Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tbilisi and Kampala

For one person, living is cheaper in Kampala: $616 a month against $1,269 in Tbilisi, rent and utilities included – about $7,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

61

Cost of Living Index in Tbilisi
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Tbilisi Living Index
30

Cost of Living Index in Kampala
Learn more

Kampala Living Index

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Tbilisi

🇬🇪 Georgia

$1,269

/mo nomad

Kampala

🇺🇬 Uganda

$616

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Tbilisi and in Kampala

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 Kampala actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,269 in Tbilisi versus $616 in Kampala.

Tbilisi $1,269
Kampala $616

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,016 in Tbilisi versus $940 in Kampala.

Tbilisi $2,016
Kampala $940

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,763 in Tbilisi versus $1,263 in Kampala.

Tbilisi $2,763
Kampala $1,263

Living in Tbilisi is roughly 106% more expensive than in Kampala, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Tbilisi 7% lower, Kampala 55% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.63 ₾30.07

$2.19 UGX 9,529

431.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.83 ₾97.8

$22.69 UGX 98.6K

66.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.66 ₾24.98

$6.82 UGX 29.6K

41.64%

Cappuccino

$3.57 ₾9.24

$2.28 UGX 9,900

56.58%

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

$1.08 ₾2.78

$0.32 UGX 1,376

237.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₾1.45

$0.23 UGX 994

143.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.62 ₾6.78

$1.14 UGX 4,939

129.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.04 ₾7.85

$1.69 UGX 7,348

79.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.17 ₾5.60

$0.68 UGX 2,955

219.12%

White Bread (500g)

$0.80 ₾2.06

$0.80 UGX 3,489

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.74 ₾4.51

$1.23 UGX 5,331

41.46%

Eggs

$2.83 ₾7.31

$1.47 UGX 6,372

92.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.31 ₾24.07

$3.93 UGX 17.1K

136.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.52 ₾16.85

$3.97 UGX 17.2K

64.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.95 ₾33.50

$4.53 UGX 19.7K

185.87%

Apples (1kg)

$1.68 ₾4.33

$1.87 UGX 8,130

-10.16%

Banana (1kg)

$1.85 ₾4.79

$1.28 UGX 5,542

44.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.97 ₾5.10

$1.15 UGX 4,994

71.30%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.42 ₾6.25

$1.12 UGX 4,882

116.07%

Potato (1kg)

$0.82 ₾2.11

$1.14 UGX 4,951

-28.07%

Onion (1kg)

$0.74 ₾1.91

$1.14 UGX 4,943

-35.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.34 ₾3.47

$0.66 UGX 2,874

103.03%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 ₾2.00

$0.45 UGX 1,948

71.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.57 ₾9.24

$2.17 UGX 9,435

64.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.67 ₾19.83

$6.80 UGX 29.5K

12.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 ₾4.39

$1.02 UGX 4,415

66.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 ₾6.21

$1.71 UGX 7,411

40.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.40 ₾1.05

$0.69 UGX 2,978

-42.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$15.23 ₾39.38

$36.32 UGX 157.8K

-58.07%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.14 ₾2.95

$0.43 UGX 1,887

165.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 ₾2.02

$0.29 UGX 1,260

168.97%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.83 ₾30.58

$2.81 UGX 12.2K

321.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ₾3.75

$1.25 UGX 5,435

16.00%

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

$24.6K ₾63.6K

$6,811 UGX 29.6M

260.83%

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

$22.3K ₾57.8K

$6,696 UGX 29.1M

233.55%

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

$88.8 ₾230

$64.4 UGX 279.8K

37.91%

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

$13.12 ₾33.93

$10.73 UGX 46.6K

22.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.67 ₾50.9

$32.03 UGX 139.2K

-38.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.1 ₾166

$50.9 UGX 221.3K

25.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.04 ₾49.24

$5.36 UGX 23.3K

255.22%

Cinema Ticket

$7.12 ₾18.42

$6.87 UGX 29.9K

3.64%

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

$375 ₾971

$260 UGX 1.1M

44.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.5K ₾27.1K

$7,974 UGX 34.6M

31.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 ₾268

$12.71 UGX 55.2K

715.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.26 ₾102

$11.92 UGX 51.8K

229.36%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$117 ₾303

$28.62 UGX 124.3K

310.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 ₾315

$38.91 UGX 169.1K

212.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$695 ₾1,798

$458 UGX 2.0M

51.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$451 ₾1,167

$151 UGX 656.6K

198.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 ₾3,504

$1,151 UGX 5.0M

17.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$906 ₾2,343

$269 UGX 1.2M

237.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,295 ₾5,934

$1,194 UGX 5.2M

92.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,345 ₾3,478

$922 UGX 4.0M

45.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$664 ₾1,718

$160 UGX 695.1K

315.19%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.62

20.75

-39.18%

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

Last update for Tbilisi: October 27, 2026

Last update for Kampala: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Tbilisi

$451 35.6%

Kampala

$151 24.5% 66.5% $300

Groceries & Markets

Tbilisi

$234 18.4%

Kampala

$134 21.7% 42.8% $100

Eating Out

Tbilisi

$191 15%

Kampala

$77 12.4% 59.8% $114

Clothing & Footwear

Tbilisi

$172 13.5%

Kampala

$41 6.7% 75.9% $130

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tbilisi

$122 9.6%

Kampala

$107 17.4% 11.9% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Tbilisi

$78 6.2%

Kampala

$65 10.5% 17.4% $14

Getting Around

Tbilisi

$22 1.7%

Kampala

$41 6.7% 87% $19

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $695 in Tbilisi and $458 in Kampala. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Tbilisi pays about 4.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $38 in Tbilisi vs $23 in Kampala for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $234 vs $134 per month, with Kampala cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇪 Tbilisi

🇺🇬 Kampala

🕒 Local time

18:40 6:40 PM

17:40 5:40 PM

1 h behind Tbilisi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,241,700 Capital

1,516,210 Capital

💱 Currency

Georgian Lari GEL ₾

Ugandan Shilling UGX Sh

📈 Exchange rate

1 GEL = 0.387 USD

1 GEL = 0.346 EUR

10,000 UGX = 2.3 USD

10,000 UGX = 2.06 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

UGX, USD, EUR to GEL – Georgian Lari Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇪 Georgian Lari (₾)

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

Ugandan Shilling exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 4,345 UGX (10,000 UGX = 2.3 USD). 1 EUR = 4,851 UGX (10,000 UGX = 2.06 EUR).

USD to GEL in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Tbilisi Kampala 4,760 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Tbilisi
Kampala

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 Kampala: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kampala is about 51% cheaper overall, especially in clothing, eating out, and groceries. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Tbilisi is about 4.2 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: $695 in Tbilisi versus $458 in Kampala. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 75% higher in Tbilisi. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Kampala – a meal for two runs $23 versus $38 in Tbilisi. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $616 in Kampala versus $1,269 in Tbilisi, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Kampala but tight or insufficient in Tbilisi. The gap between the two cities makes Kampala the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

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