Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Almaty and Quanzhou

For one person, living is cheaper in Quanzhou: $815 a month against $1,372 in Almaty, rent and utilities included – about $6,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

67

Cost of Living Index in Almaty
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Almaty Living Index
40

Cost of Living Index in Quanzhou
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Quanzhou Living Index

Jump to prices

Almaty

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan

$1,372

/mo nomad

Quanzhou

🇨🇳 China

$815

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Almaty and in Quanzhou

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 Quanzhou actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,372 per month in Almaty vs $815 in Quanzhou, rent included.

Almaty $1,372
Quanzhou $815

A couple spends around $2,142 per month in Almaty vs $1,204 in Quanzhou, rent included.

Almaty $2,142
Quanzhou $1,204

A family of three spends $2,913 per month in Almaty vs $1,593 in Quanzhou, rent included.

Almaty $2,913
Quanzhou $1,593

Almaty costs about 68% more than Quanzhou, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Almaty sits 2% above the global median, while Quanzhou is 40% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.16 ₸5,939

$2.20 ¥14.70

498.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.86 ₸20.2K

$30.02 ¥201

49.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.90 ₸4,015

$6.48 ¥43.35

37.35%

Cappuccino

$3.25 ₸1,466

$3.26 ¥21.82

-0.31%

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

$1.41 ₸638

$0.96 ¥6.40

46.87%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.88 ₸398

$0.27 ¥1.80

225.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.35 ₸1,510

$2.95 ¥19.70

13.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.04 ₸1,824

$1.75 ¥11.72

130.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.69 ₸761

$1.45 ¥9.72

16.55%

White Bread (500g)

$0.86 ₸390

$0.86 ¥5.74

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.03 ₸916

$0.93 ¥6.23

118.28%

Eggs

$2.43 ₸1,098

$1.53 ¥10.27

58.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.46 ₸5,623

$7.68 ¥51.4

62.24%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.71 ₸3,028

$2.30 ¥15.36

191.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.85 ₸4,896

$5.12 ¥34.25

111.91%

Apples (1kg)

$1.80 ₸812

$1.46 ¥9.74

23.29%

Banana (1kg)

$2.25 ₸1,017

$0.99 ¥6.62

127.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.91 ₸1,312

$0.72 ¥4.80

304.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.75 ₸1,241

$1.08 ¥7.21

154.63%

Potato (1kg)

$0.75 ₸337

$0.46 ¥3.11

63.04%

Onion (1kg)

$0.55 ₸248

$1.05 ¥7.00

-47.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.62 ₸731

$0.16 ¥1.09

912.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.05 ₸473

$0.48 ¥3.18

118.75%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.58 ₸1,165

$3.15 ¥21.08

-18.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.15 ₸5,034

$7.67 ¥51.3

45.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 ₸546

$0.88 ¥5.92

37.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.44 ₸1,102

$1.38 ¥9.20

76.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₸117

$0.31 ¥2.07

-16.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.03 ₸9,940

$23.44 ¥157

-6.02%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.35 ₸610

$1.22 ¥8.18

10.66%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 ₸288

$0.35 ¥2.34

82.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.16 ₸5,036

$9.01 ¥60.3

23.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.72 ₸323

$1.25 ¥8.36

-42.40%

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

$22.5K ₸10.2M

$17.6K ¥117.6K

28.03%

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

$30.3K ₸13.7M

$15.7K ¥104.9K

92.91%

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

$91.8 ₸41.4K

$52.8 ¥353

74.01%

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

$10.66 ₸4,812

$7.95 ¥53.2

34.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.86 ₸8,058

$12.15 ¥81.3

47.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$70.3 ₸31.7K

$54.4 ¥364

29.28%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.60 ₸12.5K

$18.63 ¥125

48.15%

Cinema Ticket

$6.78 ₸3,059

$5.83 ¥38.96

16.30%

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

$449 ₸202.5K

$514 ¥3,438

-12.71%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.1K ₸5.5M

$11.8K ¥79.0K

2.51%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.9 ₸40.6K

$20.64 ¥138

335.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.02 ₸21.2K

$34.07 ¥228

38.01%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$142 ₸64.0K

$92.7 ¥620

52.98%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 ₸59.9K

$96.5 ¥646

37.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$805 ₸363.1K

$277 ¥1,851

190.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₸225.5K

$303 ¥2,027

64.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,429 ₸644.8K

$503 ¥3,362

184.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$904 ₸408.2K

$410 ¥2,743

120.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,503 ₸1.1M

$3,004 ¥20.1K

-16.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,559 ₸703.5K

$2,008 ¥13.4K

-22.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$870 ₸392.6K

$829 ¥5,545

4.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

20.65

3.15

555.56%

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

Last update for Almaty: October 10, 2026

Last update for Quanzhou: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Almaty

$500 36.4%

Quanzhou

$303 37.2% 39.4% $197

Groceries & Markets

Almaty

$250 18.3%

Quanzhou

$137 16.8% 45.4% $114

Eating Out

Almaty

$205 14.9%

Quanzhou

$99 12.2% 51.5% $106

Clothing & Footwear

Almaty

$185 13.5%

Quanzhou

$110 13.5% 40.7% $75

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Almaty

$120 8.8%

Quanzhou

$73 8.9% 39.4% $47

Sport & Entertainment

Almaty

$84 6.1%

Quanzhou

$66 8.1% 21.3% $18

Getting Around

Almaty

$28 2%

Quanzhou

$28 3.4% 0.2% $0.1

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $805 in Almaty versus $277 in Quanzhou. 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 5% 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 $30.00 in Quanzhou. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $250 vs $137 – making Quanzhou the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇰🇿 Almaty

🇨🇳 Quanzhou

🕒 Local time

14:49 2:49 PM

16:49 4:49 PM

2 h ahead of Almaty

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,475,400

8,128,530

💱 Currency

Kazakhstani Tenge KZT ₸

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 KZT = 2.22 USD

1,000 KZT = 1.98 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 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 15, 2026: 1 USD = 451 KZT (1,000 KZT = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 505 KZT (1,000 KZT = 1.98 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.49 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

USD to KZT in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Almaty Quanzhou 4,290 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Almaty
Quanzhou

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 Quanzhou: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Almaty is pricier by about 68%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,058 per month in Almaty and $1,223 in Quanzhou. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Quanzhou, 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 $30.00 in Quanzhou. 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 $815 in Quanzhou. That's a gap of about 68%.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Quanzhou, where all-in costs run around $815, than in Almaty at $1,372. In Quanzhou it covers expenses comfortably, while in Almaty it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Quanzhou – 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 Quanzhou. 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.