Cost of living comparison
Male vs. Bishkek Cost of Living Summary
Male is 57.9% more expensive than Bishkek.
- Restaurants
-
pay 18.6% more in Male
- Groceries
-
pay 2.1 times more in Male
- Transportation
-
pay 50.4% more in Male
- Housing
-
pay 83.9% more in Male
- Childcare
-
pay 43.2% less in Male
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 2.1 times more in Male
- Clothing
-
pay 17.6% less in Male
The cost of groceries, entertainment and sports, housing, transportation, and restaurants in Male are more expensive than in Bishkek. Expenses including childcare and clothing are lower in Male. Notably, groceries, entertainment and sports, and housing are significantly more expensive in Male.
Male vs. Bishkek Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Male instead of Bishkek, you would:
pay 18.6% more for restaurants
|
Bishkek
|
Male
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$6.86
KGS600.00
|
$6.00
MVR92.74
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$5.83
KGS510.00
|
$9.73
MVR150.39
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$0.74
KGS65.00
|
$1.63
MVR25.12
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.39
KGS33.88
|
$0.30
MVR4.59
|
|
pay 2.1 times more for groceries
|
Bishkek
|
Male
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$0.40
KGS34.67
|
$1.65
MVR25.57
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$3.82
KGS334.23
|
$5.34
MVR82.43
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.81
KGS333.12
|
$7.69
MVR118.80
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$1.73
KGS151.13
|
$1.92
MVR29.70
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.08
KGS181.82
|
$2.77
MVR42.73
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$0.63
KGS54.76
|
$1.80
MVR27.83
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.84
KGS73.57
|
$1.39
MVR21.40
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.93
KGS81.76
|
$1.85
MVR28.65
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.72
KGS62.84
|
$1.22
MVR18.84
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.27
KGS23.90
|
$0.93
MVR14.40
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.22
KGS19.28
|
$0.86
MVR13.30
|
|
pay 50.4% more for transportation
|
Bishkek
|
Male
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.74
KGS326.92
|
$3.81
MVR58.81
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$11.66
KGS1,020.00
|
$30.82
MVR476.23
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$29,991.94
KGS3M
|
$32,446.46
MVR501K
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$4.52
KGS395.00
|
$17.52
MVR270.70
|
|
pay 83.9% more for housing
|
Bishkek
|
Male
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$12.00
KGS1,049.17
|
$73.00
MVR1,127.92
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$603.19
KGS52,748.14
|
$951.14
MVR14,695.19
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$416.93
KGS36,460.04
|
$699.92
MVR10,813.71
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$38.42
KGS3,359.93
|
$90.98
MVR1,405.60
|
|
pay 43.2% less for childcare
|
Bishkek
|
Male
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$219.56
KGS19,200.04
|
$184.98
MVR2,857.90
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$7,837.88
KGS685K
|
$3,004.83
MVR46,424.59
|
|
pay 2.1 times more for entertainment and sports
|
Bishkek
|
Male
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.37
KGS120.00
|
$4.87
MVR75.19
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.43
KGS212.35
|
$3.55
MVR54.84
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$2.06
KGS180.00
|
$14.93
MVR230.60
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$54.84
KGS4,795.47
|
$70.81
MVR1,093.98
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$5.72
KGS500.00
|
$9.73
MVR150.39
|
|
pay 17.6% less for clothing
|
Bishkek
|
Male
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$55.40
KGS4,844.46
|
$39.51
MVR610.48
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$43.07
KGS3,766.68
|
$49.64
MVR766.88
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$90.57
KGS7,920.02
|
$87.13
MVR1,346.11
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$90.22
KGS7,890.02
|
$52.52
MVR811.39
|
|
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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