chinese users. Despite higher wages, many Americans found their living expenses made life harder than in China. However, analysts caution that such comparisons, while straightforward, may not align with more rigorous economic data.

Click here for the full report in Mandarin.