Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Asmara and Tbilisi

For one person, living is cheaper in Tbilisi: $1,266 a month against $1,374 in Asmara, rent and utilities included – about $1,300 less a year. The total is higher in Asmara despite lower rent and utilities.

67

Cost of Living Index in Asmara
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Asmara Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Tbilisi
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Tbilisi Living Index

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Asmara

🇪🇷 Eritrea

$1,374

/mo nomad

Tbilisi

🇬🇪 Georgia

$1,266

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Asmara and in Tbilisi

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,374 in Asmara versus $1,266 in Tbilisi.

Asmara $1,374
Tbilisi $1,266

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,166 in Asmara versus $2,007 in Tbilisi.

Asmara $2,166
Tbilisi $2,007

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,957 in Asmara versus $2,749 in Tbilisi.

Asmara $2,957
Tbilisi $2,749

Living in Asmara is roughly 9% more expensive than in Tbilisi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

The two cities straddle the global median: Asmara is 2% above, Tbilisi is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.65 ERN 310

$11.34 ₾29.35

82.10%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.53 ERN 519

$39.05 ₾101

-11.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.01 ERN 90.3

$9.63 ₾24.92

-37.59%

Cappuccino

$0.77 ERN 11.57

$3.46 ₾8.95

-77.75%

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

$1.03 ERN 15.42

$1.09 ₾2.82

-5.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.02 ERN 15.38

$0.63 ₾1.62

61.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.58 ERN 8.71

$2.77 ₾7.17

-79.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.10 ₾8.04

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 ERN 23.63

$2.25 ₾5.81

-30.22%

White Bread (500g)

$0.80 ₾2.07

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.36 ERN 35.42

$1.76 ₾4.55

34.09%

Eggs

$4.46 ERN 67.0

$2.75 ₾7.11

62.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$2.93 ERN 44.05

$9.39 ₾24.32

-68.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$27.32 ERN 410

$6.66 ₾17.23

310.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.16 ERN 153

$12.92 ₾33.45

-21.36%

Apples (1kg)

$12.34 ERN 185

$1.67 ₾4.31

638.92%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 ERN 19.00

$1.80 ₾4.65

-30.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 ERN 30.43

$1.92 ₾4.97

5.73%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.15 ERN 17.31

$2.41 ₾6.24

-52.28%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 ERN 27.78

$0.86 ₾2.23

115.12%

Onion (1kg)

$0.96 ERN 14.38

$0.69 ₾1.80

39.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.40 ₾3.62

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.20 ERN 33.12

$0.71 ₾1.85

209.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.51 ₾9.08

Wine (Bottle)

$11.94 ERN 179

$7.61 ₾19.69

56.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 ERN 14.83

$1.63 ₾4.21

-39.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.02 ERN 15.34

$2.31 ₾5.98

-55.84%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.14 ERN 2.10

$0.37 ₾0.96

-62.16%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.91 ERN 119

$15.67 ₾40.57

-49.52%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.14 ₾2.95

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.59 ERN 8.85

$0.79 ₾2.05

-25.32%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.98 ERN 150

$11.86 ₾30.70

-15.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.47 ERN 37.14

$1.40 ₾3.62

76.43%

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

$66.7K ERN 1.0M

$24.8K ₾64.2K

168.98%

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

$69.7K ERN 1.0M

$21.9K ₾56.6K

218.74%

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

$24.79 ERN 372

$89.1 ₾231

-72.18%

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

$68.8 ERN 1,033

$13.21 ₾34.19

420.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$198 ERN 2,969

$19.76 ₾51.1

900.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.74 ERN 402

$64.9 ₾168

-58.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.09 ERN 76.4

$19.02 ₾49.24

-73.24%

Cinema Ticket

$1.17 ERN 17.57

$6.57 ₾17.02

-82.19%

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

$25.46 ERN 382

$377 ₾975

-93.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,586 ERN 38.8K

$10.8K ₾27.9K

-76.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$137 ERN 2,058

$102 ₾265

34.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$122 ERN 1,829

$39.70 ₾103

206.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$196 ERN 2,946

$118 ₾305

66.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$153 ERN 2,294

$123 ₾320

23.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$248 ERN 3,718

$666 ₾1,724

-62.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$199 ERN 2,984

$449 ₾1,163

-55.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$451 ERN 6,777

$1,284 ₾3,324

-64.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$425 ERN 6,387

$890 ₾2,303

-52.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,266 ERN 19.0K

$2,425 ₾6,276

-47.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,545 ERN 38.2K

$1,380 ₾3,573

84.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$680 ₾1,760

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.62

-4.91%

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

Last update for Asmara: October 12, 2026

Last update for Tbilisi: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Asmara

$367 * 26.7%

Tbilisi

$234 18.5% 36.3% $133

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Asmara

$291 21.2%

Tbilisi

$122 9.7% 58.1% $169

Clothing & Footwear

Asmara

$273 19.9%

Tbilisi

$172 13.6% 36.9% $101

Eating Out

Asmara

$204 * 14.8%

Tbilisi

$188 14.9% 7.6% $16

Accommodation & Living

Asmara

$199 14.5%

Tbilisi

$449 35.5% 126% $251

Sport & Entertainment

Asmara

$29 2.1%

Tbilisi

$78 6.2% 168% $49

Getting Around

Asmara

$11 * 0.8%

Tbilisi

$22 1.8% 95.1% $11

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $248 in Asmara and $666 in Tbilisi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $35.00 in Asmara vs $39.00 in Tbilisi. Groceries flip the comparison at $367 vs $234, with Tbilisi cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇷 Asmara

🇬🇪 Tbilisi

🕒 Local time

11:09 11:09 AM

12:09 12:09 PM

1 h ahead of Asmara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

579,000 Capital

1,241,700 Capital

💱 Currency

Eritrean Nakfa ERN ናቕፋ

Georgian Lari GEL ₾

📈 Exchange rate

100 ERN = 6.66 USD

100 ERN = 5.92 EUR

1 GEL = 0.386 USD

1 GEL = 0.344 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GEL, USD, EUR to ERN – Eritrean Nakfa Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇷 Eritrean Nakfa (ናቕፋ)

Eritrean Nakfa exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 15.02 ERN (100 ERN = 6.66 USD). 1 EUR = 16.89 ERN (100 ERN = 5.92 EUR).

Georgian Lari exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 2.59 GEL (1 GEL = 0.386 USD). 1 EUR = 2.91 GEL (1 GEL = 0.344 EUR).

USD to ERN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Asmara Tbilisi 2,980 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Asmara
Tbilisi

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

Asmara vs Tbilisi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Asmara and Tbilisi differ by about 9% in total monthly costs ($1,374 vs $1,266 including rent). Tbilisi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $2,061 in Asmara and $1,899 in Tbilisi to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $248 in Asmara versus $666 in Tbilisi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Tbilisi runs roughly 98% less than in Asmara. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $25.46 in Asmara versus $377 in Tbilisi. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,266 in Tbilisi versus $1,374 in Asmara, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Tbilisi but tight or insufficient in Asmara. The gap between the two cities makes Tbilisi the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Asmara and Tbilisi are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Tbilisi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 9% less than in Asmara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.