Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Darkhan and Almaty

For one person, living is cheaper in Darkhan: $655 a month against $1,387 in Almaty, rent and utilities included – about $8,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

31

Cost of Living Index in Darkhan
Learn more

Darkhan Living Index
66

Cost of Living Index in Almaty
Learn more

Almaty Living Index

Jump to prices

Darkhan

🇲🇳 Mongolia

$655

/mo nomad

Almaty

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan

$1,387

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Darkhan 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 Darkhan and in Almaty actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $655 per month in Darkhan vs $1,387 in Almaty, rent included.

Darkhan $655
Almaty $1,387

A couple spends around $1,075 per month in Darkhan vs $2,135 in Almaty, rent included.

Darkhan $1,075
Almaty $2,135

A family of three spends $1,496 per month in Darkhan vs $2,883 in Almaty, rent included.

Darkhan $1,496
Almaty $2,883

Darkhan is about 53% cheaper than Almaty, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Darkhan sits 51% below the global median, while Almaty is 3% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.46 MNT 19.6K

$13.31 ₸5,991

-58.98%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.74 MNT 114.0K

$43.37 ₸19.5K

-26.82%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.62 MNT 20.2K

$8.80 ₸3,959

-36.14%

Cappuccino

$2.39 MNT 8,575

$3.30 ₸1,486

-27.58%

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

$0.87 MNT 3,140

$1.37 ₸616

-36.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.57 MNT 2,065

$0.90 ₸406

-36.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.35 MNT 8,427

$3.13 ₸1,409

-24.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.41 MNT 12.3K

$4.10 ₸1,847

-16.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 MNT 5,184

$1.66 ₸749

-13.25%

White Bread (500g)

$1.02 MNT 3,653

$0.90 ₸403

13.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.06 MNT 7,389

$2.06 ₸927

Eggs

$2.16 MNT 7,750

$2.37 ₸1,067

-8.86%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.46 MNT 44.8K

$12.64 ₸5,689

-1.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.87 MNT 17.5K

$6.62 ₸2,978

-26.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.44 MNT 26.7K

$10.87 ₸4,893

-31.55%

Apples (1kg)

$3.21 MNT 11.5K

$1.86 ₸839

72.58%

Banana (1kg)

$2.39 MNT 8,592

$2.37 ₸1,067

0.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.84 MNT 13.8K

$2.99 ₸1,348

28.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.07 MNT 11.0K

$2.83 ₸1,273

8.48%

Potato (1kg)

$0.71 MNT 2,567

$0.77 ₸345

-7.79%

Onion (1kg)

$1.05 MNT 3,772

$0.58 ₸262

81.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.71 MNT 6,146

$1.59 ₸718

7.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.73 MNT 2,626

$0.99 ₸446

-26.26%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.67 MNT 5,985

$2.54 ₸1,145

-34.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.29 MNT 37.0K

$11.04 ₸4,969

-6.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.43 MNT 5,126

$1.21 ₸546

18.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 MNT 6,455

$2.41 ₸1,085

-25.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₸113

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.84 ₸9,831

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.55 MNT 1,967

$1.28 ₸577

-57.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.54 MNT 1,950

$0.64 ₸289

-15.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.48 MNT 23.3K

$10.74 ₸4,836

-39.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.07 MNT 3,852

$0.69 ₸312

55.07%

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

$27.3K MNT 98.2M

$22.3K ₸10.0M

22.71%

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

$35.4K MNT 127.4M

$29.3K ₸13.2M

20.82%

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

$70.6 MNT 253.8K

$87.8 ₸39.5K

-19.52%

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

$7.68 MNT 27.6K

$10.83 ₸4,874

-29.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.82 MNT 49.7K

$17.40 ₸7,831

-20.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$69.7 ₸31.4K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.58 ₸12.0K

Cinema Ticket

$4.24 MNT 15.2K

$6.68 ₸3,009

-36.53%

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

$831 MNT 3.0M

$446 ₸200.8K

86.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,568 MNT 30.8M

$11.9K ₸5.4M

-27.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$83.5 MNT 299.8K

$93.7 ₸42.2K

-10.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.49 MNT 163.5K

$46.91 ₸21.1K

-3.03%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 MNT 371.8K

$143 ₸64.3K

-27.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$185 MNT 665.6K

$133 ₸60.1K

38.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$773 ₸348.1K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$497 ₸223.9K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 ₸625.9K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$880 ₸396.0K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,546 ₸1.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,506 ₸678.2K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$834 ₸375.2K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.32

20.65

-50.02%

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

Last update for Darkhan: October 5, 2026

Last update for Almaty: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Darkhan

$238 37%

Almaty

$251 18.4% 5.7% $14

Clothing & Footwear

Darkhan

$188 29.2%

Almaty

$188 13.7% 0.2% $0.4

Eating Out

Darkhan

$114 17.7%

Almaty

$205 15% 80.9% $92

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Darkhan

$92 14.3%

Almaty

$116 8.5% 25.9% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Darkhan

$8.5 * 1.3%

Almaty

$83 6.1% 878% $75

Getting Around

Darkhan

$3.3 * 0.5%

Almaty

$27 2% 738% $24

Accommodation & Living

Darkhan

- * 0%

Almaty

$497 36.4%

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 $32.00 in Darkhan versus $43.00 in Almaty. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $238 vs $251 – making Darkhan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇳 Darkhan

🇰🇿 Almaty

🕒 Local time

12:48 12:48 PM

10:48 10:48 AM

2 h behind Darkhan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,738

1,475,400

💱 Currency

Mongolian Tögrög MNT ₮

Kazakhstani Tenge KZT ₸

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 MNT = 2.78 USD

10,000 MNT = 2.48 EUR

1,000 KZT = 2.22 USD

1,000 KZT = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KZT, USD, EUR to MNT – Mongolian Tögrög Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇳 Mongolian Tögrög (₮)

Mongolian Tögrög exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3,593 MNT (10,000 MNT = 2.78 USD). 1 EUR = 4,030 MNT (10,000 MNT = 2.48 EUR).

Kazakhstani Tenge exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 450 KZT (1,000 KZT = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 505 KZT (1,000 KZT = 1.98 EUR).

USD to MNT in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Darkhan Almaty 2,310 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Darkhan
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

Darkhan vs Almaty: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Almaty is pricier by about 112%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $983 per month in Darkhan and $2,080 in Almaty. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $655 in Darkhan and $1,387 in Almaty. That's a gap of about 112%.

Kindergarten costs $831 per month in Darkhan and $446 in Almaty. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Darkhan, where all-in costs run around $655, than in Almaty at $1,387. In Darkhan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Almaty it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Darkhan – 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 Darkhan. 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.