Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Durham and Tbilisi

For one person, living is cheaper in Tbilisi: $1,242 a month against $2,073 in Durham, rent and utilities included – about $10,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

100

Cost of Living Index in Durham
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Durham Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Tbilisi
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Tbilisi Living Index

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Durham

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,073

/mo nomad

Tbilisi

🇬🇪 Georgia

$1,242

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Durham and in Tbilisi

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,073 in Durham versus $1,242 in Tbilisi.

Durham $2,073
Tbilisi $1,242

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,286 in Durham versus $1,962 in Tbilisi.

Durham $3,286
Tbilisi $1,962

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,498 in Durham versus $2,682 in Tbilisi.

Durham $4,498
Tbilisi $2,682

Living in Durham is roughly 67% more expensive than in Tbilisi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Durham is 55% above, Tbilisi is 7% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.57 £14.79

$10.98 ₾28.46

78.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$93.4 £70.6

$38.21 ₾99.0

144.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.40 £8.61

$9.58 ₾24.84

19.00%

Cappuccino

$4.56 £3.44

$3.59 ₾9.31

27.02%

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

$2.54 £1.92

$1.03 ₾2.66

146.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 £1.54

$0.63 ₾1.64

223.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.08 £4.59

$2.74 ₾7.10

121.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.33 £4.03

$3.17 ₾8.22

68.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 £1.47

$2.13 ₾5.53

-8.45%

White Bread (500g)

$1.54 £1.17

$0.74 ₾1.91

108.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.03 £2.29

$1.72 ₾4.46

76.16%

Eggs

$4.37 £3.30

$2.78 ₾7.21

57.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.02 £7.57

$9.48 ₾24.56

5.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.86 £6.69

$6.45 ₾16.71

37.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.35 £16.13

$13.02 ₾33.76

63.98%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 £2.21

$1.69 ₾4.37

73.37%

Banana (1kg)

$2.53 £1.91

$1.84 ₾4.76

37.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.75 £2.08

$1.89 ₾4.90

45.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.08 £3.84

$2.40 ₾6.22

111.67%

Potato (1kg)

$1.56 £1.18

$0.84 ₾2.17

85.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.70 £1.29

$0.68 ₾1.75

150.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.06 £0.80

$1.42 ₾3.68

-25.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 £1.42

$0.77 ₾2.01

144.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.61 £17.84

$3.56 ₾9.22

563.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.64 £8.04

$7.48 ₾19.39

42.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.31 £2.50

$1.71 ₾4.43

93.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.15 £2.38

$2.29 ₾5.94

37.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.23 £2.44

$0.40 ₾1.04

707.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$86.9 £65.7

$15.15 ₾39.27

473.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.39 £4.83

$1.19 ₾3.08

436.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.93 £1.46

$0.78 ₾2.03

147.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.68 £17.89

$11.77 ₾30.50

101.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.88 £1.42

$1.41 ₾3.65

33.33%

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

$37.8K £28.6K

$24.3K ₾62.9K

56.04%

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

$41.1K £31.1K

$21.7K ₾56.3K

89.06%

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

$265 £200

$87.6 ₾227

201.91%

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

$15.21 £11.49

$13.33 ₾34.55

14.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.95 £32.45

$19.51 ₾50.6

120.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.78 £35.35

$64.7 ₾168

-27.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.85 ₾48.86

Cinema Ticket

$12.51 £9.45

$6.55 ₾16.97

90.99%

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

$1,300 £982

$377 ₾978

244.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.2K £19.1K

$10.6K ₾27.5K

137.39%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$106 £80.3

$102 ₾265

4.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$71.4 £53.9

$40.36 ₾105

76.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$114 £86.1

$117 ₾302

-2.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.2 £73.5

$121 ₾314

-19.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,539 £1,163

$675 ₾1,749

128.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$743 £562

$451 ₾1,170

64.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,661 £2,011

$1,275 ₾3,305

108.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,565 £1,183

$883 ₾2,288

77.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,034 £3,804

$2,415 ₾6,259

108.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,862 £2,919

$1,404 ₾3,640

175.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,064 £1,559

$706 ₾1,830

192.31%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.18

12.62

-58.95%

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

Last update for Durham: October 4, 2026

Last update for Tbilisi: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Durham

$743 35.7%

Tbilisi

$451 35.8% 39.3% $292

Groceries & Markets

Durham

$348 16.7%

Tbilisi

$232 18.4% 33.2% $116

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Durham

$323 15.5%

Tbilisi

$120 9.6% 62.7% $202

Eating Out

Durham

$305 14.6%

Tbilisi

$186 14.8% 38.9% $118

Clothing & Footwear

Durham

$175 8.4%

Tbilisi

$171 13.6% 2.2% $3.8

Getting Around

Durham

$116 5.6%

Tbilisi

$22 1.7% 81.1% $94

Sport & Entertainment

Durham

$72 3.5%

Tbilisi

$78 6.2% 8.4% $6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,539 in Durham and $675 in Tbilisi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Durham pays 192% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $93.0 in Durham vs $38.00 in Tbilisi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $348 vs $232 per month, with Tbilisi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Durham

🇬🇪 Tbilisi

🕒 Local time

02:39 2:39 AM

05:39 5:39 AM

3 h ahead of Durham

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

42,100

1,241,700 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Georgian Lari GEL ₾

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

1 GEL = 0.386 USD

1 GEL = 0.344 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GEL, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

Georgian Lari exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 2.59 GEL (1 GEL = 0.386 USD). 1 EUR = 2.91 GEL (1 GEL = 0.344 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Durham Tbilisi 3,650 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Durham
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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

Durham vs Tbilisi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Durham and Tbilisi differ by about 67% in total monthly costs ($2,073 vs $1,242 including rent). Tbilisi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 192% higher in Durham, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,539 in Durham versus $675 in Tbilisi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,073 per month in Durham versus $1,242 in Tbilisi – a 67% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Tbilisi runs roughly 474% less than in Durham. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,242 in Tbilisi versus $2,073 in Durham, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Tbilisi but tight or insufficient in Durham. The gap between the two cities makes Tbilisi the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Durham and Tbilisi are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Tbilisi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 67% less than in Durham. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.