Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ciuciuleni and Chisinau

For one person, living is cheaper in Ciuciuleni: $635 a month against $1,288 in Chisinau, rent and utilities included – about $7,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Ciuciuleni
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Ciuciuleni Living Index
63

Cost of Living Index in Chisinau
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Chisinau Living Index

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Ciuciuleni

🇲🇩 Moldova

$635

/mo nomad

Chisinau

🇲🇩 Moldova

$1,288

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ciuciuleni and in Chisinau

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

A single person spends $635 per month in Ciuciuleni vs $1,288 in Chisinau, rent included.

Ciuciuleni $635
Chisinau $1,288

A couple spends around $940 per month in Ciuciuleni vs $1,978 in Chisinau, rent included.

Ciuciuleni $940
Chisinau $1,978

A family of three spends $1,245 per month in Ciuciuleni vs $2,669 in Chisinau, rent included.

Ciuciuleni $1,245
Chisinau $2,669

Ciuciuleni is about 51% cheaper than Chisinau, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Ciuciuleni and Chisinau are more affordable than the global median – Ciuciuleni 53% lower, Chisinau 5% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.18 MDL 145

$11.34 MDL 201

-27.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$28.98 MDL 515

$50.1 MDL 890

-42.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.44 MDL 185

$8.65 MDL 154

20.69%

Cappuccino

$1.74 MDL 30.95

$2.11 MDL 37.44

-17.54%

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

$1.10 MDL 19.47

$1.19 MDL 21.09

-7.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.64 MDL 11.33

$0.85 MDL 15.08

-24.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.94 MDL 34.52

$2.26 MDL 40.11

-14.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 MDL 40.20

$2.00 MDL 35.53

13.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.24 MDL 22.09

$1.24 MDL 21.99

White Bread (500g)

$0.50 MDL 8.85

$0.73 MDL 13.03

-31.51%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 MDL 27.14

$1.46 MDL 25.97

4.79%

Eggs

$2.24 MDL 39.87

$2.78 MDL 49.31

-19.42%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.70 MDL 119

$9.65 MDL 171

-30.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.76 MDL 84.5

$5.26 MDL 93.5

-9.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.18 MDL 110

$8.83 MDL 157

-30.01%

Apples (1kg)

$1.04 MDL 18.42

$0.93 MDL 16.44

11.83%

Banana (1kg)

$2.29 MDL 40.74

$1.87 MDL 33.25

22.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.87 MDL 33.24

$2.11 MDL 37.47

-11.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.28 MDL 40.48

$2.28 MDL 40.57

Potato (1kg)

$0.71 MDL 12.69

$0.68 MDL 12.00

4.41%

Onion (1kg)

$0.52 MDL 9.30

$0.52 MDL 9.22

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.47 MDL 8.36

$1.31 MDL 23.32

-64.12%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 MDL 9.58

$0.83 MDL 14.82

-34.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.28 MDL 58.3

$3.36 MDL 59.6

-2.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.37 MDL 77.6

$4.64 MDL 82.4

-5.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 MDL 24.30

$1.22 MDL 21.60

12.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.91 MDL 33.99

$1.88 MDL 33.46

1.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.41 MDL 7.21

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$13.72 MDL 244

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.83 MDL 50.2

$2.20 MDL 39.04

28.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.24 MDL 4.24

$0.32 MDL 5.75

-25.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.45 MDL 96.7

$4.98 MDL 88.5

9.44%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.62 MDL 28.84

$1.74 MDL 30.95

-6.90%

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

$34.0K MDL 603.4K

$29.9K MDL 530.9K

13.67%

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

$24.1K MDL 427.5K

$28.6K MDL 507.6K

-15.79%

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

$227 MDL 4,037

$244 MDL 4,334

-6.86%

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

$7.89 MDL 140

$9.37 MDL 166

-15.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.33 MDL 201

$10.56 MDL 187

7.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.29 MDL 751

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.91 MDL 371

Cinema Ticket

$7.33 MDL 130

$8.21 MDL 146

-10.72%

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

$111 MDL 1,963

$436 MDL 7,737

-74.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,291 MDL 94.0K

$5,764 MDL 102.4K

-8.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$45.42 MDL 807

$78.4 MDL 1,392

-42.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.66 MDL 846

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$55.1 MDL 979

$113 MDL 1,998

-51.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$49.82 MDL 885

$114 MDL 2,031

-56.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$677 MDL 12.0K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$430 MDL 7,640

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,249 MDL 22.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$831 MDL 14.8K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,607 MDL 46.3K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,981 MDL 35.2K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$880 MDL 15.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.1

-12.09%

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

Last update for Ciuciuleni: October 18, 2026

Last update for Chisinau: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ciuciuleni

$247 38.8%

Chisinau

$264 20.5% 7.1% $17

Groceries & Markets

Ciuciuleni

$164 25.8%

Chisinau

$192 14.9% 17% $28

Eating Out

Ciuciuleni

$139 21.9%

Chisinau

$165 12.8% 19.1% $27

Clothing & Footwear

Ciuciuleni

$68 * 10.7%

Chisinau

$159 12.3% 135% $91

Sport & Entertainment

Ciuciuleni

$15 * 2.3%

Chisinau

$59 4.6% 300% $44

Getting Around

Ciuciuleni

$4 * 0.6%

Chisinau

$19 1.5% 377% $15

Accommodation & Living

Ciuciuleni

- * 0%

Chisinau

$430 33.4%

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $29.00 in Ciuciuleni versus $50.0 in Chisinau. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $164 vs $192 – making Ciuciuleni the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇩 Ciuciuleni

🇲🇩 Chisinau

🕒 Local time

13:48 1:48 PM

Same time as Ciuciuleni

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

750,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Moldovan Leu MDL L

📈 Exchange rate

100 MDL = 5.63 USD

100 MDL = 5.01 EUR

100 MDL = 5.63 USD

100 MDL = 5.01 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

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Between locations

Ciuciuleni Chisinau 32 km

From you

Ciuciuleni
Chisinau

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

Ciuciuleni vs Chisinau: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Chisinau is pricier by about 103%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $953 per month in Ciuciuleni and $1,932 in Chisinau. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $635 in Ciuciuleni and $1,288 in Chisinau. That's a gap of about 103%.

Kindergarten costs $111 per month in Ciuciuleni and $436 in Chisinau. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Ciuciuleni, where all-in costs run around $635, than in Chisinau at $1,288. In Ciuciuleni it covers expenses comfortably, while in Chisinau it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

If budget matters most, go with Ciuciuleni. 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.