A growing number of the Chinese middle class choose to travel abroad. [Photo/IC]

Citing the report, Zhang Haidong, a Shanghai University professor who participated in the research, said that over 60 percent of the middle class are home owners and more than half own cars, while only 13.6 percent of people from groups below the medium strata have cars.

The majority of middle class citizens work in the private sector, the report said.

An average middle class citizen reads 12 books per year, and 62 percent buy food in supermarkets, compared with 37.6 percent of the less wealthy group choosing to do so, instead they prefer the cheaper street markets.

The research compared people's awareness of their social status today with five years ago. It was found that 48.8 percent of interviewees in Beijing and 61 percent in Shanghai, identify as middle class now, while it was 30 percent in Beijing, 48 percent in Shanghai half a decade ago.