Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Belgrade and Balti

For one person, living is cheaper in Balti: $977 a month against $1,538 in Belgrade, rent and utilities included – about $6,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Belgrade
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Belgrade Living Index
47

Cost of Living Index in Balti
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Balti Living Index

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Belgrade

🇷🇸 Serbia

$1,538

/mo nomad

Balti

🇲🇩 Moldova

$977

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Belgrade and in Balti

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

A single person spends $1,538 per month in Belgrade vs $977 in Balti, rent included.

Belgrade $1,538
Balti $977

A couple spends around $2,321 per month in Belgrade vs $1,405 in Balti, rent included.

Belgrade $2,321
Balti $1,405

A family of three spends $3,105 per month in Belgrade vs $1,832 in Balti, rent included.

Belgrade $3,105
Balti $1,832

Belgrade costs about 57% more than Balti, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Belgrade sits 15% above the global median, while Balti is 27% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.33 RSD 1,389

$8.14 MDL 144

63.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.4 RSD 6,085

$22.56 MDL 400

158.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.58 RSD 1,414

$10.40 MDL 184

30.58%

Cappuccino

$3.13 RSD 326

$1.78 MDL 31.46

75.84%

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

$2.77 RSD 288

$1.10 MDL 19.54

151.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 RSD 237

$0.69 MDL 12.16

228.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.75 RSD 390

$1.11 MDL 19.67

237.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.38 RSD 456

$1.43 MDL 25.39

206.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.40 RSD 146

$1.26 MDL 22.42

11.11%

White Bread (500g)

$1.17 RSD 122

$0.46 MDL 8.13

154.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.71 RSD 282

$1.60 MDL 28.35

69.37%

Eggs

$2.78 RSD 289

$2.19 MDL 38.78

26.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.36 RSD 1,184

$6.89 MDL 122

64.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.01 RSD 731

$4.78 MDL 84.6

46.65%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.72 RSD 1,638

$6.27 MDL 111

150.72%

Apples (1kg)

$1.66 RSD 173

$1.02 MDL 18.08

62.75%

Banana (1kg)

$1.81 RSD 188

$2.18 MDL 38.70

-16.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.83 RSD 190

$1.87 MDL 33.07

-2.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.13 RSD 326

$2.30 MDL 40.71

36.09%

Potato (1kg)

$0.88 RSD 91.3

$0.76 MDL 13.43

15.79%

Onion (1kg)

$0.67 RSD 70.3

$0.52 MDL 9.20

28.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.81 RSD 84.4

$0.46 MDL 8.23

76.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 RSD 70.9

$0.54 MDL 9.65

25.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.78 RSD 498

$3.30 MDL 58.5

44.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.54 RSD 889

$4.36 MDL 77.3

95.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 RSD 97.7

$1.38 MDL 24.42

-31.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.44 RSD 150

$1.99 MDL 35.26

-27.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.33 MDL 5.80

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$17.05 MDL 302

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.09 RSD 322

$2.83 MDL 50.1

9.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 RSD 107

$0.24 MDL 4.23

325.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.18 RSD 1,789

$5.63 MDL 99.8

205.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.87 RSD 195

$1.60 MDL 28.39

16.88%

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

$30.7K RSD 3.2M

$33.2K MDL 587.5K

-7.26%

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

$24.3K RSD 2.5M

$24.0K MDL 424.9K

1.23%

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

$218 RSD 22.7K

$228 MDL 4,036

-4.43%

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

$25.24 RSD 2,629

$7.65 MDL 136

229.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.35 RSD 3,683

$11.35 MDL 201

211.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.77 RSD 4,351

$36.50 MDL 647

14.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.80 RSD 2,375

$15.11 MDL 268

50.89%

Cinema Ticket

$8.47 RSD 882

$7.73 MDL 137

9.57%

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

$426 RSD 44.4K

$111 MDL 1,975

282.57%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K RSD 1.2M

$5,202 MDL 92.2K

119.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$111 RSD 11.6K

$44.48 MDL 788

149.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.99 RSD 4,791

$33.04 MDL 586

39.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$119 RSD 12.4K

$55.2 MDL 979

115.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$154 RSD 16.0K

$51.0 MDL 904

201.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$821 RSD 85.6K

$390 MDL 6,915

110.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$561 RSD 58.4K

$278 MDL 4,932

101.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,511 RSD 157.4K

$674 MDL 12.0K

124.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$942 RSD 98.1K

$506 MDL 8,960

86.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,312 RSD 553.4K

$1,419 MDL 25.2K

274.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,165 RSD 329.7K

$999 MDL 17.7K

216.81%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,228 RSD 127.9K

$605 MDL 10.7K

102.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.61

-42.37%

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

Last update for Belgrade: October 3, 2026

Last update for Balti: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Belgrade

$561 35.5%

Balti

$278 28.4% 50.4% $282

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Belgrade

$278 17.6%

Balti

$247 25.2% 11.3% $31

Groceries & Markets

Belgrade

$246 15.6%

Balti

$164 16.8% 33.3% $82

Eating Out

Belgrade

$233 14.7%

Balti

$133 13.6% 42.7% $99

Clothing & Footwear

Belgrade

$194 12.3%

Balti

$83 8.4% 57.3% $111

Sport & Entertainment

Belgrade

$59 3.7%

Balti

$52 5.3% 11.5% $6.7

Getting Around

Belgrade

$8.2 * 0.5%

Balti

$22 2.3% 173% $14

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $821 in Belgrade versus $390 in Balti. 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 103% higher in Belgrade, 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 $58.0 in Belgrade versus $23.00 in Balti. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $246 vs $164 – making Balti the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇷🇸 Belgrade

🇲🇩 Balti

🕒 Local time

12:25 12:25 PM

13:25 1:25 PM

1 h ahead of Belgrade

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,197,714 Capital

144,800

💱 Currency

Serbian Dinar RSD din

Moldovan Leu MDL L

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 RSD = 9.6 USD

1,000 RSD = 8.57 EUR

100 MDL = 5.64 USD

100 MDL = 5.04 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MDL, USD, EUR to RSD – Serbian Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇸 Serbian Dinar (din)

Serbian Dinar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 104 RSD (1,000 RSD = 9.6 USD). 1 EUR = 117 RSD (1,000 RSD = 8.57 EUR).

Moldovan Leu exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 17.72 MDL (100 MDL = 5.64 USD). 1 EUR = 19.86 MDL (100 MDL = 5.04 EUR).

USD to RSD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Belgrade Balti 660 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Belgrade
Balti

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

Belgrade vs Balti: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,538 in Belgrade, $977 in Balti – roughly 57% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,307 per month in Belgrade and $1,466 in Balti. 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $58.0 in Belgrade and $23.00 in Balti. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 50% more in Belgrade, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Balti, where all-in costs run around $977, than in Belgrade at $1,538. In Balti it covers expenses comfortably, while in Belgrade 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, Belgrade makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.