Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Geneva and Ashgabat

For one person, living is cheaper in Ashgabat: $3,400 a month against $4,079 in Geneva, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Geneva outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

198

Cost of Living Index in Geneva
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Geneva Living Index
163

Cost of Living Index in Ashgabat
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Ashgabat Living Index

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Geneva

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$4,079

/mo nomad

Ashgabat

🇹🇲 Turkmenistan

$3,400

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Geneva and in Ashgabat

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $4,079 in Geneva versus $3,400 in Ashgabat.

Geneva $4,079
Ashgabat $3,400

Estimated couple costs with rent: $6,308 in Geneva versus $5,109 in Ashgabat.

Geneva $6,308
Ashgabat $5,109

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $8,538 in Geneva versus $6,818 in Ashgabat.

Geneva $8,538
Ashgabat $6,818

Living in Geneva is roughly 20% more expensive than in Ashgabat, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Geneva 200% above, Ashgabat 150% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$30.31 CHF 25.15

$30.91 TMT 104

-1.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$129 CHF 107

$87.1 TMT 292

48.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$19.47 CHF 16.15

$12.81 TMT 42.92

51.99%

Cappuccino

$6.40 CHF 5.31

$6.98 TMT 23.40

-8.31%

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

$4.66 CHF 3.87

$1.56 TMT 5.21

198.72%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.13 CHF 3.43

$0.82 TMT 2.75

403.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.82 CHF 8.14

$5.60 TMT 18.76

75.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.87 CHF 8.19

$13.68 TMT 45.84

-27.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.35 CHF 1.95

$4.49 TMT 15.03

-47.66%

White Bread (500g)

$3.26 CHF 2.70

$2.01 TMT 6.72

62.19%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.39 CHF 2.81

$5.77 TMT 19.34

-41.25%

Eggs

$8.18 CHF 6.78

$6.04 TMT 20.23

35.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$25.05 CHF 20.78

$36.95 TMT 124

-32.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$29.22 CHF 24.24

$19.67 TMT 65.9

48.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$42.51 CHF 35.27

$23.60 TMT 79.1

80.13%

Apples (1kg)

$3.53 CHF 2.93

$5.10 TMT 17.10

-30.78%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 CHF 1.35

$8.63 TMT 28.91

-81.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.85 CHF 2.36

$7.32 TMT 24.53

-61.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.90 CHF 4.07

$3.67 TMT 12.30

33.51%

Potato (1kg)

$1.64 CHF 1.36

$2.31 TMT 7.75

-29.00%

Onion (1kg)

$2.29 CHF 1.90

$1.39 TMT 4.65

64.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.19 CHF 1.82

$2.63 TMT 8.81

-16.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 CHF 1.38

$1.08 TMT 3.62

53.70%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.97 CHF 9.10

$25.92 TMT 86.8

-57.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.16 CHF 10.08

$41.19 TMT 138

-70.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.21 CHF 2.66

$5.08 TMT 17.01

-36.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.30 CHF 2.74

$2.84 TMT 9.51

16.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.55 CHF 2.95

$0.15 TMT 0.49

2266.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$85.8 CHF 71.2

$9.81 TMT 32.85

774.52%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.61 CHF 6.31

$2.80 TMT 9.39

171.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.76 CHF 3.12

$0.87 TMT 2.92

332.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$64.2 CHF 53.2

$8.75 TMT 29.33

633.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.35 CHF 1.95

$0.41 TMT 1.37

473.17%

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

$39.5K CHF 32.8K

$44.6K TMT 149.3K

-11.30%

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

$38.8K CHF 32.2K

$57.0K TMT 190.8K

-31.79%

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

$280 CHF 232

$576 TMT 1,930

-51.44%

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

$37.96 CHF 31.49

$58.3 TMT 195

-34.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$57.6 CHF 47.74

$103 TMT 347

-44.36%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$77.0 CHF 63.8

$197 TMT 659

-60.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$43.34 CHF 35.95

$43.87 TMT 147

-1.21%

Cinema Ticket

$23.96 CHF 19.88

$8.80 TMT 29.47

172.27%

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

$2,484 CHF 2,061

$23.22 TMT 77.8

10597.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.2K CHF 29.2K

$25.2K TMT 84.5K

39.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$133 CHF 110

$56.8 TMT 190

134.31%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$79.1 CHF 65.6

$116 TMT 390

-32.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$169 CHF 140

$371 TMT 1,242

-54.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$188 CHF 156

$194 TMT 650

-2.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,825 CHF 2,344

$1,396 TMT 4,675

102.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,115 CHF 1,754

$1,000 TMT 3,349

111.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,088 CHF 4,221

$2,244 TMT 7,519

126.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,963 CHF 3,287

$1,931 TMT 6,470

105.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$22.5K CHF 18.6K

$3,614 TMT 12.1K

521.62%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$16.3K CHF 13.5K

$2,901 TMT 9,717

462.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$7,271 CHF 6,032

$748 TMT 2,507

871.69%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

1.98

9.5

-79.16%

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

Last update for Geneva: October 25, 2026

Last update for Ashgabat: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Geneva

$2.1K 51.9%

Ashgabat

$1,000 29.4% 52.7% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Geneva

$600 14.7%

Ashgabat

$664 19.5% 10.7% $64

Eating Out

Geneva

$482 11.8%

Ashgabat

$434 12.8% 9.8% $47

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Geneva

$375 9.2%

Ashgabat

$738 21.7% 96.6% $363

Clothing & Footwear

Geneva

$256 6.3%

Ashgabat

$332 9.8% 29.7% $76

Getting Around

Geneva

$126 3.1%

Ashgabat

$18 0.5% 86.1% $109

Sport & Entertainment

Geneva

$125 3.1%

Ashgabat

$214 6.3% 71.5% $89

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,825 in Geneva and $1,396 in Ashgabat. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Geneva pays about 9.7 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $129 in Geneva vs $87 in Ashgabat. Groceries flip the comparison at $600 vs $664, with Geneva cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Geneva

🇹🇲 Ashgabat

🕒 Local time

16:46 4:46 PM

20:46 8:46 PM

4 h ahead of Geneva

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

191,557

909,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

Turkmenistani Manat TMT m

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

1 TMT = 0.299 USD

1 TMT = 0.268 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TMT, USD, EUR to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.83 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.923 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

Turkmenistani Manat exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 3.35 TMT (1 TMT = 0.299 USD). 1 EUR = 3.73 TMT (1 TMT = 0.268 EUR).

USD to CHF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Geneva Ashgabat 4,330 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Geneva
Ashgabat

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

Geneva vs Ashgabat: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Geneva and Ashgabat differ by about 20% in total monthly costs ($4,079 vs $3,400 including rent). Ashgabat is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Geneva is about 9.7 times higher, 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: $2,825 in Geneva versus $1,396 in Ashgabat. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,484 in Geneva versus $23 in Ashgabat. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Geneva pay roughly 10% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Both cities are expensive relative to $3,000. Ashgabat is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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, Geneva and Ashgabat are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

It comes down to priorities – Ashgabat wins on affordability, Geneva on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.