与…相比 / 相对于: compared with

介词 / prepositions

Tone colorsā tone 1á tone 2ǎ tone 3à tone 4a neutral

与 + N + 相比，… | 相对于 + N (而言)，…

Written comparison formulas, more flexible than 比:

• 与/和/跟 + N + 相比 ("compared with"): sentence-initial, then state the difference. No need for 比.

• 相对于…(而言/来说) ("relative to"): stresses that the judgement is relative.

The main clause often uses 更、较、明显 or 于-verbs (高于、低于).

Examples

与二十年前相比，中国的城市化水平大大提高了。
Yǔ èrshí nián qián xiāngbǐ, Zhōngguó de chéngshìhuà shuǐpíng dàdà tígāo le.
Compared with twenty years ago, China's urbanisation rate has risen sharply.
相对于发达国家而言，这里的劳动力成本较低。
Xiāngduì yú fādá guójiā ér yán, zhèlǐ de láodònglì chéngběn jiào dī.
Relative to developed countries, labour costs here are lower.
和实体店相比，网购更方便，但也有风险。
Hé shítǐdiàn xiāngbǐ, wǎnggòu gèng fāngbiàn, dàn yě yǒu fēngxiǎn.
Compared with physical stores, online shopping is more convenient but also riskier.

Common mistakes

✗ 与去年相比，今年比去年高: redundant → ✓ 与去年相比，今年高了很多。

✗ Over-stacking: keep it to 与…相比.