Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Shenzhen and Tbilisi

For one person, living is cheaper in Shenzhen: $1,117 a month against $1,269 in Tbilisi, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

54

Cost of Living Index in Shenzhen
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Shenzhen Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Tbilisi
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Tbilisi Living Index

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Shenzhen

🇨🇳 China

$1,117

/mo nomad

Tbilisi

🇬🇪 Georgia

$1,269

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,117 in Shenzhen versus $1,269 in Tbilisi.

Shenzhen $1,117
Tbilisi $1,269

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,714 in Shenzhen versus $2,016 in Tbilisi.

Shenzhen $1,714
Tbilisi $2,016

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,310 in Shenzhen versus $2,763 in Tbilisi.

Shenzhen $2,310
Tbilisi $2,763

Living in Shenzhen costs roughly 12% less than in Tbilisi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Shenzhen 18% lower, Tbilisi 7% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.66 ¥24.35

$11.63 ₾30.07

-68.53%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.39 ¥196

$37.83 ₾97.8

-22.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.28 ¥35.17

$9.66 ₾24.98

-45.34%

Cappuccino

$3.36 ¥22.34

$3.57 ₾9.24

-5.88%

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

$0.58 ¥3.84

$1.08 ₾2.78

-46.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.36 ¥2.37

$0.56 ₾1.45

-35.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.48 ¥9.82

$2.62 ₾6.78

-43.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 ¥14.26

$3.04 ₾7.85

-29.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.54 ¥10.22

$2.17 ₾5.60

-29.03%

White Bread (500g)

$1.63 ¥10.84

$0.80 ₾2.06

103.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.14 ¥7.60

$1.74 ₾4.51

-34.48%

Eggs

$1.75 ¥11.63

$2.83 ₾7.31

-38.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$20.74 ¥138

$9.31 ₾24.07

122.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.41 ¥22.71

$6.52 ₾16.85

-47.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.42 ¥96.0

$12.95 ₾33.50

11.35%

Apples (1kg)

$2.25 ¥14.96

$1.68 ₾4.34

33.93%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 ¥10.79

$1.85 ₾4.79

-12.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.94 ¥12.88

$1.97 ₾5.10

-1.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.42 ¥9.47

$2.42 ₾6.25

-41.32%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 ¥7.20

$0.82 ₾2.11

31.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.28 ¥8.52

$0.74 ₾1.91

72.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.60 ¥3.97

$1.34 ₾3.47

-55.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ¥3.76

$0.77 ₾2.00

-27.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.43 ¥29.50

$3.57 ₾9.24

24.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.08 ¥80.4

$7.67 ₾19.83

57.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.92 ¥6.15

$1.70 ₾4.39

-45.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 ¥12.15

$2.40 ₾6.21

-23.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.44 ¥2.90

$0.40 ₾1.05

10.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.05 ¥120

$15.23 ₾39.38

18.52%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.53 ¥10.15

$1.14 ₾2.95

34.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.41 ¥2.75

$0.78 ₾2.02

-47.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.36 ¥48.98

$11.83 ₾30.58

-37.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.32 ¥8.77

$1.45 ₾3.75

-8.97%

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

$19.2K ¥127.9K

$24.6K ₾63.6K

-21.77%

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

$18.0K ¥120.1K

$22.3K ₾57.8K

-19.21%

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

$64.8 ¥431

$88.8 ₾230

-27.06%

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

$9.90 ¥65.9

$13.12 ₾33.93

-24.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.40 ¥109

$19.67 ₾50.9

-16.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.95 ¥326

$64.1 ₾166

-23.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.95 ¥113

$19.04 ₾49.24

-10.98%

Cinema Ticket

$7.28 ¥48.44

$7.12 ₾18.42

2.25%

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

$537 ¥3,572

$375 ₾971

42.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.4K ¥162.4K

$10.5K ₾27.1K

133.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.7 ¥371

$104 ₾268

-46.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.56 ¥270

$39.26 ₾102

3.31%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.1 ¥486

$117 ₾303

-37.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.9 ¥625

$122 ₾315

-22.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$753 ¥5,010

$695 ₾1,798

8.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$471 ¥3,132

$451 ₾1,167

4.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,847 ¥12.3K

$1,355 ₾3,504

36.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$830 ¥5,525

$906 ₾2,343

-8.38%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.2K ¥87.8K

$2,295 ₾5,934

474.62%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,479 ¥43.1K

$1,345 ₾3,478

381.80%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,763 ¥11.7K

$664 ₾1,718

165.38%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.35

12.62

-73.45%

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

Last update for Shenzhen: 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

Shenzhen

$471 42.1%

Tbilisi

$451 35.6% 4.1% $19

Groceries & Markets

Shenzhen

$249 22.3%

Tbilisi

$234 18.4% 6% $15

Clothing & Footwear

Shenzhen

$118 10.6%

Tbilisi

$172 13.5% 45.1% $53

Eating Out

Shenzhen

$101 9%

Tbilisi

$191 15% 89% $90

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Shenzhen

$91 8.2%

Tbilisi

$122 9.6% 33.5% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Shenzhen

$64 5.7%

Tbilisi

$78 6.2% 23.3% $15

Getting Around

Shenzhen

$23 2.1%

Tbilisi

$22 1.7% 6.3% $1.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $753 in Shenzhen and $695 in Tbilisi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Shenzhen pays about 2.7 times more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $29 in Shenzhen vs $38 in Tbilisi. Groceries flip the comparison at $249 vs $234, with Tbilisi cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Shenzhen

🇬🇪 Tbilisi

🕒 Local time

04:28 4:28 AM

00:28 12:28 AM

4 h behind Shenzhen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

12,528,300

1,241,700 Capital

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Georgian Lari GEL ₾

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

1 GEL = 0.387 USD

1 GEL = 0.347 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GEL, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 6.65 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.41 CNY (1 CNY = 0.135 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 CNY in detail →

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Shenzhen Tbilisi 6,680 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

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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

Shenzhen vs Tbilisi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Shenzhen wins on cost – living expenses run 12% lower than in Tbilisi. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Shenzhen the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Shenzhen is about 2.7 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: $753 in Shenzhen 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 16% less than in Shenzhen. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $537 in Shenzhen versus $375 in Tbilisi. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Shenzhen 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.