Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tbilisi and Matara

For one person, living is cheaper in Matara: $581 a month against $1,278 in Tbilisi, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

61

Cost of Living Index in Tbilisi
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Tbilisi Living Index
28

Cost of Living Index in Matara
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Matara Living Index

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Tbilisi

🇬🇪 Georgia

$1,278

/mo nomad

Matara

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$581

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Tbilisi and in Matara

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

A single person spends $1,278 per month in Tbilisi vs $581 in Matara, rent included.

Tbilisi $1,278
Matara $581

A couple spends around $2,017 per month in Tbilisi vs $850 in Matara, rent included.

Tbilisi $2,017
Matara $850

A family of three spends $2,755 per month in Tbilisi vs $1,118 in Matara, rent included.

Tbilisi $2,755
Matara $1,118

Tbilisi costs about 120% more than Matara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Tbilisi and Matara are more affordable than the global median – Tbilisi 5% lower, Matara 57% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.62 ₾30.07

$3.86 LKR 1,283

201.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$38.41 ₾99.4

$24.60 LKR 8,182

56.14%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.74 ₾25.20

$7.57 LKR 2,518

28.67%

Cappuccino

$3.56 ₾9.21

$2.44 LKR 813

45.90%

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

$1.08 ₾2.80

$0.68 LKR 225

58.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₾1.46

$0.25 LKR 83.0

124.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.73 ₾7.05

$2.26 LKR 751

20.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.13 ₾8.09

$2.98 LKR 992

5.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.14 ₾5.55

$1.58 LKR 526

35.44%

White Bread (500g)

$0.75 ₾1.95

$0.57 LKR 190

31.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.80 ₾4.66

$0.78 LKR 260

130.77%

Eggs

$2.80 ₾7.25

$1.45 LKR 484

93.10%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.43 ₾24.41

$15.08 LKR 5,014

-37.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.00 ₾18.10

$5.02 LKR 1,668

39.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.69 ₾32.83

$7.69 LKR 2,559

65.02%

Apples (1kg)

$1.63 ₾4.22

$6.67 LKR 2,218

-75.56%

Banana (1kg)

$1.84 ₾4.77

$0.46 LKR 153

300.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.97 ₾5.09

$4.17 LKR 1,386

-52.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.47 ₾6.39

$0.84 LKR 279

194.05%

Potato (1kg)

$0.75 ₾1.95

$0.97 LKR 322

-22.68%

Onion (1kg)

$0.67 ₾1.74

$0.62 LKR 208

8.06%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.41 ₾3.66

$1.26 LKR 419

11.90%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 ₾1.86

$0.46 LKR 153

56.52%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.51 ₾9.08

$10.27 LKR 3,416

-65.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 ₾20.40

$13.79 LKR 4,587

-42.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 ₾4.41

$1.77 LKR 589

-3.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 ₾6.12

$2.84 LKR 943

-16.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.38 ₾0.98

$0.29 LKR 95.3

31.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$15.29 ₾39.56

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.19 ₾3.08

$0.41 LKR 135

190.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.74 ₾1.91

$0.31 LKR 102

138.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.89 ₾30.76

$0.93 LKR 310

1178.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 ₾3.77

$1.38 LKR 458

5.80%

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

$25.0K ₾64.6K

$43.4K LKR 14.4M

-42.43%

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

$22.8K ₾59.1K

$45.7K LKR 15.2M

-50.09%

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

$88.1 ₾228

$44.63 LKR 14.8K

97.47%

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

$12.71 ₾32.87

$4.15 LKR 1,381

206.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.79 ₾51.2

$20.43 LKR 6,797

-3.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.3 ₾166

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.17 ₾49.59

Cinema Ticket

$6.65 ₾17.20

$4.46 LKR 1,483

49.10%

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

$371 ₾961

$40.78 LKR 13.6K

810.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,163 ₾23.7K

$17.5K LKR 5.8M

-47.61%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 ₾264

$17.76 LKR 5,909

475.51%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.65 ₾103

$17.33 LKR 5,766

128.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 ₾306

$77.5 LKR 25.8K

52.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 ₾310

$41.81 LKR 13.9K

186.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$690 ₾1,784

$182 LKR 60.5K

279.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$461 ₾1,193

$88.6 LKR 29.5K

420.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,362 ₾3,523

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$897 ₾2,321

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,277 ₾5,891

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,378 ₾3,564

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$710 ₾1,836

$105 LKR 35.1K

573.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.53

12.5

0.24%

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

Last update for Tbilisi: November 2, 2026

Last update for Matara: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Tbilisi

$461 36.1%

Matara

$89 15.3% 80.8% $373

Groceries & Markets

Tbilisi

$235 18.4%

Matara

$238 40.9% 1.1% $2.6

Eating Out

Tbilisi

$191 15%

Matara

$104 17.9% 45.7% $88

Clothing & Footwear

Tbilisi

$171 13.4%

Matara

$69 12% 59.3% $101

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tbilisi

$121 9.4%

Matara

$69 11.9% 42.6% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Tbilisi

$78 6.1%

Matara

$8.9 * 1.5% 88.5% $69

Getting Around

Tbilisi

$22 1.7%

Matara

$3.1 * 0.5% 85.7% $19

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $690 in Tbilisi versus $182 in Matara. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Tbilisi are about 6.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $38 in Tbilisi versus $25 in Matara. Groceries tell a different story – $235 in Tbilisi vs $238 in Matara – so Tbilisi wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇪 Tbilisi

🇱🇰 Matara

🕒 Local time

11:53 11:53 AM

13:23 1:23 PM

1 h 30 min ahead of Tbilisi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,241,700 Capital

100,000

💱 Currency

Georgian Lari GEL ₾

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

📈 Exchange rate

1 GEL = 0.387 USD

1 GEL = 0.344 EUR

1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.68 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LKR, USD, EUR to GEL – Georgian Lari Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇪 Georgian Lari (₾)

Georgian Lari exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 2.59 GEL (1 GEL = 0.387 USD). 1 EUR = 2.91 GEL (1 GEL = 0.344 EUR).

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 333 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD). 1 EUR = 374 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.68 EUR).

USD to GEL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Tbilisi Matara 5,320 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Tbilisi
Matara

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 Matara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Tbilisi is pricier by about 120%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,918 per month in Tbilisi and $871 in Matara. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Matara, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $182 there versus $690 in Tbilisi.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $38 in Tbilisi and $25 in Matara. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Kindergarten costs $371 per month in Tbilisi and $41 in Matara. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Matara, where all-in costs run around $581, than in Tbilisi at $1,278. In Matara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Tbilisi it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Matara – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

If budget matters most, go with Matara. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Tbilisi makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.