Cost of living comparison

Afghanistan

compared to

Bhutan

Thimphu vs. Kabul Cost of Living Summary

Thimphu is 6.3% more expensive than Kabul.

Restaurants: pay 1.2% more in Thimphu
Groceries: pay 49.8% more in Thimphu
Transportation: pay 18.6% less in Thimphu
Housing: pay 16.9% less in Thimphu
Childcare: pay 9.9% more in Thimphu
Entertainment and Sports: pay 70.5% more in Thimphu
Clothing: pay 47.7% more in Thimphu

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

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Thimphu vs. Kabul Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 1.2% more for restaurants

	Kabul	Thimphu
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$2.77 AFN180	$2.58 BTN245.70	-6.7%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$4.62 AFN300	$4.91 BTN466.83	+6.4%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.47 AFN31	$0.50 BTN47.50	+5.4%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.15 AFN10	$0.18 BTN17.20	+17.6%
Average			+1.2%

Kabul vs. Thimphu - Cost of restaurants

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pay 49.8% more for groceries

	Kabul	Thimphu
Bread 1 loaf	$0.24 AFN16	$1.07 BTN101.96	+347.1%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$2.19 AFN142	$1.88 BTN178.54	-14.3%
Milk (1 gallon)	$3.21 AFN208	$3.03 BTN288.32	-5.4%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.55 AFN101	$1.88 BTN178.87	+21.2%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$1.81 AFN118	$1.79 BTN170.51	-1.1%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.32 AFN21	$1.15 BTN109.22	+259.3%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.40 AFN26	$0.69 BTN65.75	+74.9%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.42 AFN27	$0.73 BTN69.10	+73.6%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.24 AFN16	$0.33 BTN31.76	+40.2%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.28 AFN18	$0.26 BTN24.52	-7.6%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.22 AFN15	$0.31 BTN29.53	+39.1%
Average			+49.8%

Kabul vs. Thimphu - Cost of groceries

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pay 18.6% less for transportation

	Kabul	Thimphu
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.19 AFN272	$2.79 BTN264.82	-33.5%
Monthly public transit pass	$20.77 AFN1,350	$5.17 BTN491.40	-75.1%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$8,461.54 AFN550K	$16,591.53 BTN2M	+96.1%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$5.77 AFN375	$13.18 BTN1,253.06	+128.5%
Average			-18.6%

Kabul vs. Thimphu - Cost of transportation

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pay 16.9% less for housing

	Kabul	Thimphu
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$96.92 AFN6,300	$24.17 BTN2,297.69	-75.1%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$123.08 AFN8,000	$127.00 BTN12,071.65	+3.2%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$108.80 AFN7,072	$86.02 BTN8,176.19	-20.9%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$32.46 AFN2,110	$25.81 BTN2,452.87	-20.5%
Average			-16.9%

Kabul vs. Thimphu - Cost of housing

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pay 9.9% more for childcare

	Kabul	Thimphu
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$20.26 AFN1,317	$44.98 BTN4,275.09	+122.0%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$1,046.15 AFN68,000	$568.68 BTN54,053.67	-45.6%
Average			+9.9%

Kabul vs. Thimphu - Cost of childcare

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pay 70.5% more for entertainment and sports

	Kabul	Thimphu
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$2.31 AFN150	$2.58 BTN245.70	+12.0%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$1.10 AFN71	$1.28 BTN121.21	+16.0%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.38 AFN155	$3.88 BTN368.55	+62.6%
Monthly membership at local gym	$11.08 AFN720	$46.53 BTN4,422.57	+320.1%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$2.31 AFN150	$3.10 BTN294.84	+34.4%
Average			+70.5%

Kabul vs. Thimphu - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 47.7% more for clothing

	Kabul	Thimphu
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$10.64 AFN692	$49.97 BTN4,750.10	+369.6%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$16.00 AFN1,040	$24.99 BTN2,375.05	+56.2%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$57.69 AFN3,750	$67.21 BTN6,388.16	+16.5%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$25.08 AFN1,630	$13.96 BTN1,326.77	-44.3%
Average			+47.7%

Kabul vs. Thimphu - 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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