Cost of living comparison

Kazakhstan

compared to

Latvia

Riga vs. Almaty Cost of Living Summary

Riga is 14.6% more expensive than Almaty.

Restaurants: pay 16.8% more in Riga
Groceries: pay 7.8% more in Riga
Transportation: pay 81.1% more in Riga
Housing: pay 2.5% less in Riga
Childcare: pay 42.9% more in Riga
Entertainment and Sports: pay 29.5% more in Riga
Clothing: pay 17.4% less in Riga

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

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Riga vs. Almaty Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 16.8% more for restaurants

	Almaty	Riga
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$13.42 KZT6,082.92	$16.80 €14.95	+25.1%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$8.95 KZT4,055.28	$9.24 €8.22	+3.2%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.36 KZT615.44	$1.61 €1.44	+18.8%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.91 KZT410.90	$1.18 €1.05	+30.0%
Average			+16.8%

Almaty vs. Riga - Cost of restaurants

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pay 7.8% more for groceries

	Almaty	Riga
Bread 1 loaf	$0.94 KZT425.21	$1.43 €1.27	+52.3%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.46 KZT2,925.52	$5.22 €4.65	-19.1%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.48 KZT2,938.79	$4.41 €3.92	-32.0%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.45 KZT1,109.97	$3.76 €3.34	+53.4%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$3.09 KZT1,401.59	$3.91 €3.48	+26.4%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.86 KZT387.73	$1.00 €0.89	+16.4%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.06 KZT481.68	$0.83 €0.73	-22.3%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.37 KZT621.58	$1.13 €1.00	-17.7%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.34 KZT605.34	$1.40 €1.24	+4.5%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.35 KZT160.60	$0.40 €0.36	+13.2%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.26 KZT119.25	$0.42 €0.37	+59.8%
Average			+7.8%

Almaty vs. Riga - Cost of groceries

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pay 81.1% more for transportation

	Almaty	Riga
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$2.64 KZT1,198.22	$7.75 €6.90	+193.2%
Monthly public transit pass	$22.15 KZT10,036.82	$33.59 €29.90	+51.7%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$22,370.46 KZT10M	$27,308.11 €24,305.20	+22.1%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$6.71 KZT3,041.46	$11.42 €10.17	+70.2%
Average			+81.1%

Almaty vs. Riga - Cost of transportation

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pay 2.5% less for housing

	Almaty	Riga
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$18.11 KZT8,207.89	$20.41 €18.17	+12.7%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$802.28 KZT364K	$582.45 €518.40	-27.4%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$513.47 KZT233K	$385.02 €342.68	-25.0%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$69.56 KZT31,526.07	$286.52 €255.02	+311.9%
Average			-2.5%

Almaty vs. Riga - Cost of housing

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pay 42.9% more for childcare

	Almaty	Riga
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$456.34 KZT207K	$645.25 €574.29	+41.4%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$12,216.13 KZT6M	$17,635.84 €15,696.53	+44.4%
Average			+42.9%

Almaty vs. Riga - Cost of childcare

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pay 29.5% more for entertainment and sports

	Almaty	Riga
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.24 KZT1,470.04	$5.60 €4.98	+72.6%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.30 KZT1,497.69	$3.72 €3.31	+12.6%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.63 KZT1,191.24	$6.72 €5.98	+155.6%
Monthly membership at local gym	$70.49 KZT31,945.91	$49.91 €44.42	-29.2%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$6.71 KZT3,041.46	$10.75 €9.57	+60.2%
Average			+29.5%

Almaty vs. Riga - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 17.4% less for clothing

	Almaty	Riga
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$96.07 KZT43,537.96	$69.42 €61.79	-27.7%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$47.45 KZT21,502.09	$50.39 €44.85	+6.2%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$145.68 KZT66,021.45	$85.85 €76.41	-41.1%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$134.22 KZT60,829.24	$138.10 €122.91	+2.9%
Average			-17.4%

Almaty vs. Riga - 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 October 2026). How we calculate this

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