Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chisinau and Manisa

For one person, living is cheaper in Manisa: $963 a month against $1,285 in Chisinau, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

63

Cost of Living Index in Chisinau
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Chisinau Living Index
47

Cost of Living Index in Manisa
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Manisa Living Index

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Chisinau

🇲🇩 Moldova

$1,285

/mo nomad

Manisa

🇹🇷 Turkey

$963

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Chisinau and in Manisa

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

A single person spends $1,285 per month in Chisinau vs $963 in Manisa, rent included.

Chisinau $1,285
Manisa $963

A couple spends around $1,984 per month in Chisinau vs $1,527 in Manisa, rent included.

Chisinau $1,984
Manisa $1,527

A family of three spends $2,684 per month in Chisinau vs $2,092 in Manisa, rent included.

Chisinau $2,684
Manisa $2,092

Chisinau costs about 33% more than Manisa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Chisinau and Manisa are more affordable than the global median – Chisinau 5% lower, Manisa 29% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.32 MDL 201

$7.94 ₺393

42.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$51.0 MDL 906

$26.27 ₺1,300

94.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.85 MDL 157

$7.75 ₺384

14.19%

Cappuccino

$2.11 MDL 37.43

$2.97 ₺147

-28.96%

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

$1.19 MDL 21.13

$0.99 ₺49.25

20.20%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.93 MDL 16.53

$0.26 ₺12.97

257.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.25 MDL 40.03

$2.29 ₺113

-1.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.95 MDL 34.61

$3.33 ₺165

-41.44%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.27 MDL 22.56

$0.94 ₺46.71

35.11%

White Bread (500g)

$0.73 MDL 12.88

$0.78 ₺38.65

-6.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.39 MDL 24.71

$2.40 ₺119

-42.08%

Eggs

$2.82 MDL 50.1

$1.75 ₺86.9

61.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.49 MDL 169

$7.02 ₺348

35.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.07 MDL 90.1

$3.89 ₺193

30.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.65 MDL 154

$19.19 ₺950

-54.92%

Apples (1kg)

$0.94 MDL 16.72

$1.87 ₺92.5

-49.73%

Banana (1kg)

$1.91 MDL 33.83

$1.68 ₺83.2

13.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.11 MDL 37.42

$1.23 ₺61.0

71.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.16 MDL 38.28

$1.09 ₺53.9

98.17%

Potato (1kg)

$0.68 MDL 12.07

$0.46 ₺22.92

47.83%

Onion (1kg)

$0.56 MDL 10.00

$0.41 ₺20.11

36.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.29 MDL 22.95

$0.81 ₺40.18

59.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.83 MDL 14.76

$0.67 ₺33.07

23.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.39 MDL 60.2

$1.65 ₺81.7

105.45%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.67 MDL 83.0

$10.54 ₺522

-55.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 MDL 22.44

$2.26 ₺112

-44.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.96 MDL 34.83

$1.98 ₺98.0

-1.01%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.40 MDL 7.16

$0.59 ₺29.37

-32.20%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$13.50 MDL 240

$42.07 ₺2,083

-67.91%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.29 MDL 40.61

$2.60 ₺129

-11.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.33 MDL 5.83

$0.58 ₺28.83

-43.10%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 MDL 90.8

$5.16 ₺255

-0.97%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.64 MDL 29.20

$1.28 ₺63.2

28.12%

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

$29.5K MDL 524.6K

$40.9K ₺2.0M

-27.79%

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

$29.7K MDL 527.0K

$38.4K ₺1.9M

-22.79%

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

$239 MDL 4,245

$81.9 ₺4,053

191.98%

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

$9.40 MDL 167

$14.48 ₺717

-35.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.43 MDL 185

$8.01 ₺396

30.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.21 MDL 750

$65.9 ₺3,262

-35.94%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.30 MDL 361

$32.44 ₺1,606

-37.42%

Cinema Ticket

$8.55 MDL 152

$3.94 ₺195

117.01%

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

$425 MDL 7,543

$376 ₺18.6K

12.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,785 MDL 102.7K

$7,995 ₺395.8K

-27.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.8 MDL 1,434

$36.42 ₺1,803

121.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.59 MDL 845

$26.48 ₺1,311

79.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 MDL 2,056

$52.9 ₺2,620

118.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 MDL 2,011

$59.8 ₺2,960

89.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$676 MDL 12.0K

$507 ₺25.1K

33.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$431 MDL 7,651

$299 ₺14.8K

44.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,258 MDL 22.3K

$1,008 ₺49.9K

24.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$846 MDL 15.0K

$608 ₺30.1K

39.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,680 MDL 47.6K

$1,810 ₺89.6K

48.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,937 MDL 34.4K

$1,212 ₺60.0K

59.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$866 MDL 15.4K

$1,660 ₺82.2K

-47.80%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.1

43.33

-79.00%

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

Last update for Chisinau: October 13, 2026

Last update for Manisa: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chisinau

$431 33.5%

Manisa

$299 31% 30.7% $132

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chisinau

$259 20.2%

Manisa

$104 10.8% 59.7% $155

Groceries & Markets

Chisinau

$190 14.8%

Manisa

$212 22% 11.5% $22

Eating Out

Chisinau

$166 12.9%

Manisa

$146 15.1% 12.3% $20

Clothing & Footwear

Chisinau

$161 12.5%

Manisa

$79 8.2% 50.9% $82

Sport & Entertainment

Chisinau

$59 4.6%

Manisa

$74 7.7% 24.4% $14

Getting Around

Chisinau

$19 1.5%

Manisa

$50 5.2% 162% $31

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $676 in Chisinau versus $507 in Manisa. 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 92% higher in Manisa, 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 $51.0 in Chisinau versus $26.00 in Manisa. Groceries tell a different story – $190 in Chisinau vs $212 in Manisa – so Chisinau wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇩 Chisinau

🇹🇷 Manisa

🕒 Local time

15:35 3:35 PM

Same time as Chisinau

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

750,000 Capital

1,396,945

💱 Currency

Moldovan Leu MDL L

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

100 MDL = 5.63 USD

100 MDL = 5.01 EUR

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to MDL – Moldovan Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇩 Moldovan Leu (L)

Moldovan Leu exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 17.76 MDL (100 MDL = 5.63 USD). 1 EUR = 19.97 MDL (100 MDL = 5.01 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 49.51 TRY (100 TRY = 2.02 USD). 1 EUR = 55.66 TRY (100 TRY = 1.8 EUR).

USD to MDL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chisinau Manisa 940 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Chisinau
Manisa

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

Chisinau vs Manisa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Chisinau is pricier by about 33%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,927 per month in Chisinau and $1,444 in Manisa. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Manisa, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 11% cheaper in Chisinau – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $51.0 in Chisinau and $26.00 in Manisa. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Manisa, where all-in costs run around $963, than in Chisinau at $1,285. In Manisa it covers expenses comfortably, while in Chisinau it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Manisa – 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 Manisa. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Chisinau makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.