Cost of living comparison

Kazakhstan

compared to

Russia

Moscow vs. Almaty Cost of Living Summary

Moscow is 30.9% more expensive than Almaty.

Restaurants: pay 12.8% less in Moscow
Groceries: pay 3.9% less in Moscow
Transportation: pay 54.8% more in Moscow
Housing: pay 64.1% more in Moscow
Childcare: pay 95.8% more in Moscow
Entertainment and Sports: pay 8.0% more in Moscow
Clothing: pay 18.8% more in Moscow

The cost of childcare, housing, transportation, clothing, and entertainment and sports in Moscow are more expensive than in Almaty. Expenses including restaurants and groceries are lower in Moscow. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Moscow.

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Moscow vs. Almaty Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Moscow instead of Almaty, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 12.8% less for restaurants

	Almaty	Moscow
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$13.42 KZT6,078.37	$11.70 RUB939.35	-12.8%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$8.95 KZT4,052.25	$7.02 RUB563.61	-21.6%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.36 KZT614.98	$1.62 RUB129.90	+19.1%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.91 KZT410.59	$0.84 RUB67.12	-7.8%
Average			-12.8%

Almaty vs. Moscow - Cost of restaurants

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pay 3.9% less for groceries

	Almaty	Moscow
Bread 1 loaf	$0.94 KZT424.89	$1.02 RUB81.72	+8.5%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.46 KZT2,923.33	$7.14 RUB573.15	+10.6%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.48 KZT2,936.59	$4.61 RUB370.44	-28.9%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.45 KZT1,109.14	$1.86 RUB149.70	-23.9%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$3.09 KZT1,400.54	$2.98 RUB239.58	-3.5%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.86 KZT387.44	$0.93 RUB74.84	+8.9%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.06 KZT481.32	$0.81 RUB65.34	-23.4%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.37 KZT621.11	$0.90 RUB72.42	-34.2%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.34 KZT604.89	$1.79 RUB143.43	+33.7%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.35 KZT160.48	$0.41 RUB32.63	+14.7%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.26 KZT119.16	$0.32 RUB25.98	+22.9%
Average			-3.9%

Almaty vs. Moscow - Cost of groceries

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pay 54.8% more for transportation

	Almaty	Moscow
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$2.64 KZT1,197.33	$3.31 RUB265.91	+25.2%
Monthly public transit pass	$22.15 KZT10,029.31	$40.65 RUB3,264.22	+83.5%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$22,370.46 KZT10M	$38,895.19 RUB3M	+73.9%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$6.71 KZT3,039.19	$10.06 RUB807.84	+49.9%
Average			+54.8%

Almaty vs. Moscow - Cost of transportation

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pay 64.1% more for housing

	Almaty	Moscow
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$18.11 KZT8,201.75	$9.88 RUB793.40	-45.4%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$802.28 KZT363K	$1,454.91 RUB117K	+81.3%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$513.47 KZT233K	$804.40 RUB64,593.79	+56.7%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$69.56 KZT31,502.48	$142.85 RUB11,470.69	+105.3%
Average			+64.1%

Almaty vs. Moscow - Cost of housing

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pay 95.8% more for childcare

	Almaty	Moscow
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$456.34 KZT207K	$809.00 RUB64,963.13	+77.3%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$12,216.13 KZT6M	$26,421.03 RUB2M	+116.3%
Average			+95.8%

Almaty vs. Moscow - Cost of childcare

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pay 8.0% more for entertainment and sports

	Almaty	Moscow
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.24 KZT1,468.94	$4.68 RUB375.74	+44.3%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.30 KZT1,496.57	$3.70 RUB297.04	+11.9%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.63 KZT1,190.35	$3.45 RUB277.11	+31.3%
Monthly membership at local gym	$70.49 KZT31,922.00	$42.01 RUB3,373.59	-40.4%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$6.71 KZT3,039.19	$9.36 RUB751.48	+39.4%
Average			+8.0%

Almaty vs. Moscow - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 18.8% more for clothing

	Almaty	Moscow
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$96.07 KZT43,505.37	$108.46 RUB8,709.83	+12.9%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$47.45 KZT21,486.00	$62.47 RUB5,016.10	+31.7%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$145.68 KZT65,972.03	$145.30 RUB11,668.01	-0.3%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$134.22 KZT60,783.71	$180.19 RUB14,469.53	+34.2%
Average			+18.8%

Almaty vs. Moscow - Cost of clothing

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We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated November 2026). How we calculate this

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