Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Thika and Belgrade

For one person, living is cheaper in Thika: $518 a month against $1,574 in Belgrade, rent and utilities included – about $12,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

25

Cost of Living Index in Thika
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Thika Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Belgrade
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Belgrade Living Index

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Thika

🇰🇪 Kenya

$518

/mo nomad

Belgrade

🇷🇸 Serbia

$1,574

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Thika and in Belgrade

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Thika and in Belgrade actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $518 per month in Thika vs $1,574 in Belgrade, rent included.

Thika $518
Belgrade $1,574

A couple spends around $883 per month in Thika vs $2,376 in Belgrade, rent included.

Thika $883
Belgrade $2,376

A family of three spends $1,249 per month in Thika vs $3,178 in Belgrade, rent included.

Thika $1,249
Belgrade $3,178

Thika is about 67% cheaper than Belgrade, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Thika sits 62% below the global median, while Belgrade is 16% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.52 KES 457

$13.44 RSD 1,401

-73.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.21 KES 4,435

$57.8 RSD 6,029

-40.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.43 KES 834

$13.23 RSD 1,380

-51.40%

Cappuccino

$1.95 KES 253

$3.10 RSD 323

-37.10%

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

$0.33 KES 42.15

$2.73 RSD 285

-87.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.61 KES 78.8

$2.31 RSD 241

-73.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.87 KES 243

$3.54 RSD 369

-47.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 KES 267

$4.13 RSD 430

-50.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.73 KES 95.1

$1.45 RSD 151

-49.66%

White Bread (500g)

$0.44 KES 56.8

$1.18 RSD 123

-62.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.16 KES 150

$2.61 RSD 272

-55.56%

Eggs

$1.35 KES 175

$2.78 RSD 289

-51.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.81 KES 1,402

$11.23 RSD 1,171

-3.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.58 KES 853

$6.72 RSD 701

-2.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$4.12 KES 534

$15.22 RSD 1,586

-72.93%

Apples (1kg)

$1.57 KES 204

$1.59 RSD 166

-1.26%

Banana (1kg)

$0.64 KES 82.5

$1.84 RSD 191

-65.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.80 KES 104

$1.83 RSD 191

-56.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.10 KES 143

$3.10 RSD 324

-64.52%

Potato (1kg)

$0.41 KES 52.9

$0.95 RSD 98.8

-56.84%

Onion (1kg)

$0.44 KES 56.8

$0.72 RSD 75.1

-38.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.69 KES 89.5

$0.75 RSD 77.8

-8.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.37 KES 48.31

$0.69 RSD 72.4

-46.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.71 KES 352

$4.76 RSD 496

-43.07%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.71 KES 740

$8.43 RSD 878

-32.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 KES 230

$0.94 RSD 97.8

89.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 KES 246

$1.53 RSD 159

24.18%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.56 KES 202

$2.99 RSD 312

-47.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.96 KES 125

$1.02 RSD 106

-5.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.82 KES 366

$17.54 RSD 1,828

-83.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.41 KES 183

$1.85 RSD 193

-23.78%

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

$21.7K KES 2.8M

$30.5K RSD 3.2M

-28.88%

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

$20.0K KES 2.6M

$23.7K RSD 2.5M

-15.68%

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

$34.37 KES 4,456

$219 RSD 22.9K

-84.33%

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

$14.94 KES 1,936

$24.82 RSD 2,588

-39.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.20 KES 4,564

$35.79 RSD 3,731

-1.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.96 KES 6,088

$41.37 RSD 4,313

13.51%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.96 RSD 2,394

Cinema Ticket

$7.63 KES 990

$8.32 RSD 867

-8.29%

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

$53.7 KES 6,956

$423 RSD 44.1K

-87.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,537 KES 458.6K

$11.4K RSD 1.2M

-69.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.81 KES 3,605

$111 RSD 11.6K

-75.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.36 KES 3,806

$47.48 RSD 4,950

-38.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.9 KES 9,061

$116 RSD 12.1K

-39.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$19.37 KES 2,512

$158 RSD 16.4K

-87.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$98.7 KES 12.8K

$823 RSD 85.8K

-88.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$57.5 KES 7,450

$560 RSD 58.3K

-89.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$273 KES 35.3K

$1,485 RSD 154.8K

-81.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$178 KES 23.0K

$969 RSD 101.1K

-81.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$610 KES 79.1K

$5,489 RSD 572.2K

-88.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,193 RSD 332.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,214 RSD 126.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

14.71

4.61

219.09%

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

Last update for Thika: October 19, 2026

Last update for Belgrade: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Thika

$153 29.6%

Belgrade

$243 15.4% 58.4% $90

Eating Out

Thika

$88 17%

Belgrade

$231 14.7% 162% $142

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Thika

$85 16.3%

Belgrade

$280 17.8% 231% $195

Clothing & Footwear

Thika

$66 12.7%

Belgrade

$195 12.4% 195% $129

Sport & Entertainment

Thika

$62 12%

Belgrade

$58 3.7% 6.8% $4.2

Accommodation & Living

Thika

$57 11.1%

Belgrade

$560 35.6% 874% $502

Getting Around

Thika

$6.4 * 1.2%

Belgrade

$8.1 * 0.5% 27% $1.7

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $98.7 in Thika versus $823 in Belgrade. 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 $34.00 in Thika versus $58.0 in Belgrade. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $153 vs $243 – making Thika the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇰🇪 Thika

🇷🇸 Belgrade

🕒 Local time

01:55 1:55 AM

00:55 12:55 AM

1 h behind Thika

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

83,000

1,197,714 Capital

💱 Currency

Kenyan Shilling KES Sh

Serbian Dinar RSD din

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 KES = 7.71 USD

1,000 KES = 6.86 EUR

1,000 RSD = 9.59 USD

1,000 RSD = 8.53 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RSD, USD, EUR to KES – Kenyan Shilling Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇪 Kenyan Shilling (Sh)

Kenyan Shilling exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 130 KES (1,000 KES = 7.71 USD). 1 EUR = 146 KES (1,000 KES = 6.86 EUR).

Serbian Dinar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 104 RSD (1,000 RSD = 9.59 USD). 1 EUR = 117 RSD (1,000 RSD = 8.53 EUR).

USD to KES in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Thika Belgrade 5,360 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Thika
Belgrade

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

Thika vs Belgrade: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $518 in Thika, $1,574 in Belgrade – roughly 204% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $777 per month in Thika and $2,360 in Belgrade. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

A mid-range dinner for two costs $34.00 in Thika and $58.0 in Belgrade. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 58% more in Belgrade, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Thika, where all-in costs run around $518, than in Belgrade at $1,574. In Thika it covers expenses comfortably, while in Belgrade it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Thika – 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 Thika. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Belgrade makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.