Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chisinau and Tambov

For one person, living is cheaper in Tambov: $746 a month against $1,316 in Chisinau, rent and utilities included – about $6,800 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
36

Cost of Living Index in Tambov
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Tambov Living Index

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Chisinau

🇲🇩 Moldova

$1,316

/mo nomad

Tambov

🇷🇺 Russia

$746

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Chisinau and in Tambov

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 Tambov actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,316 per month in Chisinau vs $746 in Tambov, rent included.

Chisinau $1,316
Tambov $746

A couple spends around $1,991 per month in Chisinau vs $1,393 in Tambov, rent included.

Chisinau $1,991
Tambov $1,393

A family of three spends $2,666 per month in Chisinau vs $2,040 in Tambov, rent included.

Chisinau $2,666
Tambov $2,040

Chisinau costs about 76% more than Tambov, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Chisinau and Tambov are more affordable than the global median – Chisinau 3% lower, Tambov 45% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.34 MDL 202

$12.27 ₽988

-7.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$56.7 MDL 1,010

$37.64 ₽3,031

50.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.14 MDL 145

$7.53 ₽606

8.10%

Cappuccino

$2.19 MDL 39.06

$2.20 ₽177

-0.45%

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

$1.22 MDL 21.67

$0.95 ₽76.7

28.42%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.90 MDL 15.99

$0.45 ₽36.13

100.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.20 MDL 39.24

$2.49 ₽201

-11.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.92 MDL 34.27

$4.40 ₽354

-56.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.26 MDL 22.54

$1.27 ₽102

-0.79%

White Bread (500g)

$0.71 MDL 12.74

$0.97 ₽78.5

-26.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.40 MDL 24.93

$1.83 ₽148

-23.50%

Eggs

$2.72 MDL 48.47

$1.28 ₽103

112.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.70 MDL 173

$11.32 ₽912

-14.31%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.00 MDL 89.2

$4.57 ₽368

9.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.77 MDL 156

$9.88 ₽796

-11.23%

Apples (1kg)

$0.97 MDL 17.33

$1.34 ₽108

-27.61%

Banana (1kg)

$1.93 MDL 34.44

$1.88 ₽151

2.66%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.01 MDL 35.89

$2.03 ₽163

-0.99%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.16 MDL 38.44

$3.04 ₽245

-28.95%

Potato (1kg)

$0.65 MDL 11.63

$0.76 ₽61.5

-14.47%

Onion (1kg)

$0.56 MDL 10.03

$0.65 ₽52.0

-13.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 MDL 23.14

$0.53 ₽42.88

145.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 MDL 15.93

$0.92 ₽73.9

-3.26%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.31 MDL 59.0

$2.23 ₽179

48.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.82 MDL 85.9

$9.27 ₽746

-48.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 MDL 21.66

$0.95 ₽76.8

28.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 MDL 33.72

$1.89 ₽153

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.38 MDL 6.73

$0.39 ₽31.15

-2.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$13.55 MDL 242

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.27 MDL 40.46

$3.62 ₽291

-37.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.34 MDL 6.13

$0.20 ₽16.09

70.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.94 MDL 88.1

$6.56 ₽528

-24.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.65 MDL 29.47

$0.87 ₽69.9

89.66%

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

$29.8K MDL 531.9K

$36.7K ₽3.0M

-18.82%

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

$27.6K MDL 492.9K

$28.7K ₽2.3M

-3.51%

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

$241 MDL 4,289

$85.7 ₽6,901

180.71%

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

$9.32 MDL 166

$4.70 ₽378

98.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.33 MDL 184

$7.56 ₽609

36.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.89 MDL 765

$24.93 ₽2,008

72.04%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.55 MDL 366

$5.02 ₽404

309.36%

Cinema Ticket

$8.33 MDL 149

$4.25 ₽342

96.00%

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

$430 MDL 7,660

$867 ₽69.8K

-50.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,720 MDL 102.0K

$6,299 ₽507.3K

-9.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.1 MDL 1,392

$36.82 ₽2,965

112.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.91 MDL 819

$30.35 ₽2,445

51.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 MDL 2,006

$43.12 ₽3,473

160.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 MDL 2,083

$49.71 ₽4,003

135.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$691 MDL 12.3K

$277 ₽22.3K

149.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$463 MDL 8,252

$156 ₽12.6K

195.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,257 MDL 22.4K

$946 ₽76.2K

32.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$803 MDL 14.3K

$674 ₽54.3K

19.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,585 MDL 46.1K

$1,677 ₽135.0K

54.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,861 MDL 33.2K

$1,297 ₽104.4K

43.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 MDL 15.4K

$731 ₽58.9K

18.20%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.17

-64.73%

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

Last update for Chisinau: October 26, 2026

Last update for Tambov: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chisinau

$463 35.2%

Tambov

$156 21% 66.2% $306

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chisinau

$260 19.8%

Tambov

$98 13.1% 62.4% $162

Groceries & Markets

Chisinau

$190 14.5%

Tambov

$206 27.6% 8.4% $16

Eating Out

Chisinau

$165 12.5%

Tambov

$174 23.3% 5.6% $9.3

Clothing & Footwear

Chisinau

$159 12.1%

Tambov

$72 9.7% 54.7% $87

Sport & Entertainment

Chisinau

$60 4.5%

Tambov

$33 4.5% 43.9% $26

Getting Around

Chisinau

$19 1.5%

Tambov

$6.2 * 0.8% 67.6% $13

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $691 in Chisinau versus $277 in Tambov. 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 18% higher in Chisinau, 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 $57 in Chisinau versus $38 in Tambov. Groceries tell a different story – $190 in Chisinau vs $206 in Tambov – so Chisinau wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇩 Chisinau

🇷🇺 Tambov

🕒 Local time

17:45 5:45 PM

18:45 6:45 PM

1 h ahead of Chisinau

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

750,000 Capital

293,661

💱 Currency

Moldovan Leu MDL L

Russian Ruble RUB ₽

📈 Exchange rate

100 MDL = 5.61 USD

100 MDL = 5.02 EUR

100 RUB = 1.24 USD

100 RUB = 1.11 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RUB, USD, EUR to MDL – Moldovan Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇩 Moldovan Leu (L)

Moldovan Leu exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 17.83 MDL (100 MDL = 5.61 USD). 1 EUR = 19.91 MDL (100 MDL = 5.02 EUR).

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 80.53 RUB (100 RUB = 1.24 USD). 1 EUR = 89.92 RUB (100 RUB = 1.11 EUR).

USD to MDL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Chisinau Tambov 1,100 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Chisinau
Tambov

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 Tambov: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Chisinau is pricier by about 76%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,974 per month in Chisinau and $1,120 in Tambov. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Tambov, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $277 there versus $691 in Chisinau.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,316 in Chisinau and $746 in Tambov. That makes Tambov about 43% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $430 per month in Chisinau and $867 in Tambov. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

It depends on your priorities. Chisinau has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $746 in Tambov to $1,316 in Chisinau. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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