Cost of living comparison

compared to

Saitama vs. Moscow Cost of Living Summary

Saitama is 24.7% more expensive than Moscow.

Restaurants
pay 27.3% less in Saitama
Groceries
pay 82.4% more in Saitama
Transportation
pay 2.2 times more in Saitama
Housing
pay 45.5% more in Saitama
Childcare
pay 15.0% less in Saitama
Entertainment and Sports
pay 20.9% more in Saitama
Clothing
pay 51.5% less in Saitama

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

Saitama vs. Moscow Cost Breakdown

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

pay 27.3% less for restaurants

 
Moscow
Saitama
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $11.93
RUB911.35
$5.68
¥882
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$5.97
RUB455.67
$4.68
¥727
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $1.38
RUB105.57
$0.74
¥114

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pay 82.4% more for groceries

 
Moscow
Saitama
Bread
1 loaf
$0.85
RUB64.62
$1.75
¥272
Local cheese (8 oz) $6.27
RUB478.82
$4.86
¥755
Milk (1 gallon) $4.62
RUB352.84
$5.51
¥857

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pay 2.2 times more for transportation

 
Moscow
Saitama
Gasoline (1 gallon) $2.84
RUB216.76
$4.43
¥688
Monthly public transit pass $36.64
RUB2,797.83
??
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $36,994.59
RUB2,825,171.82
$22,332.63
¥3,469,597

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pay 45.5% more for housing

 
Moscow
Saitama
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$7.82
RUB596.90
$32.74
¥5,087
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,253.04
RUB95,691.30
$417.65
¥64,886
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $709.24
RUB54,162.93
$245.02
¥38,067

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pay 15.0% less for childcare

 
Moscow
Saitama
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $656.36
RUB50,124.02
$271.75
¥42,219
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $14,285.88
RUB1,090,971.99
$18,376.64
¥2,854,995

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pay 20.9% more for entertainment and sports

 
Moscow
Saitama
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $4.18
RUB318.97
$2.00
¥311
Cappuccino in mid-range area $3.16
RUB241.06
$3.01
¥467
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$2.98
RUB227.84
$4.01
¥623

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pay 51.5% less for clothing

 
Moscow
Saitama
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$76.06
RUB5,808.16
$36.75
¥5,710
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$47.73
RUB3,645.38
$26.73
¥4,153
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$122.95
RUB9,389.02
$57.87
¥8,991

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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: December 2025
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