Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nizhny Novgorod and Port Elizabeth

For one person, living costs are similar in Nizhny Novgorod and in Port Elizabeth: $1,232 and $1,216 a month, rent and utilities included.

60

Cost of Living Index in Nizhny Novgorod
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Nizhny Novgorod Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Port Elizabeth
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Port Elizabeth Living Index

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Nizhny Novgorod

🇷🇺 Russia

$1,232

/mo nomad

Port Elizabeth

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,216

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Nizhny Novgorod and in Port Elizabeth

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,232 in Nizhny Novgorod versus $1,216 in Port Elizabeth.

Nizhny Novgorod $1,232
Port Elizabeth $1,216

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,855 in Nizhny Novgorod versus $1,835 in Port Elizabeth.

Nizhny Novgorod $1,855
Port Elizabeth $1,835

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,479 in Nizhny Novgorod versus $2,453 in Port Elizabeth.

Nizhny Novgorod $2,479
Port Elizabeth $2,453

Living in Nizhny Novgorod is roughly 1% more expensive than in Port Elizabeth, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities sit below the global median: Nizhny Novgorod 9% lower, Port Elizabeth 10% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.93 ₽1,163

$11.00 R 181

26.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$53.0 ₽4,420

$41.67 R 687

27.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.06 ₽589

$5.84 R 96.2

20.89%

Cappuccino

$3.30 ₽275

$2.17 R 35.81

52.07%

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

$1.74 ₽145

$1.03 R 16.91

68.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.70 ₽58.2

$0.76 R 12.59

-7.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.86 ₽156

$2.69 R 44.37

-30.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.70 ₽309

$3.24 R 53.3

14.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 ₽99.6

$1.12 R 18.39

6.25%

White Bread (500g)

$0.82 ₽68.2

$1.04 R 17.20

-21.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 ₽123

$1.51 R 24.94

-2.65%

Eggs

$1.61 ₽134

$2.81 R 46.35

-42.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.65 ₽972

$8.58 R 141

35.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.59 ₽383

$5.33 R 87.7

-13.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.56 ₽1,132

$8.36 R 138

62.20%

Apples (1kg)

$1.70 ₽142

$2.19 R 36.04

-22.37%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 ₽142

$1.49 R 24.58

14.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.76 ₽147

$1.70 R 28.04

3.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.66 ₽306

$1.81 R 29.74

102.21%

Potato (1kg)

$0.68 ₽57.1

$1.66 R 27.41

-59.04%

Onion (1kg)

$0.61 ₽50.7

$1.45 R 23.83

-57.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 ₽107

$1.26 R 20.72

1.59%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.74 ₽61.6

$0.99 R 16.39

-25.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.96 ₽247

$3.26 R 53.8

-9.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.17 ₽682

$4.82 R 79.4

69.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.09 ₽90.9

$1.27 R 20.99

-14.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.35 ₽196

$1.82 R 30.00

29.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.46 ₽38.56

$1.10 R 18.17

-58.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.96 ₽1,416

$36.67 R 604

-53.75%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.13 ₽177

$2.04 R 33.68

4.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.44 ₽36.57

$0.50 R 8.25

-12.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.19 ₽600

$8.45 R 139

-14.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.81 ₽67.6

$1.48 R 24.38

-45.27%

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

$42.4K ₽3.5M

$35.8K R 589.5K

18.38%

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

$32.8K ₽2.7M

$34.1K R 562.5K

-4.04%

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

$144 ₽12.0K

$125 R 2,058

15.25%

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

$7.12 ₽594

$34.90 R 575

-79.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.03 ₽670

$44.55 R 734

-81.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.72 ₽2,730

$32.20 R 530

1.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.32 ₽2,197

$23.27 R 383

13.11%

Cinema Ticket

$7.22 ₽603

$10.74 R 177

-32.77%

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

$309 ₽25.8K

$177 R 2,924

74.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,940 ₽579.2K

$6,046 R 99.6K

14.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$69.3 ₽5,781

$72.4 R 1,193

-4.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.3 ₽4,531

$38.28 R 631

41.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$141 ₽11.8K

$110 R 1,806

28.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$83.4 ₽6,963

$95.6 R 1,574

-12.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$610 ₽50.9K

$598 R 9,859

1.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$428 ₽35.7K

$415 R 6,838

3.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$863 ₽72.0K

$808 R 13.3K

6.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$614 ₽51.3K

$682 R 11.2K

-9.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,279 ₽273.7K

$764 R 12.6K

329.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,075 ₽173.2K

$522 R 8,604

297.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,024 ₽85.4K

$1,625 R 26.8K

-37.00%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

20.81

11.94

74.29%

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

Last update for Nizhny Novgorod: October 11, 2026

Last update for Port Elizabeth: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nizhny Novgorod

$428 34.8%

Port Elizabeth

$415 34.1% 3.1% $13

Groceries & Markets

Nizhny Novgorod

$219 17.8%

Port Elizabeth

$197 16.2% 10.1% $22

Eating Out

Nizhny Novgorod

$199 16.1%

Port Elizabeth

$159 13.1% 20.1% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nizhny Novgorod

$159 12.9%

Port Elizabeth

$204 16.8% 28.4% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Nizhny Novgorod

$157 12.7%

Port Elizabeth

$142 11.7% 9.2% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Nizhny Novgorod

$47 3.8%

Port Elizabeth

$54 4.4% 13.8% $6.5

Getting Around

Nizhny Novgorod

$23 1.9%

Port Elizabeth

$46 3.8% 97.3% $23

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $610 in Nizhny Novgorod and $598 in Port Elizabeth. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Port Elizabeth pays 59% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $53.0 in Nizhny Novgorod vs $42.00 in Port Elizabeth for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $219 vs $197 per month, with Port Elizabeth cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇺 Nizhny Novgorod

🇿🇦 Port Elizabeth

🕒 Local time

03:27 3:27 AM

02:27 2:27 AM

1 h behind Nizhny Novgorod

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,244,254

1,050,000

💱 Currency

Russian Ruble RUB ₽

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 RUB = 1.2 USD

100 RUB = 1.07 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to RUB – Russian Ruble Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇺 Russian Ruble (₽)

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 83.46 RUB (100 RUB = 1.2 USD). 1 EUR = 93.83 RUB (100 RUB = 1.07 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to RUB in detail →

On the map

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Nizhny Novgorod Port Elizabeth 10,190 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Nizhny Novgorod
Port Elizabeth

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated March 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Nizhny Novgorod vs Port Elizabeth: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Port Elizabeth is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 1% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 59% lower in Port Elizabeth. 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: $610 in Nizhny Novgorod versus $598 in Port Elizabeth. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $309 in Nizhny Novgorod versus $177 in Port Elizabeth. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 11% higher in Nizhny Novgorod. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,216 in Port Elizabeth versus $1,232 in Nizhny Novgorod, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Port Elizabeth but tight or insufficient in Nizhny Novgorod. The gap between the two cities makes Port Elizabeth the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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

Expats usually find Port Elizabeth gentler on the wallet – expenses run 1% less than in Nizhny Novgorod. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.