Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chiayi and Almaty

For one person, living is cheaper in Chiayi: $1,067 a month against $1,372 in Almaty, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

52

Cost of Living Index in Chiayi
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Chiayi Living Index
67

Cost of Living Index in Almaty
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Almaty Living Index

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Chiayi

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,067

/mo nomad

Almaty

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan

$1,372

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Chiayi and in Almaty

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

A single person spends $1,067 per month in Chiayi vs $1,372 in Almaty, rent included.

Chiayi $1,067
Almaty $1,372

A couple spends around $1,503 per month in Chiayi vs $2,142 in Almaty, rent included.

Chiayi $1,503
Almaty $2,142

A family of three spends $1,940 per month in Chiayi vs $2,913 in Almaty, rent included.

Chiayi $1,940
Almaty $2,913

Chiayi is about 22% cheaper than Almaty, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Chiayi sits 21% below the global median, while Almaty is 2% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.83 NT$157

$13.16 ₸5,949

-63.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.84 NT$1,519

$44.86 ₸20.3K

4.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.70 NT$185

$8.90 ₸4,022

-35.96%

Cappuccino

$3.36 NT$109

$3.25 ₸1,469

3.38%

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

$0.88 NT$28.58

$1.41 ₸639

-37.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.67 NT$21.68

$0.88 ₸399

-23.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.85 NT$92.4

$3.35 ₸1,513

-14.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.80 NT$123

$4.04 ₸1,827

-5.94%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.10 NT$101

$1.69 ₸762

83.43%

White Bread (500g)

$2.06 NT$66.8

$0.86 ₸390

139.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.04 NT$98.6

$2.03 ₸917

49.75%

Eggs

$2.66 NT$86.3

$2.43 ₸1,100

9.47%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.77 NT$641

$12.46 ₸5,632

58.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.75 NT$316

$6.71 ₸3,033

45.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.98 NT$680

$10.85 ₸4,905

93.36%

Apples (1kg)

$4.87 NT$158

$1.80 ₸813

170.56%

Banana (1kg)

$3.22 NT$104

$2.25 ₸1,018

43.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.99 NT$97.0

$2.91 ₸1,314

2.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.55 NT$148

$2.75 ₸1,243

65.45%

Potato (1kg)

$2.80 NT$90.9

$0.75 ₸337

273.33%

Onion (1kg)

$2.35 NT$76.3

$0.55 ₸248

327.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.68 NT$54.3

$1.62 ₸732

3.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 NT$37.04

$1.05 ₸474

8.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.01 NT$130

$2.58 ₸1,167

55.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.66 NT$151

$11.15 ₸5,042

-58.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.65 NT$53.7

$1.21 ₸547

36.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 NT$70.8

$2.44 ₸1,104

-10.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₸117

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.43 NT$403

$22.03 ₸9,957

-43.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.64 NT$85.5

$1.35 ₸611

95.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.46 NT$14.94

$0.64 ₸288

-28.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.66 NT$313

$11.16 ₸5,044

-13.44%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 NT$34.43

$0.72 ₸324

47.22%

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

$32.9K NT$1.1M

$22.5K ₸10.2M

45.87%

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

$24.5K NT$795.8K

$30.3K ₸13.7M

-18.93%

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

$66.7 NT$2,164

$91.8 ₸41.5K

-27.31%

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

$17.52 NT$568

$10.66 ₸4,820

64.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.93 NT$873

$17.86 ₸8,072

50.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.82 NT$1,032

$70.3 ₸31.8K

-54.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.60 ₸12.5K

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 NT$319

$6.78 ₸3,064

45.13%

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

$660 NT$21.4K

$449 ₸202.9K

47.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.8K NT$543.4K

$12.1K ₸5.5M

38.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.3 NT$2,020

$89.9 ₸40.7K

-30.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.44 NT$1,279

$47.02 ₸21.3K

-16.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.2 NT$2,763

$142 ₸64.1K

-39.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 NT$3,383

$133 ₸60.0K

-21.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$369 NT$12.0K

$805 ₸363.7K

-54.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$253 NT$8,194

$500 ₸225.9K

-49.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,429 ₸645.9K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$904 ₸408.8K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,179 NT$103.1K

$2,503 ₸1.1M

27.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,910 NT$61.9K

$1,559 ₸704.7K

22.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,110 NT$68.4K

$870 ₸393.3K

142.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.4

20.65

-88.38%

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

Last update for Chiayi: October 12, 2026

Last update for Almaty: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Chiayi

$379 35.5%

Almaty

$250 18.3% 34% $129

Accommodation & Living

Chiayi

$253 23.7%

Almaty

$500 36.4% 97.8% $247

Clothing & Footwear

Chiayi

$131 12.3%

Almaty

$185 13.5% 41.3% $54

Eating Out

Chiayi

$124 11.6%

Almaty

$205 14.9% 65.1% $81

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chiayi

$111 10.4%

Almaty

$120 8.8% 8.2% $9.1

Sport & Entertainment

Chiayi

$51 4.8%

Almaty

$84 6.1% 62.9% $32

Getting Around

Chiayi

$17 * 1.6%

Almaty

$28 2% 58.9% $10

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $369 in Chiayi versus $805 in Almaty. 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 143% higher in Chiayi, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $47.00 in Chiayi versus $45.00 in Almaty. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $379 vs $250 – making Almaty the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇼 Chiayi

🇰🇿 Almaty

🕒 Local time

06:41 6:41 AM

04:41 4:41 AM

2 h behind Chiayi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

269,874

1,475,400

💱 Currency

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

Kazakhstani Tenge KZT ₸

📈 Exchange rate

100 TWD = 3.08 USD

100 TWD = 2.74 EUR

1,000 KZT = 2.21 USD

1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KZT, USD, EUR to TWD – New Taiwan Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇼 New Taiwan Dollar (NT$)

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 32.43 TWD (100 TWD = 3.08 USD). 1 EUR = 36.46 TWD (100 TWD = 2.74 EUR).

Kazakhstani Tenge exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 452 KZT (1,000 KZT = 2.21 USD). 1 EUR = 508 KZT (1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR).

USD to TWD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Chiayi Almaty 4,530 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Chiayi
Almaty

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

Chiayi vs Almaty: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Almaty is pricier by about 29%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,601 per month in Chiayi and $2,058 in Almaty. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Chiayi, 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 $47.00 in Chiayi and $45.00 in Almaty. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,067 in Chiayi and $1,372 in Almaty. That's a gap of about 29%.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Chiayi, where all-in costs run around $1,067, than in Almaty at $1,372. In Chiayi it covers expenses comfortably, while in Almaty it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Chiayi – 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 Chiayi. 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.