Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tbilisi and Santa Barbara

For one person, living is cheaper in Tbilisi: $1,266 a month against $1,749 in Santa Barbara, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Tbilisi
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Tbilisi Living Index
84

Cost of Living Index in Santa Barbara
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Santa Barbara Living Index

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Tbilisi

🇬🇪 Georgia

$1,266

/mo nomad

Santa Barbara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,749

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Tbilisi and in Santa Barbara

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,266 in Tbilisi versus $1,749 in Santa Barbara.

Tbilisi $1,266
Santa Barbara $1,749

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,007 in Tbilisi versus $2,831 in Santa Barbara.

Tbilisi $2,007
Santa Barbara $2,831

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,749 in Tbilisi versus $3,912 in Santa Barbara.

Tbilisi $2,749
Santa Barbara $3,912

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

The two cities straddle the global median: Tbilisi is 6% below, Santa Barbara is 30% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.34 ₾29.35

$12.06 ₡5,409

-5.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.05 ₾101

$62.5 ₡28.0K

-37.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.63 ₾24.92

$11.48 ₡5,149

-16.11%

Cappuccino

$3.46 ₾8.95

$4.55 ₡2,039

-23.96%

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

$1.09 ₾2.82

$2.71 ₡1,217

-59.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.63 ₾1.62

$1.85 ₡830

-65.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.77 ₾7.17

$3.28 ₡1,471

-15.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.10 ₾8.04

$4.41 ₡1,977

-29.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.25 ₾5.81

$2.41 ₡1,083

-6.64%

White Bread (500g)

$0.80 ₾2.07

$3.19 ₡1,431

-74.92%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.76 ₾4.55

$2.49 ₡1,115

-29.32%

Eggs

$2.75 ₾7.11

$3.48 ₡1,559

-20.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.39 ₾24.32

$10.78 ₡4,835

-12.89%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.66 ₾17.23

$10.46 ₡4,693

-36.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.92 ₾33.45

$14.28 ₡6,406

-9.52%

Apples (1kg)

$1.67 ₾4.31

$5.00 ₡2,244

-66.60%

Banana (1kg)

$1.80 ₾4.65

$1.60 ₡717

12.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.92 ₾4.97

$4.63 ₡2,076

-58.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.41 ₾6.24

$3.79 ₡1,701

-36.41%

Potato (1kg)

$0.86 ₾2.23

$3.71 ₡1,665

-76.82%

Onion (1kg)

$0.69 ₾1.80

$3.57 ₡1,602

-80.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.40 ₾3.62

$1.13 ₡505

23.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.71 ₾1.85

$3.24 ₡1,454

-78.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.51 ₾9.08

$5.76 ₡2,582

-39.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.61 ₾19.69

$20.12 ₡9,025

-62.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 ₾4.21

$2.89 ₡1,297

-43.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.31 ₾5.98

$3.60 ₡1,613

-35.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.37 ₾0.96

$1.39 ₡624

-73.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$15.67 ₾40.57

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.14 ₾2.95

$2.40 ₡1,075

-52.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.79 ₾2.05

$1.61 ₡721

-50.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.86 ₾30.70

$8.85 ₡3,968

34.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 ₾3.62

$1.49 ₡667

-6.04%

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

$24.8K ₾64.2K

$22.0K ₡9.9M

12.80%

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

$21.9K ₾56.6K

$34.9K ₡15.6M

-37.33%

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

$89.1 ₾231

$94.0 ₡42.1K

-5.14%

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

$13.21 ₾34.19

$34.95 ₡15.7K

-62.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.76 ₾51.1

$58.1 ₡26.1K

-65.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.9 ₾168

$83.6 ₡37.5K

-22.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.02 ₾49.24

Cinema Ticket

$6.57 ₾17.02

$7.53 ₡3,377

-12.75%

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

$377 ₾975

$965 ₡432.9K

-60.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.8K ₾27.9K

$17.0K ₡7.6M

-36.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 ₾265

$70.1 ₡31.5K

45.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.70 ₾103

$54.8 ₡24.6K

-27.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 ₾305

$127 ₡56.8K

-6.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 ₾320

$130 ₡58.4K

-5.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$666 ₾1,724

$742 ₡332.8K

-10.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$449 ₾1,163

$644 ₡288.7K

-30.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,284 ₾3,324

$1,915 ₡858.6K

-32.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$890 ₾2,303

$1,399 ₡627.4K

-36.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,425 ₾6,276

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,380 ₾3,573

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$680 ₾1,760

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.62

8.62

46.40%

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

Last update for Tbilisi: October 12, 2026

Last update for Santa Barbara: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Tbilisi

$449 35.5%

Santa Barbara

$644 36.8% 43.3% $195

Groceries & Markets

Tbilisi

$234 18.5%

Santa Barbara

$403 23% 72.5% $169

Eating Out

Tbilisi

$188 14.9%

Santa Barbara

$229 13.1% 21.8% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Tbilisi

$172 13.6%

Santa Barbara

$172 9.8% 0.4% $0.6

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tbilisi

$122 9.7%

Santa Barbara

$187 10.7% 53.2% $65

Sport & Entertainment

Tbilisi

$78 6.2%

Santa Barbara

$99 5.6% 26.4% $21

Getting Around

Tbilisi

$22 1.8%

Santa Barbara

$16 * 0.9% 28.1% $6.3

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 $666 in Tbilisi and $742 in Santa Barbara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $39.00 in Tbilisi vs $62.0 in Santa Barbara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $234 vs $403 per month, with Tbilisi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇪 Tbilisi

🇨🇷 Santa Barbara

🕒 Local time

12:42 12:42 PM

02:42 2:42 AM

10 h behind Tbilisi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,241,700 Capital

8,000

💱 Currency

Georgian Lari GEL ₾

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 GEL = 0.386 USD

1 GEL = 0.344 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to GEL – Georgian Lari Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇪 Georgian Lari (₾)

Georgian Lari exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 2.59 GEL (1 GEL = 0.386 USD). 1 EUR = 2.91 GEL (1 GEL = 0.344 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to GEL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Tbilisi Santa Barbara 12,260 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Tbilisi
Santa Barbara

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 Santa Barbara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Tbilisi is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 38% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,899 in Tbilisi and $2,624 in Santa Barbara to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $666 in Tbilisi versus $742 in Santa Barbara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 72% higher in Santa Barbara. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,266 per month in Tbilisi versus $1,749 in Santa Barbara – a 38% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,266 in Tbilisi versus $1,749 in Santa Barbara, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Tbilisi but tight or insufficient in Santa Barbara. The gap between the two cities makes Tbilisi the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Tbilisi is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Santa Barbara, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Tbilisi and Santa Barbara are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Tbilisi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 38% less than in Santa Barbara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.