Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tbilisi and Petropavl

For one person, living is cheaper in Petropavl: $820 a month against $1,269 in Tbilisi, rent and utilities included – about $5,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Tbilisi, Georgia
Petropavl, Kazakhstan
Tbilisi
🇬🇪 Georgia
$1,269
/mo nomad
Petropavl
🇰🇿 Kazakhstan
$820
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Tbilisi and in Petropavl

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,269 in Tbilisi versus $820 in Petropavl.

  • Tbilisi $1,269
  • Petropavl $820

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,016 in Tbilisi versus $1,499 in Petropavl.

  • Tbilisi $2,016
  • Petropavl $1,499

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,763 in Tbilisi versus $2,178 in Petropavl.

  • Tbilisi $2,763
  • Petropavl $2,178

Living in Tbilisi is roughly 55% more expensive than in Petropavl, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Tbilisi 7% lower, Petropavl 40% lower.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Tbilisi
Petropavl
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.63 ₾30.07
$14.55 ₸6,600
-20.07%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$37.83 ₾97.8
$30.74 ₸13.9K
23.06%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$9.66 ₾24.98
$9.25 ₸4,197
4.43%
Cappuccino
$3.57 ₾9.24
$2.79 ₸1,263
27.96%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.08 ₾2.78
$1.45 ₸655
-25.52%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.56 ₾1.45
$0.73 ₸331
-23.29%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.62 ₾6.78
$1.58 ₸718
65.82%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.04 ₾7.85
$2.72 ₸1,234
11.76%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Tbilisi
Petropavl
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.17 ₾5.60
$1.15 ₸522
88.70%
White Bread (500g)
$0.80 ₾2.06
$0.70 ₸316
14.29%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.74 ₾4.51
$2.12 ₸960
-17.92%
Eggs
$2.83 ₾7.31
$2.10 ₸954
34.76%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$9.31 ₾24.07
$10.72 ₸4,860
-13.15%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.52 ₾16.85
$6.23 ₸2,825
4.65%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.95 ₾33.50
$9.91 ₸4,493
30.68%
Apples (1kg)
$1.68 ₾4.33
$1.54 ₸698
9.09%
Banana (1kg)
$1.85 ₾4.79
$2.27 ₸1,031
-18.50%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.97 ₾5.10
$1.80 ₸818
9.44%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.42 ₾6.25
$1.31 ₸596
84.73%
Potato (1kg)
$0.82 ₾2.11
$0.70 ₸317
17.14%
Onion (1kg)
$0.74 ₾1.91
$0.69 ₸312
7.25%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.34 ₾3.47
$2.60 ₸1,180
-48.46%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.77 ₾2.00
$1.17 ₸531
-34.19%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.57 ₾9.24
$2.35 ₸1,067
51.91%
Wine (Bottle)
$7.67 ₾19.83
$7.80 ₸3,540
-1.67%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.70 ₾4.39
$1.13 ₸514
50.44%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.40 ₾6.21
$2.17 ₸982
10.60%
🚌 Getting Around
Tbilisi
Petropavl
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.40 ₾1.05
$0.25 ₸114
60.00%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$15.23 ₾39.38
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.14 ₾2.95
$0.64 ₸292
78.12%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.78 ₾2.02
$0.99 ₸449
-21.21%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$11.83 ₾30.58
-
-
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.45 ₾3.75
$0.66 ₸299
119.70%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$24.6K ₾63.6K
$21.9K ₸9.9M
12.44%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$22.3K ₾57.8K
$26.2K ₸11.9M
-14.67%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Tbilisi
Petropavl
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$88.8 ₾230
$56.7 ₸25.7K
56.72%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$13.12 ₾33.93
$17.77 ₸8,059
-26.17%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$19.67 ₾50.9
-
-
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Tbilisi
Petropavl
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$64.1 ₾166
$28.73 ₸13.0K
122.94%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$19.04 ₾49.24
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$7.12 ₾18.42
$5.11 ₸2,318
39.33%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Tbilisi
Petropavl
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$375 ₾971
$89.5 ₸40.6K
319.64%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$10.5K ₾27.1K
-
-
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Tbilisi
Petropavl
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$104 ₾268
$45.05 ₸20.4K
130.06%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.26 ₾102
$33.23 ₸15.1K
18.15%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$117 ₾303
$65.8 ₸29.8K
78.39%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$122 ₾315
-
-
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Tbilisi
Petropavl
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$695 ₾1,798
$344 ₸156.0K
102.20%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$451 ₾1,167
$218 ₸99.0K
106.81%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,355 ₾3,504
$996 ₸452.0K
35.97%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$906 ₾2,343
$789 ₸357.7K
14.91%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,295 ₾5,934
$888 ₸403.0K
158.30%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,345 ₾3,478
$1,010 ₸457.9K
33.22%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Tbilisi
Petropavl
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$664 ₾1,718
$297 ₸134.8K
123.48%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
12.62
20
-36.90%

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

Last update for Tbilisi: October 27, 2026

Last update for Petropavl: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Tbilisi
$451
Petropavl
$218 51.6% $233
Groceries & Markets
Tbilisi
$234
Petropavl
$217 7.2% $17
Eating Out
Tbilisi
$191
Petropavl
$200 4.7% $9.1
Clothing & Footwear
Tbilisi
$172
Petropavl
$65 * 62.3% $107
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Tbilisi
$122
Petropavl
$74 * 38.8% $47
Sport & Entertainment
Tbilisi
$78
Petropavl
$39 50.3% $39
Getting Around
Tbilisi
$22
Petropavl
$6.6 * 69.9% $15

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $695 in Tbilisi and $344 in Petropavl. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Tbilisi pays about 2.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $38 in Tbilisi vs $31 in Petropavl for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $234 vs $217 per month, with Petropavl cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇬🇪 Tbilisi
🇰🇿 Petropavl
🕒 Local time
04:50 4:50 AM
05:50 5:50 AM
1 h ahead of Tbilisi
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
1,241,700 Capital
222,703
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

KZT, USD, EUR to GEL – Georgian Lari Converter

Georgian Lari exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 2.59 GEL (1 GEL = 0.387 USD). 1 EUR = 2.89 GEL (1 GEL = 0.346 EUR).

Kazakhstani Tenge exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 454 KZT (1,000 KZT = 2.2 USD). 1 EUR = 506 KZT (1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Tbilisi Petropavl 2,300 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Tbilisi
  • Petropavl

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 Petropavl: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, Tbilisi or Petropavl?
Petropavl wins on cost – living expenses run 35% lower than in Tbilisi. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Petropavl the obvious pick if budget is a priority.
Are salaries higher in Tbilisi or in Petropavl?
Average pay in Tbilisi is about 2.2 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.
How much does a 1-bedroom apartment cost in Tbilisi compared to Petropavl?
Rent for a central apartment: $695 in Tbilisi versus $344 in Petropavl. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
Are groceries more expensive in Tbilisi or in Petropavl?
Supermarket bills run roughly 8% higher in Tbilisi. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.
How much does it cost to live in Tbilisi compared to Petropavl?
All in, you’ll spend $1,269 per month in Tbilisi versus $820 in Petropavl – Petropavl is about 35% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.
Can you live on $800/month in Tbilisi or in Petropavl?
Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Petropavl is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.
Which city offers a better quality of life: Tbilisi or Petropavl?
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.
How safe is Tbilisi compared to Petropavl?
Safety-wise, Tbilisi and Petropavl are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.
Should I move to Tbilisi or to Petropavl?
It comes down to priorities – Petropavl wins on affordability, Tbilisi on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.

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