Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Almaty and Shantou

For one person, living is cheaper in Shantou: $692 a month against $1,372 in Almaty, rent and utilities included – about $8,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

67

Cost of Living Index in Almaty
Learn more

Almaty Living Index
34

Cost of Living Index in Shantou
Learn more

Shantou Living Index

Jump to prices

Almaty

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan

$1,372

/mo nomad

Shantou

🇨🇳 China

$692

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Almaty and in Shantou

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

A single person spends $1,372 per month in Almaty vs $692 in Shantou, rent included.

Almaty $1,372
Shantou $692

A couple spends around $2,142 per month in Almaty vs $1,104 in Shantou, rent included.

Almaty $2,142
Shantou $1,104

A family of three spends $2,913 per month in Almaty vs $1,516 in Shantou, rent included.

Almaty $2,913
Shantou $1,516

Almaty costs about 98% more than Shantou, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Almaty sits 2% above the global median, while Shantou is 49% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.16 ₸5,939

$2.29 ¥15.35

474.67%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.86 ₸20.2K

$23.70 ¥158

89.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.90 ₸4,015

$5.17 ¥34.59

72.15%

Cappuccino

$3.25 ₸1,466

$3.38 ¥22.63

-3.85%

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

$1.41 ₸638

$0.47 ¥3.12

200.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.88 ₸398

$0.31 ¥2.05

183.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.35 ₸1,510

$0.88 ¥5.92

280.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.04 ₸1,824

$2.13 ¥14.28

89.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.69 ₸761

$1.60 ¥10.71

5.62%

White Bread (500g)

$0.86 ₸390

$1.45 ¥9.73

-40.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.03 ₸916

$0.77 ¥5.18

163.64%

Eggs

$2.43 ₸1,098

$1.69 ¥11.33

43.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.46 ₸5,623

$13.63 ¥91.1

-8.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.71 ₸3,028

$3.43 ¥22.91

95.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.85 ₸4,896

$13.16 ¥88.0

-17.55%

Apples (1kg)

$1.80 ₸812

$1.95 ¥13.03

-7.69%

Banana (1kg)

$2.25 ₸1,017

$1.50 ¥10.05

50.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.91 ₸1,312

$1.81 ¥12.14

60.77%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.75 ₸1,241

$1.30 ¥8.70

111.54%

Potato (1kg)

$0.75 ₸337

$0.82 ¥5.49

-8.54%

Onion (1kg)

$0.55 ₸248

$1.06 ¥7.11

-48.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.62 ₸731

$0.59 ¥3.96

174.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.05 ₸473

$0.43 ¥2.88

144.19%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.58 ₸1,165

$3.69 ¥24.71

-30.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.15 ₸5,034

$12.00 ¥80.2

-7.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 ₸546

$0.83 ¥5.57

45.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.44 ₸1,102

$1.79 ¥11.98

36.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₸117

$0.36 ¥2.41

-27.78%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.03 ₸9,940

$24.27 ¥162

-9.23%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.35 ₸610

$1.53 ¥10.24

-11.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 ₸288

$0.38 ¥2.56

68.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.16 ₸5,036

$7.31 ¥48.86

52.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.72 ₸323

$1.23 ¥8.25

-41.46%

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

$22.5K ₸10.2M

$19.8K ¥132.4K

13.78%

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

$30.3K ₸13.7M

$18.0K ¥120.5K

67.99%

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

$91.8 ₸41.4K

$56.7 ¥379

62.04%

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

$10.66 ₸4,812

$8.89 ¥59.5

19.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.86 ₸8,058

$13.86 ¥92.7

28.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$70.3 ₸31.7K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.60 ₸12.5K

Cinema Ticket

$6.78 ₸3,059

$7.54 ¥50.5

-10.08%

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

$449 ₸202.5K

$540 ¥3,614

-16.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.1K ₸5.5M

$24.2K ¥162.1K

-50.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.9 ₸40.6K

$55.6 ¥372

61.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.02 ₸21.2K

$39.70 ¥265

18.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$142 ₸64.0K

$73.1 ¥489

94.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 ₸59.9K

$91.4 ¥611

45.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$805 ₸363.1K

$298 ¥1,991

170.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₸225.5K

$151 ¥1,011

230.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,429 ₸644.8K

$602 ¥4,027

137.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$904 ₸408.2K

$294 ¥1,969

207.24%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,503 ₸1.1M

$2,278 ¥15.2K

9.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,559 ₸703.5K

$4,469 ¥29.9K

-65.12%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$870 ₸392.6K

$1,062 ¥7,099

-18.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

20.65

3.35

516.42%

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

Last update for Almaty: October 10, 2026

Last update for Shantou: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Almaty

$500 36.4%

Shantou

$151 21.8% 69.7% $349

Groceries & Markets

Almaty

$250 18.3%

Shantou

$214 31% 14.4% $36

Eating Out

Almaty

$205 14.9%

Shantou

$86 12.5% 57.9% $119

Clothing & Footwear

Almaty

$185 13.5%

Shantou

$117 16.9% 36.9% $68

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Almaty

$120 8.8%

Shantou

$79 11.5% 34% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Almaty

$84 6.1%

Shantou

$15 * 2.2% 82% $69

Getting Around

Almaty

$28 2%

Shantou

$29 4.2% 5.7% $1.6

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $805 in Almaty versus $298 in Shantou. 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 22% higher in Shantou, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45.00 in Almaty versus $24.00 in Shantou. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $250 vs $214 – making Shantou the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇰🇿 Almaty

🇨🇳 Shantou

🕒 Local time

14:50 2:50 PM

16:50 4:50 PM

2 h ahead of Almaty

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,475,400

5,389,328

💱 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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Almaty Shantou 4,250 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Almaty
Shantou

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 Shantou: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Almaty is pricier by about 98%, 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 $1,038 in Shantou. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Shantou, 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 $24.00 in Shantou. 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 $692 in Shantou. That's a gap of about 98%.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Shantou, where all-in costs run around $692, than in Almaty at $1,372. In Shantou it covers expenses comfortably, while in Almaty it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Shantou – 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 Shantou. 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.