Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Almaty and Benxi

For one person, living is cheaper in Benxi: $710 a month against $1,372 in Almaty, rent and utilities included – about $7,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

67

Cost of Living Index in Almaty
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Almaty Living Index
34

Cost of Living Index in Benxi
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Benxi Living Index

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Almaty

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan

$1,372

/mo nomad

Benxi

🇨🇳 China

$710

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Almaty and in Benxi

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Almaty and in Benxi actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,372 per month in Almaty vs $710 in Benxi, rent included.

Almaty $1,372
Benxi $710

A couple spends around $2,142 per month in Almaty vs $1,027 in Benxi, rent included.

Almaty $2,142
Benxi $1,027

A family of three spends $2,913 per month in Almaty vs $1,344 in Benxi, rent included.

Almaty $2,913
Benxi $1,344

Almaty costs about 93% more than Benxi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Almaty sits 2% above the global median, while Benxi is 47% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.16 ₸5,949

$3.06 ¥20.47

330.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.86 ₸20.3K

$22.56 ¥151

98.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.90 ₸4,022

$5.36 ¥35.83

66.04%

Cappuccino

$3.25 ₸1,469

$2.42 ¥16.19

34.30%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 ₸639

$0.47 ¥3.14

200.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.88 ₸399

$0.29 ¥1.94

203.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.35 ₸1,513

$0.77 ¥5.16

335.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.04 ₸1,827

$1.75 ¥11.70

130.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.69 ₸762

$1.88 ¥12.58

-10.11%

White Bread (500g)

$0.86 ₸390

$1.18 ¥7.91

-27.12%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.03 ₸917

$0.86 ¥5.73

136.05%

Eggs

$2.43 ₸1,100

$1.61 ¥10.73

50.93%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.46 ₸5,632

$9.96 ¥66.6

25.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.71 ₸3,033

$2.98 ¥19.92

125.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.85 ₸4,905

$8.87 ¥59.3

22.32%

Apples (1kg)

$1.80 ₸813

$1.61 ¥10.74

11.80%

Banana (1kg)

$2.25 ₸1,018

$1.40 ¥9.33

60.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.91 ₸1,314

$1.68 ¥11.23

73.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.75 ₸1,243

$1.37 ¥9.14

100.73%

Potato (1kg)

$0.75 ₸337

$0.62 ¥4.15

20.97%

Onion (1kg)

$0.55 ₸248

$1.84 ¥12.32

-70.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.62 ₸732

$0.62 ¥4.11

161.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.05 ₸474

$0.70 ¥4.69

50.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.58 ₸1,167

$2.95 ¥19.73

-12.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.15 ₸5,042

$8.36 ¥55.9

33.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 ₸547

$0.63 ¥4.21

92.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.44 ₸1,104

$1.29 ¥8.61

89.15%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₸117

$0.31 ¥2.08

-16.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.03 ₸9,957

$12.18 ¥81.4

80.87%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.35 ₸611

$0.93 ¥6.21

45.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 ₸288

$0.31 ¥2.09

106.45%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.16 ₸5,044

$3.03 ¥20.29

268.32%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.72 ₸324

$1.13 ¥7.55

-36.28%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$22.5K ₸10.2M

$19.1K ¥127.8K

17.84%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$30.3K ₸13.7M

$17.6K ¥117.8K

71.76%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$91.8 ₸41.5K

$54.5 ¥364

68.61%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$10.66 ₸4,820

$6.90 ¥46.10

54.49%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.86 ₸8,072

$10.40 ¥69.6

71.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$70.3 ₸31.8K

$67.7 ¥452

3.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.60 ₸12.5K

$8.23 ¥55.1

235.36%

Cinema Ticket

$6.78 ₸3,064

$5.81 ¥38.82

16.70%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$449 ₸202.9K

$440 ¥2,941

2.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.1K ₸5.5M

$8,949 ¥59.8K

35.27%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.9 ₸40.7K

$30.00 ¥201

199.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.02 ₸21.3K

$83.4 ¥558

-43.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$142 ₸64.1K

$59.8 ¥399

137.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 ₸60.0K

$52.0 ¥348

155.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$805 ₸363.7K

$134 ¥899

498.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₸225.9K

$181 ¥1,212

175.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,429 ₸645.9K

$257 ¥1,718

456.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$904 ₸408.8K

$149 ¥995

507.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,503 ₸1.1M

$3,794 ¥25.4K

-34.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,559 ₸704.7K

$1,967 ¥13.2K

-20.74%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$870 ₸393.3K

$457 ¥3,055

90.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

20.65

416.25%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Almaty: October 10, 2026

Last update for Benxi: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Almaty

$500 36.4%

Benxi

$181 25.5% 63.7% $318

Groceries & Markets

Almaty

$250 18.3%

Benxi

$181 25.4% 27.8% $70

Eating Out

Almaty

$205 14.9%

Benxi

$80 11.3% 61% $125

Clothing & Footwear

Almaty

$185 13.5%

Benxi

$101 14.3% 45.3% $84

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Almaty

$120 8.8%

Benxi

$72 10.1% 40.4% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Almaty

$84 6.1%

Benxi

$79 11.2% 5.5% $4.6

Getting Around

Almaty

$28 2%

Benxi

$16 2.2% 42.4% $12

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $805 in Almaty versus $134 in Benxi. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 90% higher in Almaty, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45.00 in Almaty versus $23.00 in Benxi. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $250 vs $181 – making Benxi the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇰🇿 Almaty

🇨🇳 Benxi

🕒 Local time

15:34 3:34 PM

17:34 5:34 PM

2 h ahead of Almaty

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,475,400

809,655

💱 Currency

Kazakhstani Tenge KZT ₸

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 KZT = 2.21 USD

1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to KZT – Kazakhstani Tenge Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇿 Kazakhstani Tenge (₸)

Kazakhstani Tenge exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 452 KZT (1,000 KZT = 2.21 USD). 1 EUR = 508 KZT (1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to KZT in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Almaty Benxi 3,810 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Almaty
Benxi

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Almaty vs Benxi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Almaty is pricier by about 93%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,058 per month in Almaty and $1,065 in Benxi. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Benxi, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45.00 in Almaty and $23.00 in Benxi. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,372 in Almaty and $710 in Benxi. That's a gap of about 93%.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Benxi, where all-in costs run around $710, than in Almaty at $1,372. In Benxi it covers expenses comfortably, while in Almaty it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Benxi – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Benxi. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Almaty makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.