Cost of living comparison

Moldova

compared to

Bhutan

Thimphu vs. Chisinau Cost of Living Summary

Thimphu is 23.6% cheaper than Chisinau.

Restaurants: pay 58.7% less in Thimphu
Groceries: pay 6.3% less in Thimphu
Transportation: pay 69.0% more in Thimphu
Housing: pay 25.5% less in Thimphu
Childcare: pay 66.2% less in Thimphu
Entertainment and Sports: pay 1.1% more in Thimphu
Clothing: pay 78.3% less in Thimphu

The cost of transportation and entertainment and sports in Thimphu are more expensive than in Chisinau. Expenses including clothing, childcare, restaurants, housing, and groceries are lower in Thimphu.

Thimphu vs. Chisinau Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Thimphu instead of Chisinau, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 58.7% less for restaurants

	Chisinau	Thimphu
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$8.95 MDL154.46	$2.82 BTN267.70	-68.5%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$7.76 MDL133.87	$3.38 BTN321.24	-56.4%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.87 MDL15.07	$0.53 BTN50.33	-39.3%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.62 MDL10.75	$0.18 BTN17.40	-70.6%
Average			-58.7%

Chisinau vs. Thimphu - Cost of restaurants

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pay 6.3% less for groceries

	Chisinau	Thimphu
Bread 1 loaf	$0.58 MDL10.00	$0.89 BTN84.59	+53.7%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.29 MDL91.17	$1.61 BTN152.59	-69.6%
Milk (1 gallon)	$4.69 MDL80.96	$3.03 BTN287.80	-35.4%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.64 MDL45.50	$1.96 BTN185.89	-25.8%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.55 MDL43.94	$1.70 BTN161.26	-33.3%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.40 MDL6.96	$1.09 BTN103.62	+170.4%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.85 MDL14.62	$0.65 BTN62.17	-22.7%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.85 MDL14.72	$0.83 BTN78.52	-3.1%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.95 MDL16.39	$0.33 BTN31.17	-65.5%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.36 MDL6.18	$0.23 BTN21.45	-37.0%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.26 MDL4.54	$0.26 BTN24.69	-1.1%
Average			-6.3%

Chisinau vs. Thimphu - Cost of groceries

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pay 69.0% more for transportation

	Chisinau	Thimphu
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.36 MDL92.51	$3.03 BTN287.95	-43.5%
Monthly public transit pass	$13.97 MDL240.96	$4.01 BTN380.33	-71.3%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$31,402.03 MDL542K	??
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$4.48 MDL77.23	$18.89 BTN1,793.61	+321.8%
Average			+69.0%

Chisinau vs. Thimphu - Cost of transportation

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pay 25.5% less for housing

	Chisinau	Thimphu
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$10.50 MDL181.18	$26.44 BTN2,510.77	+151.7%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$675.28 MDL11,647.85	$122.58 BTN11,639.75	-81.8%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$492.96 MDL8,503.05	$71.54 BTN6,793.40	-85.5%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$130.19 MDL2,245.68	$17.80 BTN1,690.50	-86.3%
Average			-25.5%

Chisinau vs. Thimphu - Cost of housing

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pay 66.2% less for childcare

	Chisinau	Thimphu
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$407.06 MDL7,021.31	$235.40 BTN22,353.24	-42.2%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$6,644.14 MDL115K	$648.40 BTN61,571.80	-90.2%
Average			-66.2%

Chisinau vs. Thimphu - Cost of childcare

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pay 1.1% more for entertainment and sports

	Chisinau	Thimphu
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.79 MDL30.89	$2.82 BTN267.70	+57.4%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$1.85 MDL31.84	$1.40 BTN132.78	-24.3%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$3.34 MDL57.67	$3.66 BTN348.01	+9.6%
Monthly membership at local gym	$39.44 MDL680.35	$46.99 BTN4,461.72	+19.1%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$7.76 MDL133.87	$3.38 BTN321.24	-56.4%
Average			+1.1%

Chisinau vs. Thimphu - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 78.3% less for clothing

	Chisinau	Thimphu
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$66.56 MDL1,148.09	$9.02 BTN856.65	-86.4%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$53.80 MDL928.03	$11.28 BTN1,070.81	-79.0%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$115.49 MDL1,992.11	$31.01 BTN2,944.74	-73.1%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$122.07 MDL2,105.50	$31.01 BTN2,944.74	-74.6%
Average			-78.3%

Chisinau vs. Thimphu - Cost of clothing

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The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: June 2026

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