Cost of living comparison

Laos

compared to

Kyrgyzstan

Bishkek vs. Vientiane Cost of Living Summary

Bishkek is 15.2% cheaper than Vientiane.

Restaurants: pay 58.8% more in Bishkek
Groceries: pay 38.5% less in Bishkek
Transportation: pay 41.9% less in Bishkek
Housing: pay 10.7% less in Bishkek
Childcare: pay 50.2% less in Bishkek
Entertainment and Sports: pay 20.7% more in Bishkek
Clothing: pay 47.1% more in Bishkek

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

Planning a move to Kyrgyzstan? Get up to 5 free, no-obligation quotes from vetted international movers. Get free quotes →

Bishkek vs. Vientiane Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Bishkek instead of Vientiane, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 58.8% more for restaurants

	Vientiane	Bishkek
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$2.67 LAK60,254	$6.86 KGS600.01	+156.6%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.35 LAK121K	$5.83 KGS510.01	+9.1%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$0.71 LAK16,068	$0.74 KGS65.00	+4.2%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.37 LAK8,410	$0.39 KGS33.88	+3.8%
Average			+58.8%

Vientiane vs. Bishkek - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 38.5% less for groceries

	Vientiane	Bishkek
Bread 1 loaf	$1.14 LAK25,737	$0.40 KGS34.67	-65.3%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$13.59 LAK306K	$3.82 KGS334.23	-71.9%
Milk (1 gallon)	$7.61 LAK171K	$3.81 KGS333.12	-49.9%
Eggs 1 dozen	$1.87 LAK42,101	$1.73 KGS151.13	-7.5%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.81 LAK63,330	$2.08 KGS181.82	-26.0%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.09 LAK24,464	$0.63 KGS54.76	-42.3%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.52 LAK11,662	$0.84 KGS73.57	+62.5%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.19 LAK26,832	$0.93 KGS81.76	-21.5%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.69 LAK15,639	$0.72 KGS62.84	+3.5%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.66 LAK14,918	$0.27 KGS23.90	-58.7%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.49 LAK10,995	$0.22 KGS19.28	-54.8%
Average			-38.5%

Vientiane vs. Bishkek - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 41.9% less for transportation

	Vientiane	Bishkek
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.62 LAK127K	$3.74 KGS326.93	-33.5%
Monthly public transit pass	$48.44 LAK1M	$11.66 KGS1,020.02	-75.9%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$28,190.13 LAK635M	$29,991.94 KGS3M	+6.4%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$8.47 LAK191K	$4.52 KGS395.01	-46.7%
Average			-41.9%

Vientiane vs. Bishkek - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 10.7% less for housing

	Vientiane	Bishkek
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$12.33 LAK278K	$12.00 KGS1,049.18	-2.7%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$643.47 LAK15M	$603.19 KGS52,748.92	-6.3%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$414.50 LAK9M	$416.93 KGS36,460.58	+0.6%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$69.22 LAK2M	$38.42 KGS3,359.98	-44.5%
Average			-10.7%

Vientiane vs. Bishkek - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 50.2% less for childcare

	Vientiane	Bishkek
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$625.02 LAK14M	$219.56 KGS19,200.33	-64.9%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$11,083.07 LAK250M	$7,837.88 KGS685K	-29.3%
Average			-50.2%

Vientiane vs. Bishkek - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 20.7% more for entertainment and sports

	Vientiane	Bishkek
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$1.36 LAK30,629	$1.37 KGS120.00	+1.0%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$1.79 LAK40,336	$2.43 KGS212.36	+35.7%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$1.78 LAK40,169	$2.06 KGS180.00	+15.5%
Monthly membership at local gym	$47.54 LAK1M	$54.84 KGS4,795.54	+15.4%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$4.23 LAK95,401	$5.72 KGS500.01	+35.1%
Average			+20.7%

Vientiane vs. Bishkek - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 47.1% more for clothing

	Vientiane	Bishkek
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$26.74 LAK603K	$55.40 KGS4,844.53	+107.2%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$66.85 LAK2M	$43.07 KGS3,766.73	-35.6%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$56.75 LAK1M	$90.57 KGS7,920.14	+59.6%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$41.00 LAK924K	$90.22 KGS7,890.14	+120.0%
Average			+47.1%

Vientiane vs. Bishkek - Cost of clothing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

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

Compare further: Vientiane vs. Bishkek

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Bishkek?

More cost comparisons

Vientiane vs.

Warsaw

Vientiane vs.

Bangkok

Vientiane vs.

Rome

Vientiane vs.

Quito

Vientiane vs.

London

Vientiane vs.

Berlin

Vientiane vs.

Moscow

Vientiane vs.

Reykjavik

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in Laos vs. Kyrgyzstan. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Laos and Kyrgyzstan.

Help us improve these prices

MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate. Learn more

Add prices for Vientiane

Add prices for Bishkek

Ask the Elsewhere Community

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Bishkek or Vientiane. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.