Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kobe and Tbilisi

For one person, living is cheaper in Tbilisi: $1,269 a month against $1,392 in Kobe, rent and utilities included – about $1,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

67

Cost of Living Index in Kobe
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Kobe Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Tbilisi
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Tbilisi Living Index

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Kobe

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,392

/mo nomad

Tbilisi

🇬🇪 Georgia

$1,269

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,392 in Kobe versus $1,269 in Tbilisi.

Kobe $1,392
Tbilisi $1,269

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,067 in Kobe versus $2,016 in Tbilisi.

Kobe $2,067
Tbilisi $2,016

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,742 in Kobe versus $2,763 in Tbilisi.

Kobe $2,742
Tbilisi $2,763

Living in Kobe is roughly 10% more expensive than in Tbilisi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Kobe is 2% above, Tbilisi is 7% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.70 ¥1,216

$11.63 ₾30.07

-33.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.86 ¥5,031

$37.83 ₾97.8

-15.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.91 ¥776

$9.66 ₾24.98

-49.17%

Cappuccino

$2.37 ¥375

$3.57 ₾9.24

-33.61%

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

$1.19 ¥188

$1.08 ₾2.78

10.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.57 ¥90.0

$0.56 ₾1.45

1.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.12 ¥335

$2.62 ₾6.78

-19.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 ¥363

$3.04 ₾7.85

-24.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 ¥248

$2.17 ₾5.60

-27.65%

White Bread (500g)

$1.34 ¥211

$0.80 ₾2.06

67.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.17 ¥658

$1.74 ₾4.51

139.66%

Eggs

$2.04 ¥322

$2.83 ₾7.31

-27.92%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.61 ¥1,990

$9.31 ₾24.07

35.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.78 ¥1,070

$6.52 ₾16.85

3.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.06 ¥2,694

$12.95 ₾33.50

31.74%

Apples (1kg)

$7.70 ¥1,216

$1.68 ₾4.34

358.33%

Banana (1kg)

$3.06 ¥484

$1.85 ₾4.79

65.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.97 ¥784

$1.97 ₾5.10

152.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$7.71 ¥1,217

$2.42 ₾6.25

218.60%

Potato (1kg)

$3.84 ¥606

$0.82 ₾2.11

368.29%

Onion (1kg)

$3.45 ¥545

$0.74 ₾1.91

366.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ¥179

$1.34 ₾3.47

-15.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 ¥148

$0.77 ₾2.00

22.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.48 ¥549

$3.57 ₾9.24

-2.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.05 ¥1,271

$7.67 ₾19.83

4.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 ¥310

$1.70 ₾4.39

15.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.45 ¥229

$2.40 ₾6.21

-39.58%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ¥229

$0.40 ₾1.05

262.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$62.4 ¥9,856

$15.23 ₾39.38

309.85%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.11 ¥491

$1.14 ₾2.95

172.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.24 ¥511

$0.78 ₾2.02

315.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.72 ¥4,218

$11.83 ₾30.58

125.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 ¥168

$1.45 ₾3.75

-26.90%

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

$19.9K ¥3.1M

$24.6K ₾63.6K

-19.04%

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

$15.4K ¥2.4M

$22.3K ₾57.8K

-30.87%

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

$148 ¥23.3K

$88.8 ₾230

66.43%

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

$23.26 ¥3,672

$13.12 ₾33.93

77.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.25 ¥4,933

$19.67 ₾50.9

58.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.90 ¥7,405

$64.1 ₾166

-26.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.83 ¥1,868

$19.04 ₾49.24

-37.87%

Cinema Ticket

$12.86 ¥2,031

$7.12 ₾18.42

80.62%

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

$321 ¥50.6K

$375 ₾971

-14.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,141 ¥969.5K

$10.5K ₾27.1K

-41.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.6 ¥7,990

$104 ₾268

-51.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.01 ¥3,949

$39.26 ₾102

-36.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$45.98 ¥7,260

$117 ₾303

-60.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$65.6 ¥10.4K

$122 ₾315

-46.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$691 ¥109.0K

$695 ₾1,798

-0.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$463 ¥73.1K

$451 ₾1,167

2.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,100 ¥173.7K

$1,355 ₾3,504

-18.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$737 ¥116.4K

$906 ₾2,343

-18.67%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,325 ¥682.9K

$2,295 ₾5,934

88.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,894 ¥456.9K

$1,345 ₾3,478

115.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,975 ¥311.8K

$664 ₾1,718

197.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.02

12.62

-83.99%

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

Last update for Kobe: October 25, 2026

Last update for Tbilisi: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kobe

$463 33.3%

Tbilisi

$451 35.6% 2.5% $12

Groceries & Markets

Kobe

$355 25.5%

Tbilisi

$234 18.4% 34.1% $121

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kobe

$202 14.5%

Tbilisi

$122 9.6% 39.9% $81

Eating Out

Kobe

$127 9.1%

Tbilisi

$191 15% 50% $64

Getting Around

Kobe

$88 6.3%

Tbilisi

$22 1.7% 75% $66

Clothing & Footwear

Kobe

$84 6.1%

Tbilisi

$172 13.5% 104% $88

Sport & Entertainment

Kobe

$73 5.2%

Tbilisi

$78 6.2% 7.8% $5.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $691 in Kobe and $695 in Tbilisi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Kobe pays about 3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $32 in Kobe vs $38 in Tbilisi. Groceries flip the comparison at $355 vs $234, with Tbilisi cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Kobe

🇬🇪 Tbilisi

🕒 Local time

06:07 6:07 AM

01:07 1:07 AM

5 h behind Kobe

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,537,272

1,241,700 Capital

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Georgian Lari GEL ₾

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR

1 GEL = 0.387 USD

1 GEL = 0.347 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GEL, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR).

Georgian Lari exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 2.59 GEL (1 GEL = 0.387 USD). 1 EUR = 2.88 GEL (1 GEL = 0.347 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Kobe Tbilisi 7,560 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Kobe
Tbilisi

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

Kobe vs Tbilisi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Tbilisi wins on cost – living expenses run 9% lower than in Kobe. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Tbilisi the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Kobe is about 3 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: $691 in Kobe versus $695 in Tbilisi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Tbilisi runs roughly 76% less than in Kobe. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $321 in Kobe versus $375 in Tbilisi. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Tbilisi gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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, Kobe and Tbilisi are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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