Cost of living comparison

Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

compared to

Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan

Bishkek vs. Ashgabat Cost of Living Summary

Bishkek is 81.2% more expensive than Ashgabat.

Restaurants: pay 71.6% less in Bishkek
Groceries: pay 72.1% less in Bishkek
Transportation: pay 1.8% more in Bishkek
Housing: pay 73.2% less in Bishkek
Childcare: pay 10.1 times more in Bishkek
Entertainment and Sports: pay 76.5% less in Bishkek
Clothing: pay 50.1% less in Bishkek

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

Bishkek vs. Ashgabat Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 71.6% less for restaurants

	Ashgabat	Bishkek
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$34.54 TMT121.25	$5.80 KGS502.97	-83.2%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$12.82 TMT45.00	$5.68 KGS492.91	-55.7%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$3.24 TMT11.38	$0.68 KGS58.64	-79.1%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.04 TMT3.67	$0.33 KGS28.73	-68.3%
Average			-71.6%

Ashgabat vs. Bishkek - Cost of restaurants

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pay 72.1% less for groceries

	Ashgabat	Bishkek
Bread 1 loaf	$2.39 TMT8.38	$0.48 KGS41.43	-80.0%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$17.90 TMT62.83	$5.14 KGS445.63	-71.3%
Milk (1 gallon)	$16.12 TMT56.59	$3.25 KGS281.44	-79.9%
Eggs 1 dozen	$6.84 TMT24.00	$1.76 KGS152.37	-74.3%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$5.38 TMT18.90	$2.41 KGS209.38	-55.2%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.71 TMT9.53	$0.47 KGS40.87	-82.6%
Bananas (1 lb)	$4.01 TMT14.06	$0.85 KGS73.76	-78.8%
Oranges (1 lb)	$3.65 TMT12.81	$0.94 KGS81.83	-74.2%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.71 TMT6.01	$0.90 KGS78.25	-47.3%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.03 TMT3.63	$0.23 KGS19.72	-78.0%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.84 TMT2.95	$0.24 KGS20.82	-71.4%
Average			-72.1%

Ashgabat vs. Bishkek - Cost of groceries

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pay 1.8% more for transportation

	Ashgabat	Bishkek
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$1.56 TMT5.49	$2.90 KGS251.87	+85.7%
Monthly public transit pass	$8.55 TMT30.00	$7.54 KGS653.86	-11.8%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$43,803.42 TMT153,750.00	$39,443.16 KGS3,420,179.12	-10.0%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$9.69 TMT34.00	$4.18 KGS362.14	-56.9%
Average			+1.8%

Ashgabat vs. Bishkek - Cost of transportation

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pay 73.2% less for housing

	Ashgabat	Bishkek
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$94.97 TMT333.33	$12.05 KGS1,044.58	-87.3%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,125.36 TMT3,950.00	$474.69 KGS41,160.77	-57.8%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$747.86 TMT2,625.00	$353.07 KGS30,614.98	-52.8%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$435.73 TMT1,529.41	$23.19 KGS2,010.79	-94.7%
Average			-73.2%

Ashgabat vs. Bishkek - Cost of housing

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pay 10.1 times more for childcare

	Ashgabat	Bishkek
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$22.79 TMT80.00	$230.15 KGS19,956.63	+909.8%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	??	$6,168.50 KGS534,880.81
Average			+909.8%

Ashgabat vs. Bishkek - Cost of childcare

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pay 76.5% less for entertainment and sports

	Ashgabat	Bishkek
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$5.06 TMT17.75	$1.16 KGS100.59	-77.1%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$6.98 TMT24.50	$2.06 KGS178.27	-70.5%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$28.49 TMT100.00	$1.56 KGS135.30	-94.5%
Monthly membership at local gym	$147.20 TMT516.67	$43.01 KGS3,729.07	-70.8%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$14.25 TMT50.00	$4.35 KGS377.23	-69.5%
Average			-76.5%

Ashgabat vs. Bishkek - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 50.1% less for clothing

	Ashgabat	Bishkek
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$85.47 TMT300.00	$40.60 KGS3,520.77	-52.5%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$121.08 TMT425.00	$38.86 KGS3,369.88	-67.9%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$163.82 TMT575.00	$103.88 KGS9,007.69	-36.6%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$170.94 TMT600.00	$96.67 KGS8,382.79	-43.4%
Average			-50.1%

Ashgabat vs. Bishkek - 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: April 2025

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

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