Recently, everyone has been discussing which city is more suitable for young people: Shenzhen, Shanghai, Chengdu, or Hong Kong. As someone whose family is in Shanghai, who has worked and lived in Shenzhen for three years, and who settled in Hong Kong after the pandemic, I feel I have some say in this.

First, the conclusion: Shenzhen offers the most opportunities, Shanghai the best quality of life, Hong Kong the highest capital density, and Chengdu the best cost-performance ratio.
1⃣️ If you are still young, eager to fight, and can handle hardship, blindly choose Shenzhen.
This is a city with no locals, no dialects, no hierarchy of disdain, and no love—living is about working hard; earning money is above all. You can live in a village in the city for 1,000 yuan, enjoy a hearty pig's feet rice or Sanji dish for just a few dozen yuan, and spend free time at seaside parks and small hills. The cost of living is extremely low. But job opportunities are huge—if you're not picky and willing to work hard, there’s no shortage of work, and there’s no regional discrimination (most bosses aren’t from Shenzhen; I’ve rarely seen local Shenzhen people as bosses).
2⃣️ If your family has some savings, you don’t worry about food or housing, and your hometown is in the Jiangsu, Zhejiang, or Shanghai postal zone, blindly choose Shanghai.
This is the western gateway in China, the gathering place for high-quality luxury homes, where earning money must give way to a touch of bourgeois sentiment and work-life balance. It’s a city where appearance matters more than money in situationships. Here, you will naturally start paying attention to dressing, your diet will become a mix of Shanghai and Western styles, and even if you live in an old, small place, you will care about renovations. Work can end on time, and evening gatherings with friends must not be late. In the eyes of locals, a job with a monthly salary of 6,000 yuan that’s close to home and easy beats a job with a 25k yuan salary that requires overtime and has uncertainty. Speaking Shanghainese gives you a 30% hidden advantage in the workplace.
3⃣️ If you have already achieved some success and want to go further in the capital markets, or have needs for identity and tax planning, blindly choose Hong Kong.
If you don’t come to Hong Kong, it’s hard to imagine how exaggerated the density of top wealthy people in this city is. In my one year here, I’ve met more super-rich people (A10 and above) than I did in all previous years combined. It’s very suitable for those with some industry experience to expand their network and leap in the capital markets. But for fresh graduates or ordinary job seekers, the cost of living and survival pressure are indeed unfriendly.
However, this does not apply to professionals in special industries—such as crypto. Mainland China’s policies restrict legal operations, so if you want to develop a crypto business safely and compliantly, this is almost the only choice.
4⃣️ Chengdu is suitable for those whose families are in Sichuan or Chongqing, who work remotely, and who do not prioritize career development above all else.
“Don’t go into Sichuan when young,” is a well-known saying for those eager to advance. Life here is very comfortable; the entertainment industry is developed, and the prices and incomes are the lowest among the four cities. So it’s most suitable for remote workers or freelancers.