Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kuching and Tbilisi

For one person, living is cheaper in Kuching: $972 a month against $1,269 in Tbilisi, rent and utilities included – about $3,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

47

Cost of Living Index in Kuching
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Kuching Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Tbilisi
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Tbilisi Living Index

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Kuching

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$972

/mo nomad

Tbilisi

🇬🇪 Georgia

$1,269

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $972 in Kuching versus $1,269 in Tbilisi.

Kuching $972
Tbilisi $1,269

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,521 in Kuching versus $2,016 in Tbilisi.

Kuching $1,521
Tbilisi $2,016

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,070 in Kuching versus $2,763 in Tbilisi.

Kuching $2,070
Tbilisi $2,763

Living in Kuching costs roughly 23% less than in Tbilisi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Kuching 29% lower, Tbilisi 7% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.37 MYR 13.69

$11.63 ₾30.07

-71.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.51 MYR 99.4

$37.83 ₾97.8

-35.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.90 MYR 19.90

$9.66 ₾24.98

-49.28%

Cappuccino

$3.19 MYR 12.95

$3.57 ₾9.24

-10.64%

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

$0.78 MYR 3.18

$1.08 ₾2.78

-27.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.38 MYR 1.55

$0.56 ₾1.45

-32.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.61 MYR 18.71

$2.62 ₾6.78

75.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.96 MYR 24.20

$3.04 ₾7.85

96.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.39 MYR 9.70

$2.17 ₾5.60

10.14%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 MYR 4.85

$0.80 ₾2.06

48.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.19 MYR 4.83

$1.74 ₾4.51

-31.61%

Eggs

$2.38 MYR 9.64

$2.83 ₾7.31

-15.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.99 MYR 44.58

$9.31 ₾24.07

18.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.34 MYR 17.60

$6.52 ₾16.85

-33.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.00 MYR 40.56

$12.95 ₾33.50

-22.78%

Apples (1kg)

$3.17 MYR 12.87

$1.68 ₾4.33

88.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.32 MYR 5.36

$1.85 ₾4.79

-28.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.52 MYR 10.24

$1.97 ₾5.10

27.92%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.78 MYR 7.23

$2.42 ₾6.25

-26.45%

Potato (1kg)

$1.38 MYR 5.61

$0.82 ₾2.11

68.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.19 MYR 4.82

$0.74 ₾1.91

60.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.61 MYR 6.54

$1.34 ₾3.47

20.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 MYR 2.21

$0.77 ₾2.00

-28.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.76 MYR 19.29

$3.57 ₾9.24

33.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$22.25 MYR 90.3

$7.67 ₾19.83

190.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.13 MYR 16.74

$1.70 ₾4.39

142.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.06 MYR 20.51

$2.40 ₾6.21

110.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.36 MYR 1.46

$0.40 ₾1.05

-10.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$7.48 MYR 30.34

$15.23 ₾39.38

-50.89%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.97 MYR 3.93

$1.14 ₾2.95

-14.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.23 MYR 4.99

$0.78 ₾2.02

57.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.82 MYR 35.77

$11.83 ₾30.58

-25.44%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.94 MYR 3.81

$1.45 ₾3.75

-35.17%

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

$45.9K MYR 186.4K

$24.6K ₾63.6K

86.90%

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

$36.1K MYR 146.3K

$22.3K ₾57.8K

61.45%

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

$35.63 MYR 145

$88.8 ₾230

-59.88%

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

$10.19 MYR 41.34

$13.12 ₾33.93

-22.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.50 MYR 103

$19.67 ₾50.9

29.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.85 MYR 137

$64.1 ₾166

-47.15%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.26 MYR 49.73

$19.04 ₾49.24

-35.61%

Cinema Ticket

$4.87 MYR 19.76

$7.12 ₾18.42

-31.60%

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

$135 MYR 548

$375 ₾971

-64.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,150 MYR 29.0K

$10.5K ₾27.1K

-31.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$64.1 MYR 260

$104 ₾268

-38.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.52 MYR 152

$39.26 ₾102

-4.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.0 MYR 365

$117 ₾303

-23.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$64.6 MYR 262

$122 ₾315

-46.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$469 MYR 1,903

$695 ₾1,798

-32.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$334 MYR 1,355

$451 ₾1,167

-25.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$834 MYR 3,385

$1,355 ₾3,504

-38.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$654 MYR 2,655

$906 ₾2,343

-27.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,053 MYR 8,328

$2,295 ₾5,934

-10.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,534 MYR 6,221

$1,345 ₾3,478

14.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$535 MYR 2,172

$664 ₾1,718

-19.40%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.37

12.62

-65.37%

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

Last update for Kuching: October 27, 2026

Last update for Tbilisi: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kuching

$334 34.4%

Tbilisi

$451 35.6% 35.1% $117

Groceries & Markets

Kuching

$272 28%

Tbilisi

$234 18.4% 14.1% $38

Eating Out

Kuching

$120 12.3%

Tbilisi

$191 15% 59.3% $71

Clothing & Footwear

Kuching

$115 11.9%

Tbilisi

$172 13.5% 49.1% $57

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kuching

$71 7.3%

Tbilisi

$122 9.6% 70.5% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Kuching

$44 4.5%

Tbilisi

$78 6.2% 79.6% $35

Getting Around

Kuching

$16 1.7%

Tbilisi

$22 1.7% 36.5% $5.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $469 in Kuching and $695 in Tbilisi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Tbilisi pays 24% 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: $25 in Kuching vs $38 in Tbilisi. Groceries flip the comparison at $272 vs $234, with Tbilisi cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Kuching

🇬🇪 Tbilisi

🕒 Local time

09:59 9:59 AM

05:59 5:59 AM

4 h behind Kuching

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

349,147

1,241,700 Capital

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

Georgian Lari GEL ₾

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.246 USD

1 MYR = 0.221 EUR

1 GEL = 0.387 USD

1 GEL = 0.346 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GEL, USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 4.06 MYR (1 MYR = 0.246 USD). 1 EUR = 4.53 MYR (1 MYR = 0.221 EUR).

Georgian Lari exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 2.59 GEL (1 GEL = 0.387 USD). 1 EUR = 2.89 GEL (1 GEL = 0.346 EUR).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Kuching Tbilisi 7,880 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Kuching
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

Kuching vs Tbilisi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kuching is about 23% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 19% lower in Kuching. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $469 in Kuching versus $695 in Tbilisi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Kuching – a meal for two runs $25 versus $38 in Tbilisi. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $972 per month in Kuching versus $1,269 in Tbilisi – Kuching is about 23% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

For families, Kuching is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Tbilisi, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

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

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