Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tbilisi and Busan

For one person, living is cheaper in Tbilisi: $1,292 a month against $1,798 in Busan, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Tbilisi
Learn more

Tbilisi Living Index
87

Cost of Living Index in Busan
Learn more

Busan Living Index

Jump to prices

Tbilisi

🇬🇪 Georgia

$1,292

/mo nomad

Busan

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,798

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Tbilisi and in Busan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,292 in Tbilisi versus $1,798 in Busan.

Tbilisi $1,292
Busan $1,798

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,041 in Tbilisi versus $2,951 in Busan.

Tbilisi $2,041
Busan $2,951

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,789 in Tbilisi versus $4,104 in Busan.

Tbilisi $2,789
Busan $4,104

Living in Tbilisi costs roughly 28% less than in Busan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Tbilisi is 3% below, Busan is 34% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.61 ₾29.99

$7.67 ₩10.2K

51.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.31 ₾102

$49.50 ₩66.1K

-20.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.66 ₾24.96

$6.60 ₩8,820

46.36%

Cappuccino

$3.59 ₾9.28

$3.73 ₩4,989

-3.75%

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

$1.08 ₾2.79

$1.77 ₩2,368

-38.98%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 ₾1.61

$1.40 ₩1,877

-55.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.84 ₾7.35

$3.80 ₩5,073

-25.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.12 ₾8.06

$4.37 ₩5,839

-28.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.21 ₾5.72

$2.29 ₩3,059

-3.49%

White Bread (500g)

$0.74 ₾1.91

$3.14 ₩4,198

-76.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.82 ₾4.71

$3.12 ₩4,164

-41.67%

Eggs

$2.69 ₾6.95

$2.62 ₩3,496

2.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.21 ₾23.79

$10.99 ₩14.7K

-16.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.93 ₾17.92

$10.40 ₩13.9K

-33.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.90 ₾33.33

$24.69 ₩33.0K

-47.75%

Apples (1kg)

$1.64 ₾4.25

$11.01 ₩14.7K

-85.10%

Banana (1kg)

$1.85 ₾4.79

$3.69 ₩4,935

-49.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.88 ₾4.87

$8.33 ₩11.1K

-77.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.51 ₾6.49

$6.01 ₩8,029

-58.24%

Potato (1kg)

$0.75 ₾1.93

$6.12 ₩8,181

-87.75%

Onion (1kg)

$0.74 ₾1.91

$3.34 ₩4,467

-77.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.36 ₾3.51

$2.76 ₩3,685

-50.72%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.78 ₾2.00

$1.34 ₩1,793

-41.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.52 ₾9.10

$3.32 ₩4,438

6.02%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.76 ₾20.05

$18.81 ₩25.1K

-58.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 ₾4.28

$2.38 ₩3,177

-30.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.34 ₾6.04

$3.67 ₩4,905

-36.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.38 ₾0.97

$1.15 ₩1,535

-66.96%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$15.65 ₾40.43

$68.6 ₩91.6K

-77.18%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.18 ₾3.05

$3.61 ₩4,822

-67.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.79 ₾2.04

$0.63 ₩845

25.40%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.84 ₾30.59

$14.96 ₩20.0K

-20.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 ₾3.85

$1.43 ₩1,908

4.20%

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

$24.6K ₾63.5K

$39.8K ₩53.2M

-38.26%

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

$22.4K ₾57.9K

$33.1K ₩44.2M

-32.14%

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

$87.8 ₾227

$197 ₩262.8K

-55.37%

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

$13.07 ₾33.78

$36.58 ₩48.9K

-64.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.13 ₾49.43

$26.77 ₩35.8K

-28.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$72.8 ₾188

$42.05 ₩56.2K

73.15%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.15 ₾46.89

$10.18 ₩13.6K

78.29%

Cinema Ticket

$6.57 ₾16.98

$11.89 ₩15.9K

-44.74%

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

$382 ₾986

$639 ₩853.1K

-40.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,073 ₾23.4K

$22.1K ₩29.5M

-58.89%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$103 ₾267

$106 ₩141.1K

-2.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.24 ₾104

$66.1 ₩88.2K

-39.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 ₾300

$93.6 ₩125.0K

23.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 ₾316

$126 ₩168.9K

-3.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$707 ₾1,827

$742 ₩991.9K

-4.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$465 ₾1,202

$563 ₩752.7K

-17.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,324 ₾3,421

$2,181 ₩2.9M

-39.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$906 ₾2,340

$1,399 ₩1.9M

-35.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,310 ₾5,967

$5,334 ₩7.1M

-56.70%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,340 ₾3,463

$3,295 ₩4.4M

-59.32%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$731 ₾1,888

$2,595 ₩3.5M

-71.84%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.53

4.22

196.92%

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

Last update for Tbilisi: November 8, 2026

Last update for Busan: November 9, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Tbilisi

$465 36%

Busan

$563 31.3% 21.1% $98

Groceries & Markets

Tbilisi

$235 18.2%

Busan

$486 27% 107% $251

Eating Out

Tbilisi

$192 14.9%

Busan

$166 9.3% 13.4% $26

Clothing & Footwear

Tbilisi

$172 13.3%

Busan

$176 9.8% 2.5% $4.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tbilisi

$120 9.3%

Busan

$260 14.5% 117% $140

Sport & Entertainment

Tbilisi

$86 6.7%

Busan

$66 3.7% 23.4% $20

Getting Around

Tbilisi

$22 1.7%

Busan

$80 4.5% 259% $58

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $707 in Tbilisi and $742 in Busan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Busan pays about 3.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $39 in Tbilisi vs $49 in Busan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $235 vs $486 per month, with Tbilisi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇪 Tbilisi

🇰🇷 Busan

🕒 Local time

14:02 2:02 PM

19:02 7:02 PM

5 h ahead of Tbilisi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,241,700 Capital

3,586,079

💱 Currency

Georgian Lari GEL ₾

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

1 GEL = 0.387 USD

1 GEL = 0.349 EUR

10,000 KRW = 7.49 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, USD, EUR to GEL – Georgian Lari Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇪 Georgian Lari (₾)

Georgian Lari exchange rates as of November 12, 2026: 1 USD = 2.58 GEL (1 GEL = 0.387 USD). 1 EUR = 2.87 GEL (1 GEL = 0.349 EUR).

South Korean Won exchange rates as of November 12, 2026: 1 USD = 1,336 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.49 USD). 1 EUR = 1,483 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.74 EUR).

USD to GEL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Tbilisi Busan 7,080 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Tbilisi
Busan

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

Tbilisi vs Busan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Tbilisi wins on cost – living expenses run 28% lower than in Busan. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Tbilisi the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 72% lower in Tbilisi. 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: $707 in Tbilisi versus $742 in Busan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Tbilisi runs roughly 77% less than in Busan. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $382 in Tbilisi versus $639 in Busan. 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, Tbilisi and Busan are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Tbilisi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 28% less than in Busan. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.