Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Almaty and Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu

For one person, living is cheaper in Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu: $707 a month against $1,372 in Almaty, rent and utilities included – about $8,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

67

Cost of Living Index in Almaty
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Almaty Living Index
35

Cost of Living Index in Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu
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Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu Living Index

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Almaty

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan

$1,372

/mo nomad

Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu

🇨🇳 China

$707

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Almaty and in Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu

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 Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,372 per month in Almaty vs $707 in Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu, rent included.

Almaty $1,372
Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu $707

A couple spends around $2,142 per month in Almaty vs $1,185 in Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu, rent included.

Almaty $2,142
Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu $1,185

A family of three spends $2,913 per month in Almaty vs $1,663 in Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu, rent included.

Almaty $2,913
Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu $1,663

Almaty costs about 94% more than Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Almaty sits 2% above the global median, while Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu is 48% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.16 ₸5,939

$3.83 ¥25.64

243.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.86 ₸20.2K

$26.02 ¥174

72.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.90 ₸4,015

$4.57 ¥30.58

94.75%

Cappuccino

$3.25 ₸1,466

$3.17 ¥21.21

2.52%

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

$1.41 ₸638

$0.48 ¥3.23

193.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.88 ₸398

$0.31 ¥2.04

183.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.35 ₸1,510

$0.93 ¥6.22

260.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.04 ₸1,824

$1.47 ¥9.80

174.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.69 ₸761

$1.79 ¥11.98

-5.59%

White Bread (500g)

$0.86 ₸390

$1.18 ¥7.91

-27.12%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.03 ₸916

$0.87 ¥5.85

133.33%

Eggs

$2.43 ₸1,098

$2.07 ¥13.85

17.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.46 ₸5,623

$19.53 ¥131

-36.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.71 ₸3,028

$3.69 ¥24.70

81.84%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.85 ₸4,896

$6.16 ¥41.17

76.14%

Apples (1kg)

$1.80 ₸812

$2.33 ¥15.56

-22.75%

Banana (1kg)

$2.25 ₸1,017

$1.38 ¥9.25

63.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.91 ₸1,312

$1.47 ¥9.81

97.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.75 ₸1,241

$1.31 ¥8.74

109.92%

Potato (1kg)

$0.75 ₸337

$0.87 ¥5.79

-13.79%

Onion (1kg)

$0.55 ₸248

$0.86 ¥5.77

-36.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.62 ₸731

$0.62 ¥4.18

161.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.05 ₸473

$0.54 ¥3.60

94.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.58 ₸1,165

$3.57 ¥23.90

-27.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.15 ₸5,034

$13.36 ¥89.3

-16.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 ₸546

$0.75 ¥5.01

61.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.44 ₸1,102

$1.45 ¥9.68

68.28%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₸117

$0.31 ¥2.08

-16.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.03 ₸9,940

$19.88 ¥133

10.81%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.35 ₸610

$1.97 ¥13.20

-31.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 ₸288

$0.38 ¥2.55

68.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.16 ₸5,036

$7.03 ¥47.00

58.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.72 ₸323

$1.21 ¥8.12

-40.50%

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

$22.5K ₸10.2M

$18.1K ¥121.2K

24.25%

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

$30.3K ₸13.7M

$17.9K ¥119.7K

69.10%

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

$91.8 ₸41.4K

$18.76 ¥125

389.39%

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

$10.66 ₸4,812

$10.11 ¥67.6

5.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.86 ₸8,058

$11.07 ¥74.0

61.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$70.3 ₸31.7K

$60.8 ¥407

15.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.60 ₸12.5K

$16.34 ¥109

68.91%

Cinema Ticket

$6.78 ₸3,059

$7.45 ¥49.80

-8.99%

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

$449 ₸202.5K

$301 ¥2,015

48.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.1K ₸5.5M

$17.8K ¥118.8K

-31.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.9 ₸40.6K

$45.01 ¥301

99.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.02 ₸21.2K

$41.36 ¥277

13.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$142 ₸64.0K

$60.5 ¥404

134.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 ₸59.9K

$58.6 ¥392

126.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$805 ₸363.1K

$256 ¥1,715

213.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₸225.5K

$165 ¥1,105

202.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,429 ₸644.8K

$631 ¥4,217

126.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$904 ₸408.2K

$379 ¥2,535

138.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,503 ₸1.1M

$2,912 ¥19.5K

-14.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,559 ₸703.5K

$1,953 ¥13.1K

-20.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$870 ₸392.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

20.65

3.5

490.00%

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

Last update for Almaty: October 10, 2026

Last update for Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Almaty

$500 36.4%

Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu

$165 23.4% 66.9% $335

Groceries & Markets

Almaty

$250 18.3%

Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu

$216 30.5% 13.7% $34

Eating Out

Almaty

$205 14.9%

Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu

$93 13.2% 54.5% $112

Clothing & Footwear

Almaty

$185 13.5%

Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu

$92 13.1% 50.1% $93

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Almaty

$120 8.8%

Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu

$40 5.7% 66.8% $80

Sport & Entertainment

Almaty

$84 6.1%

Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu

$76 10.7% 9.7% $8.2

Getting Around

Almaty

$28 2%

Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu

$25 3.5% 9.4% $2.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $805 in Almaty versus $256 in Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $45.00 in Almaty versus $26.00 in Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $250 vs $216 – making Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇰🇿 Almaty

🇨🇳 Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu

🕒 Local time

16:23 4:23 PM

18:23 6:23 PM

2 h ahead of Almaty

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,475,400

831,113

💱 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 Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu 4,070 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Almaty
Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu

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 Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Almaty is pricier by about 94%, 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 $1,061 in Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu, 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 $26.00 in Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu. 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 $707 in Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu. That's a gap of about 94%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu, where all-in costs run around $707, than in Almaty at $1,372. In Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu it covers expenses comfortably, while in Almaty it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu – 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 Taicang, Suzhou, Jiangsu. 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.