Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Almaty and Zhangjiakou

For one person, living is cheaper in Zhangjiakou: $776 a month against $1,372 in Almaty, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 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
38

Cost of Living Index in Zhangjiakou
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Zhangjiakou Living Index

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Almaty

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan

$1,372

/mo nomad

Zhangjiakou

🇨🇳 China

$776

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Almaty and in Zhangjiakou

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

A single person spends $1,372 per month in Almaty vs $776 in Zhangjiakou, rent included.

Almaty $1,372
Zhangjiakou $776

A couple spends around $2,142 per month in Almaty vs $1,216 in Zhangjiakou, rent included.

Almaty $2,142
Zhangjiakou $1,216

A family of three spends $2,913 per month in Almaty vs $1,656 in Zhangjiakou, rent included.

Almaty $2,913
Zhangjiakou $1,656

Almaty costs about 77% more than Zhangjiakou, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Almaty sits 2% above the global median, while Zhangjiakou is 42% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.16 ₸5,956

$2.20 ¥14.72

498.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.86 ₸20.3K

$24.17 ¥161

85.60%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.90 ₸4,026

$6.05 ¥40.41

47.11%

Cappuccino

$3.25 ₸1,470

$3.52 ¥23.50

-7.67%

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

$1.41 ₸640

$0.51 ¥3.42

176.47%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.88 ₸399

$0.26 ¥1.72

238.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.35 ₸1,514

$0.94 ¥6.30

256.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.04 ₸1,829

$1.76 ¥11.74

129.55%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.69 ₸763

$1.44 ¥9.61

17.36%

White Bread (500g)

$0.86 ₸391

$2.31 ¥15.42

-62.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.03 ₸918

$1.06 ¥7.10

91.51%

Eggs

$2.43 ₸1,101

$1.02 ¥6.81

138.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.46 ₸5,639

$14.81 ¥99.0

-15.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.71 ₸3,037

$2.93 ¥19.57

129.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.85 ₸4,910

$9.37 ¥62.6

15.80%

Apples (1kg)

$1.80 ₸814

$1.62 ¥10.80

11.11%

Banana (1kg)

$2.25 ₸1,019

$0.93 ¥6.21

141.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.91 ₸1,315

$1.77 ¥11.86

64.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.75 ₸1,245

$1.23 ¥8.23

123.58%

Potato (1kg)

$0.75 ₸338

$0.80 ¥5.34

-6.25%

Onion (1kg)

$0.55 ₸248

$0.58 ¥3.86

-5.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.62 ₸733

$0.63 ¥4.19

157.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.05 ₸474

$0.72 ¥4.79

45.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.58 ₸1,168

$3.84 ¥25.63

-32.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.15 ₸5,048

$13.47 ¥90.0

-17.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 ₸547

$1.07 ¥7.18

13.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.44 ₸1,105

$2.45 ¥16.34

-0.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₸117

$0.31 ¥2.10

-16.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.03 ₸9,968

$17.91 ¥120

23.00%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.35 ₸612

$1.07 ¥7.18

26.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 ₸288

$0.32 ¥2.16

100.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.16 ₸5,050

$6.15 ¥41.07

81.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.72 ₸324

$1.21 ¥8.10

-40.50%

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

$22.5K ₸10.2M

$19.6K ¥131.2K

14.65%

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

$30.3K ₸13.7M

$17.5K ¥116.8K

73.21%

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

$91.8 ₸41.5K

$93.0 ¥622

-1.32%

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

$10.66 ₸4,826

$6.24 ¥41.69

70.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.86 ₸8,081

$7.62 ¥50.9

134.38%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$70.3 ₸31.8K

$41.33 ¥276

70.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.60 ₸12.5K

$14.92 ¥99.7

84.99%

Cinema Ticket

$6.78 ₸3,067

$7.53 ¥50.3

-9.96%

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

$449 ₸203.1K

$342 ¥2,288

31.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.1K ₸5.5M

$5,359 ¥35.8K

125.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.9 ₸40.7K

$44.47 ¥297

102.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.02 ₸21.3K

$28.44 ¥190

65.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$142 ₸64.2K

$98.7 ¥659

43.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 ₸60.1K

$60.5 ¥404

119.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$805 ₸364.2K

$304 ¥2,029

164.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₸226.1K

$186 ¥1,242

168.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,429 ₸646.6K

$625 ¥4,175

128.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$904 ₸409.3K

$370 ¥2,470

144.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,503 ₸1.1M

$3,819 ¥25.5K

-34.45%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,559 ₸705.5K

$1,933 ¥12.9K

-19.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$870 ₸393.7K

$396 ¥2,643

119.97%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

20.65

3.54

483.33%

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

Last update for Almaty: October 10, 2026

Last update for Zhangjiakou: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Almaty

$500 36.4%

Zhangjiakou

$186 23.9% 62.8% $314

Groceries & Markets

Almaty

$250 18.3%

Zhangjiakou

$212 27.3% 15.4% $39

Eating Out

Almaty

$205 14.9%

Zhangjiakou

$89 11.5% 56.4% $116

Clothing & Footwear

Almaty

$185 13.5%

Zhangjiakou

$104 13.5% 43.6% $81

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Almaty

$120 8.8%

Zhangjiakou

$107 13.8% 11.2% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Almaty

$84 6.1%

Zhangjiakou

$56 7.3% 32.8% $27

Getting Around

Almaty

$28 2%

Zhangjiakou

$22 2.8% 20.8% $5.7

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $805 in Almaty versus $304 in Zhangjiakou. 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 120% 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 $24.00 in Zhangjiakou. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $250 vs $212 – making Zhangjiakou the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇰🇿 Almaty

🇨🇳 Zhangjiakou

🕒 Local time

18:21 6:21 PM

20:21 8:21 PM

2 h ahead of Almaty

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,475,400

4,345,491

💱 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 16, 2026: 1 USD = 453 KZT (1,000 KZT = 2.21 USD). 1 EUR = 508 KZT (1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.49 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to KZT in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Almaty Zhangjiakou 3,120 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Almaty
Zhangjiakou

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 Zhangjiakou: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Almaty is pricier by about 77%, 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 $1,165 in Zhangjiakou. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Zhangjiakou, 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 Zhangjiakou. 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 $776 in Zhangjiakou. That's a gap of about 77%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Zhangjiakou, where all-in costs run around $776, than in Almaty at $1,372. In Zhangjiakou it covers expenses comfortably, while in Almaty it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Zhangjiakou – 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 Zhangjiakou. 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.