Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tbilisi and Shiso

For one person, living is cheaper in Shiso: $1,048 a month against $1,270 in Tbilisi, rent and utilities included – about $2,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Tbilisi outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

61

Cost of Living Index in Tbilisi
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Tbilisi Living Index
51

Cost of Living Index in Shiso
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Shiso Living Index

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Tbilisi

🇬🇪 Georgia

$1,270

/mo nomad

Shiso

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,048

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Tbilisi and in Shiso

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

A single person spends $1,270 per month in Tbilisi vs $1,048 in Shiso, rent included.

Tbilisi $1,270
Shiso $1,048

A couple spends around $2,008 per month in Tbilisi vs $1,913 in Shiso, rent included.

Tbilisi $2,008
Shiso $1,913

A family of three spends $2,745 per month in Tbilisi vs $2,777 in Shiso, rent included.

Tbilisi $2,745
Shiso $2,777

Tbilisi costs about 21% more than Shiso, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Tbilisi and Shiso are more affordable than the global median – Tbilisi 6% lower, Shiso 23% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.51 ₾29.79

$7.87 ¥1,244

46.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$38.27 ₾99.1

$68.0 ¥10.7K

-43.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.80 ₾25.36

$6.29 ¥993

55.80%

Cappuccino

$3.55 ₾9.19

$3.69 ¥584

-3.79%

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

$1.06 ₾2.74

$0.83 ¥132

27.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 ₾1.60

$0.72 ¥114

-13.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.76 ₾7.16

$2.58 ¥407

6.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.00 ₾7.77

$3.15 ¥497

-4.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.16 ₾5.59

$1.52 ¥240

42.11%

White Bread (500g)

$0.76 ₾1.96

$3.00 ¥474

-74.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.74 ₾4.51

$4.87 ¥769

-64.27%

Eggs

$2.79 ₾7.21

$2.19 ¥346

27.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.20 ₾23.83

$10.19 ¥1,609

-9.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.53 ₾16.89

$6.48 ¥1,023

0.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.81 ₾33.17

$27.01 ¥4,267

-52.57%

Apples (1kg)

$1.67 ₾4.31

$5.33 ¥842

-68.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.85 ₾4.79

$2.59 ¥409

-28.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.98 ₾5.13

$4.06 ¥641

-51.23%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.51 ₾6.49

$5.97 ¥943

-57.96%

Potato (1kg)

$0.87 ₾2.26

$4.29 ¥678

-79.72%

Onion (1kg)

$0.73 ₾1.89

$2.60 ¥411

-71.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.42 ₾3.67

$1.38 ¥218

2.90%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 ₾1.88

$0.83 ¥130

-13.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.38 ₾8.74

$4.11 ¥650

-17.76%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.84 ₾20.31

$7.66 ¥1,211

2.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.62 ₾4.19

$1.92 ¥303

-15.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 ₾6.15

$2.22 ¥351

7.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.37 ₾0.96

$1.36 ¥216

-72.79%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$15.52 ₾40.16

$33.90 ¥5,356

-54.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.14 ₾2.94

$3.57 ¥564

-68.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.79 ₾2.05

$2.88 ¥455

-72.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.57 ₾29.96

$20.87 ¥3,297

-44.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 ₾3.87

$1.28 ¥202

17.19%

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

$24.6K ₾63.7K

$22.9K ¥3.6M

7.55%

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

$22.4K ₾57.9K

$17.0K ¥2.7M

31.72%

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

$88.3 ₾228

$144 ¥22.8K

-38.88%

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

$13.08 ₾33.86

$23.93 ¥3,781

-45.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.53 ₾50.6

$13.58 ¥2,146

43.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.2 ₾166

$36.74 ¥5,805

74.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.18 ₾49.66

$13.71 ¥2,167

39.90%

Cinema Ticket

$6.99 ₾18.10

$4.59 ¥726

52.29%

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

$373 ₾966

$283 ¥44.8K

31.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.7K ₾27.7K

$13.6K ¥2.1M

-21.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$103 ₾266

$10.06 ¥1,589

920.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.48 ₾105

$29.87 ¥4,720

35.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 ₾301

$33.76 ¥5,334

244.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 ₾316

$99.7 ¥15.7K

22.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$677 ₾1,753

$470 ¥74.3K

43.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$454 ₾1,176

$165 ¥26.0K

175.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,277 ₾3,305

$862 ¥136.1K

48.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$890 ₾2,304

$659 ¥104.2K

34.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 ₾6,238

$4,229 ¥668.1K

-43.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,418 ₾3,670

$1,769 ¥279.5K

-19.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$703 ₾1,819

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.62

1.78

608.99%

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

Last update for Tbilisi: October 17, 2026

Last update for Shiso: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Tbilisi

$454 35.8%

Shiso

$165 15.7% 63.7% $290

Groceries & Markets

Tbilisi

$233 18.3%

Shiso

$368 35.2% 58.3% $136

Eating Out

Tbilisi

$191 15%

Shiso

$152 14.5% 20.5% $39

Clothing & Footwear

Tbilisi

$172 13.5%

Shiso

$78 7.4% 54.5% $94

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tbilisi

$121 9.5%

Shiso

$182 17.4% 50.5% $61

Sport & Entertainment

Tbilisi

$78 6.2%

Shiso

$46 4.4% 41.2% $32

Getting Around

Tbilisi

$22 1.7%

Shiso

$57 5.5% 159% $35

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $677 in Tbilisi versus $470 in Shiso. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $38.00 in Tbilisi versus $68.0 in Shiso. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $233 vs $368 – making Tbilisi the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇪 Tbilisi

🇯🇵 Shiso

🕒 Local time

02:02 2:02 AM

07:02 7:02 AM

5 h ahead of Tbilisi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,241,700 Capital

36,610

💱 Currency

Georgian Lari GEL ₾

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 GEL = 0.386 USD

1 GEL = 0.344 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, 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).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

USD to GEL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Tbilisi Shiso 7,490 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Tbilisi
Shiso

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 Shiso: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Tbilisi is pricier by about 21%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,906 per month in Tbilisi and $1,572 in Shiso. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Shiso, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,270 in Tbilisi and $1,048 in Shiso. That's a gap of about 21%.

Public transport costs about 118% less in Shiso. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Shiso, where all-in costs run around $1,048, than in Tbilisi at $1,270. In Shiso it covers expenses comfortably, while in Tbilisi it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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