Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tbilisi and Tamarindo

For one person, living is cheaper in Tbilisi: $1,269 a month against $2,114 in Tamarindo, rent and utilities included – about $10,100 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
102

Cost of Living Index in Tamarindo
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Tamarindo Living Index

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Tbilisi

🇬🇪 Georgia

$1,269

/mo nomad

Tamarindo

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$2,114

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Tbilisi and in Tamarindo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,269 in Tbilisi versus $2,114 in Tamarindo.

Tbilisi $1,269
Tamarindo $2,114

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,016 in Tbilisi versus $3,090 in Tamarindo.

Tbilisi $2,016
Tamarindo $3,090

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,763 in Tbilisi versus $4,066 in Tamarindo.

Tbilisi $2,763
Tamarindo $4,066

Living in Tbilisi costs roughly 40% less than in Tamarindo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Tbilisi is 7% below, Tamarindo is 55% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.63 ₾30.07

$12.37 ₡5,583

-5.98%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.83 ₾97.8

$62.0 ₡28.0K

-38.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.66 ₾24.98

$11.80 ₡5,329

-18.14%

Cappuccino

$3.57 ₾9.24

$4.42 ₡1,995

-19.23%

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

$1.08 ₾2.78

$2.72 ₡1,228

-60.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₾1.45

$1.84 ₡833

-69.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.62 ₾6.78

$3.38 ₡1,526

-22.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.04 ₾7.85

$4.41 ₡1,992

-31.07%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.17 ₾5.60

$2.31 ₡1,045

-6.06%

White Bread (500g)

$0.80 ₾2.06

$3.17 ₡1,431

-74.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.74 ₾4.51

$2.52 ₡1,138

-30.95%

Eggs

$2.83 ₾7.31

$3.55 ₡1,604

-20.28%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.31 ₾24.07

$10.58 ₡4,775

-12.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.52 ₾16.85

$10.30 ₡4,650

-36.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.95 ₾33.50

$14.15 ₡6,388

-8.48%

Apples (1kg)

$1.68 ₾4.33

$5.22 ₡2,356

-67.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.85 ₾4.79

$1.66 ₡748

11.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.97 ₾5.10

$3.56 ₡1,609

-44.66%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.42 ₾6.25

$3.83 ₡1,728

-36.81%

Potato (1kg)

$0.82 ₾2.11

$2.61 ₡1,180

-68.58%

Onion (1kg)

$0.74 ₾1.91

$3.56 ₡1,608

-79.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.34 ₾3.47

$1.07 ₡483

25.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 ₾2.00

$3.07 ₡1,386

-74.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.57 ₾9.24

$5.11 ₡2,306

-30.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.67 ₾19.83

$13.35 ₡6,025

-42.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 ₾4.39

$2.89 ₡1,305

-41.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 ₾6.21

$2.97 ₡1,341

-19.19%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.40 ₾1.05

$2.11 ₡954

-81.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$15.23 ₾39.38

$84.1 ₡38.0K

-81.88%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.14 ₾2.95

$2.40 ₡1,083

-52.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 ₾2.02

$1.63 ₡737

-52.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.83 ₾30.58

$6.69 ₡3,021

76.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ₾3.75

$1.51 ₡681

-3.97%

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

$24.6K ₾63.6K

$34.5K ₡15.6M

-28.66%

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

$22.3K ₾57.8K

$36.5K ₡16.5M

-38.80%

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

$88.8 ₾230

$96.4 ₡43.5K

-7.86%

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

$13.12 ₾33.93

$30.50 ₡13.8K

-56.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.67 ₾50.9

$59.3 ₡26.8K

-66.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.1 ₾166

$102 ₡45.9K

-36.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.04 ₾49.24

$26.43 ₡11.9K

-27.96%

Cinema Ticket

$7.12 ₾18.42

$7.73 ₡3,488

-7.89%

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

$375 ₾971

$572 ₡258.4K

-34.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.5K ₾27.1K

$9,152 ₡4.1M

14.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 ₾268

$71.8 ₡32.4K

44.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.26 ₾102

$26.50 ₡12.0K

48.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$117 ₾303

$118 ₡53.4K

-0.87%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 ₾315

$134 ₡60.4K

-8.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$695 ₾1,798

$1,915 ₡864.6K

-63.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$451 ₾1,167

$941 ₡424.7K

-52.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 ₾3,504

$2,713 ₡1.2M

-50.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$906 ₾2,343

$1,396 ₡630.2K

-35.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,295 ₾5,934

$5,329 ₡2.4M

-56.94%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,345 ₾3,478

$3,241 ₡1.5M

-58.51%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$664 ₾1,718

$950 ₡428.9K

-30.09%

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 27, 2026

Last update for Tamarindo: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Tbilisi

$451 35.6%

Tamarindo

$941 44.5% 109% $490

Groceries & Markets

Tbilisi

$234 18.4%

Tamarindo

$377 17.9% 61.3% $143

Eating Out

Tbilisi

$191 15%

Tamarindo

$231 11% 21.4% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Tbilisi

$172 13.5%

Tamarindo

$158 7.5% 8.3% $14

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tbilisi

$122 9.6%

Tamarindo

$186 8.8% 53.1% $65

Sport & Entertainment

Tbilisi

$78 6.2%

Tamarindo

$117 5.5% 49.6% $39

Getting Around

Tbilisi

$22 1.7%

Tamarindo

$103 4.9% 371% $81

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $695 in Tbilisi and $1,915 in Tamarindo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Tamarindo pays 43% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $38 in Tbilisi vs $62 in Tamarindo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $234 vs $377 per month, with Tbilisi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇪 Tbilisi

🇨🇷 Tamarindo

🕒 Local time

11:01 11:01 AM

01:01 1:01 AM

10 h behind Tbilisi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,241,700 Capital

6,000

💱 Currency

Georgian Lari GEL ₾

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 GEL = 0.387 USD

1 GEL = 0.346 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 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 November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 2.59 GEL (1 GEL = 0.387 USD). 1 EUR = 2.89 GEL (1 GEL = 0.346 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to GEL in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Tbilisi Tamarindo 12,350 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Tbilisi
Tamarindo

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 Tamarindo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,269 in Tbilisi and $2,114 in Tamarindo, so Tbilisi is about 40% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 30% lower in Tbilisi. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $695 in Tbilisi versus $1,915 in Tamarindo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 61% higher in Tamarindo. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Tbilisi – a meal for two runs $38 versus $62 in Tamarindo. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,269 in Tbilisi versus $2,114 in Tamarindo, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Tbilisi but tight or insufficient in Tamarindo. The gap between the two cities makes Tbilisi 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.

Expats usually find Tbilisi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 40% less than in Tamarindo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.