Cost of living comparison
compared to
Helsinki vs. Riga Cost of Living Summary
Helsinki is 38.2% more expensive than Riga.
- Restaurants
-
pay 78.4% more in Helsinki
- Groceries
-
pay 27.9% more in Helsinki
- Transportation
-
pay 67.8% more in Helsinki
- Housing
-
pay 45.5% more in Helsinki
- Childcare
-
pay 19.9% less in Helsinki
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 55.7% more in Helsinki
- Clothing
-
pay 12.3% more in Helsinki
The cost of restaurants, transportation, entertainment and sports, housing, groceries, and clothing in Helsinki are more expensive than in Riga. Notably, restaurants is significantly more expensive in Helsinki.
Helsinki vs. Riga Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Helsinki instead of Riga, you would:
pay 78.4% more for restaurants
|
Riga
|
Helsinki
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.52
€14.87
|
$17.52
€14.87
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$8.76
€7.44
|
$12.85
€10.90
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.87
€1.59
|
$3.33
€2.82
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.30
€1.11
|
$2.74
€2.33
|
|
Riga vs. Helsinki - Cost of restaurants
pay 27.9% more for groceries
|
Riga
|
Helsinki
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.73
€1.47
|
$2.59
€2.20
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.21
€5.27
|
$5.00
€4.25
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.05
€4.28
|
$5.19
€4.41
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.17
€2.69
|
$3.67
€3.11
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.57
€3.03
|
$6.74
€5.72
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$0.83
€0.70
|
$1.28
€1.09
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.86
€0.73
|
$1.00
€0.85
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.17
€1.00
|
$1.24
€1.05
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.56
€1.32
|
$2.06
€1.75
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.49
€0.41
|
$0.56
€0.48
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.55
€0.46
|
$0.79
€0.67
|
|
Riga vs. Helsinki - Cost of groceries
pay 67.8% more for transportation
|
Riga
|
Helsinki
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.97
€5.92
|
$7.91
€6.72
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$35.04
€29.74
|
$84.09
€71.38
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$30,747.33
€26,097.96
|
$37,056.70
€31,453.28
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$10.16
€8.62
|
$20.03
€17.00
|
|
Riga vs. Helsinki - Cost of transportation
pay 45.5% more for housing
|
Riga
|
Helsinki
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$20.30
€17.23
|
$25.95
€22.02
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$611.66
€519.17
|
$1,216.29
€1,032.38
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$425.09
€360.81
|
$911.76
€773.89
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$263.02
€223.25
|
$107.39
€91.16
|
|
Riga vs. Helsinki - Cost of housing
pay 19.9% less for childcare
|
Riga
|
Helsinki
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$541.40
€459.53
|
$437.97
€371.75
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$16,927.67
€14,368.01
|
$13,422.45
€11,392.81
|
|
Riga vs. Helsinki - Cost of childcare
pay 55.7% more for entertainment and sports
|
Riga
|
Helsinki
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.84
€4.96
|
$8.47
€7.19
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.56
€3.02
|
$5.20
€4.41
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$5.84
€4.96
|
$12.96
€11.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$52.50
€44.56
|
$50.02
€42.46
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.68
€9.91
|
$19.85
€16.85
|
|
Riga vs. Helsinki - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 12.3% more for clothing
|
Riga
|
Helsinki
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$86.14
€73.11
|
$107.25
€91.03
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$45.66
€38.75
|
$43.83
€37.20
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$85.70
€72.74
|
$109.22
€92.71
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$136.33
€115.72
|
$138.09
€117.21
|
|
Riga vs. Helsinki - Cost of clothing
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: February 2026
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