Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Balti and Tbilisi

For one person, living is cheaper in Balti: $974 a month against $1,269 in Tbilisi, rent and utilities included – about $3,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

47

Cost of Living Index in Balti
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Balti Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Tbilisi
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Tbilisi Living Index

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Balti

🇲🇩 Moldova

$974

/mo nomad

Tbilisi

🇬🇪 Georgia

$1,269

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Balti 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 Balti and in Tbilisi actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $974 per month in Balti vs $1,269 in Tbilisi, rent included.

Balti $974
Tbilisi $1,269

A couple spends around $1,414 per month in Balti vs $2,016 in Tbilisi, rent included.

Balti $1,414
Tbilisi $2,016

A family of three spends $1,854 per month in Balti vs $2,763 in Tbilisi, rent included.

Balti $1,854
Tbilisi $2,763

Balti is about 23% cheaper than Tbilisi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Balti and Tbilisi are more affordable than the global median – Balti 28% lower, Tbilisi 7% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.51 MDL 152

$11.63 ₾30.07

-26.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.53 MDL 403

$37.83 ₾97.8

-40.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 MDL 185

$9.66 ₾24.98

7.14%

Cappuccino

$1.74 MDL 31.14

$3.57 ₾9.24

-51.26%

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

$1.06 MDL 19.00

$1.08 ₾2.78

-1.85%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.65 MDL 11.70

$0.56 ₾1.45

16.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.12 MDL 20.09

$2.62 ₾6.78

-57.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 MDL 24.61

$3.04 ₾7.85

-54.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.20 MDL 21.54

$2.17 ₾5.60

-44.70%

White Bread (500g)

$0.45 MDL 8.03

$0.80 ₾2.06

-43.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 MDL 27.47

$1.74 ₾4.51

-11.49%

Eggs

$2.15 MDL 38.48

$2.83 ₾7.31

-24.03%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.78 MDL 121

$9.31 ₾24.07

-27.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.70 MDL 84.1

$6.52 ₾16.85

-27.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.18 MDL 111

$12.95 ₾33.50

-52.28%

Apples (1kg)

$0.99 MDL 17.68

$1.68 ₾4.34

-41.07%

Banana (1kg)

$2.29 MDL 41.03

$1.85 ₾4.79

23.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.88 MDL 33.65

$1.97 ₾5.10

-4.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 MDL 40.87

$2.42 ₾6.25

-5.37%

Potato (1kg)

$0.71 MDL 12.77

$0.82 ₾2.11

-13.41%

Onion (1kg)

$0.52 MDL 9.21

$0.74 ₾1.91

-29.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.43 MDL 7.71

$1.34 ₾3.47

-67.91%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 MDL 9.73

$0.77 ₾2.00

-29.87%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.27 MDL 58.5

$3.57 ₾9.24

-8.40%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.34 MDL 77.6

$7.67 ₾19.83

-43.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.35 MDL 24.21

$1.70 ₾4.39

-20.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.99 MDL 35.67

$2.40 ₾6.21

-17.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 MDL 6.15

$0.40 ₾1.05

-15.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.78 MDL 300

$15.23 ₾39.38

10.18%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.76 MDL 49.41

$1.14 ₾2.95

142.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.24 MDL 4.25

$0.78 ₾2.02

-69.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.45 MDL 97.4

$11.83 ₾30.58

-53.93%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.62 MDL 29.00

$1.45 ₾3.75

11.72%

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

$33.4K MDL 597.1K

$24.6K ₾63.6K

35.87%

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

$24.1K MDL 430.5K

$22.3K ₾57.8K

7.79%

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

$220 MDL 3,942

$88.8 ₾230

148.29%

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

$7.74 MDL 138

$13.12 ₾33.93

-41.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.03 MDL 197

$19.67 ₾50.9

-43.92%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.85 MDL 659

$64.1 ₾166

-42.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.34 MDL 274

$19.04 ₾49.24

-19.43%

Cinema Ticket

$7.61 MDL 136

$7.12 ₾18.42

6.88%

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

$113 MDL 2,012

$375 ₾971

-70.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,113 MDL 91.4K

$10.5K ₾27.1K

-51.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.39 MDL 794

$104 ₾268

-57.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.84 MDL 605

$39.26 ₾102

-13.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$55.6 MDL 994

$117 ₾303

-52.65%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$50.9 MDL 910

$122 ₾315

-58.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$397 MDL 7,093

$695 ₾1,798

-42.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$280 MDL 5,004

$451 ₾1,167

-37.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$657 MDL 11.7K

$1,355 ₾3,504

-51.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$495 MDL 8,859

$906 ₾2,343

-45.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,399 MDL 25.0K

$2,295 ₾5,934

-39.05%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$992 MDL 17.7K

$1,345 ₾3,478

-26.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$606 MDL 10.8K

$664 ₾1,718

-8.81%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.62

-36.61%

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

Last update for Balti: October 26, 2026

Last update for Tbilisi: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Balti

$280 28.7%

Tbilisi

$451 35.6% 61.2% $171

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Balti

$239 24.6%

Tbilisi

$122 9.6% 49.2% $118

Groceries & Markets

Balti

$162 16.7%

Tbilisi

$234 18.4% 44.2% $72

Eating Out

Balti

$135 13.9%

Tbilisi

$191 15% 40.9% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Balti

$83 8.5%

Tbilisi

$172 13.5% 107% $89

Sport & Entertainment

Balti

$52 5.4%

Tbilisi

$78 6.2% 50.4% $26

Getting Around

Balti

$22 2.3%

Tbilisi

$22 1.7% 0.9% $0.2

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $397 in Balti versus $695 in Tbilisi. 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 10% higher in Tbilisi, 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 $23 in Balti versus $38 in Tbilisi. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $162 vs $234 – making Balti the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇩 Balti

🇬🇪 Tbilisi

🕒 Local time

20:48 8:48 PM

22:48 10:48 PM

2 h ahead of Balti

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

144,800

1,241,700 Capital

💱 Currency

Moldovan Leu MDL L

Georgian Lari GEL ₾

📈 Exchange rate

100 MDL = 5.59 USD

100 MDL = 5.02 EUR

1 GEL = 0.387 USD

1 GEL = 0.347 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GEL, USD, EUR to MDL – Moldovan Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇩 Moldovan Leu (L)

Moldovan Leu exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 17.88 MDL (100 MDL = 5.59 USD). 1 EUR = 19.9 MDL (100 MDL = 5.02 EUR).

Georgian Lari exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 2.59 GEL (1 GEL = 0.387 USD). 1 EUR = 2.88 GEL (1 GEL = 0.347 EUR).

USD to MDL in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Balti Tbilisi 1,490 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Balti
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

Balti vs Tbilisi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $974 in Balti, $1,269 in Tbilisi – roughly 30% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,461 per month in Balti and $1,904 in Tbilisi. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Balti, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $397 there versus $695 in Tbilisi.

Kindergarten costs $113 per month in Balti and $375 in Tbilisi. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 44% more in Tbilisi, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Balti, where all-in costs run around $974, than in Tbilisi at $1,269. In Balti it covers expenses comfortably, while in Tbilisi it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Balti – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Balti. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Tbilisi makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.