Cost of living comparison

Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

compared to

Thimphu, Bhutan

Thimphu vs. Ashgabat Cost of Living Summary

Thimphu is 88.7% more expensive than Ashgabat.

Restaurants: pay 83.4% less in Thimphu
Groceries: pay 74.0% less in Thimphu
Transportation: pay 25.4% more in Thimphu
Housing: pay 85.4% less in Thimphu
Childcare: pay 10.8 times more in Thimphu
Entertainment and Sports: pay 55.8% less in Thimphu
Clothing: pay 85.1% less in Thimphu

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

Thimphu vs. Ashgabat Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 83.4% less for restaurants

	Ashgabat	Thimphu
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$34.54 TMT121.25	$2.95 BTN251.53	-91.5%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$12.82 TMT45.00	$2.95 BTN251.53	-77.0%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$3.24 TMT11.38	$0.55 BTN47.29	-82.9%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.04 TMT3.67	$0.19 BTN15.93	-82.1%
Average			-83.4%

Ashgabat vs. Thimphu - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 74.0% less for groceries

	Ashgabat	Thimphu
Bread 1 loaf	$2.39 TMT8.38	$0.94 BTN80.49	-60.5%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$17.90 TMT62.83	$1.68 BTN143.37	-90.6%
Milk (1 gallon)	$16.12 TMT56.59	$3.17 BTN270.41	-80.4%
Eggs 1 dozen	$6.84 TMT24.00	$2.20 BTN188.14	-67.8%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$5.38 TMT18.90	$1.74 BTN148.32	-67.7%
Apples (1 lb)	$2.71 TMT9.53	$1.07 BTN91.27	-60.6%
Bananas (1 lb)	$4.01 TMT14.06	$0.65 BTN55.90	-83.7%
Oranges (1 lb)	$3.65 TMT12.81	$0.82 BTN70.28	-77.4%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.71 TMT6.01	$0.37 BTN31.49	-78.5%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.03 TMT3.63	$0.23 BTN19.62	-77.8%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.84 TMT2.95	$0.26 BTN21.91	-69.4%
Average			-74.0%

Ashgabat vs. Thimphu - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 25.4% more for transportation

	Ashgabat	Thimphu
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$1.56 TMT5.49	$3.93 BTN335.12	+151.1%
Monthly public transit pass	$8.55 TMT30.00	$3.97 BTN338.58	-53.6%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$43,803.42 TMT153,750.00	$21,215.98 BTN1,810,999.60	-51.6%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$9.69 TMT34.00	$15.09 BTN1,287.82	+55.8%
Average			+25.4%

Ashgabat vs. Thimphu - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 85.4% less for housing

	Ashgabat	Thimphu
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$94.97 TMT333.33	$31.25 BTN2,667.13	-67.1%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,125.36 TMT3,950.00	$124.45 BTN10,623.18	-88.9%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$747.86 TMT2,625.00	$79.38 BTN6,776.08	-89.4%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$435.73 TMT1,529.41	$16.69 BTN1,424.42	-96.2%
Average			-85.4%

Ashgabat vs. Thimphu - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 10.8 times more for childcare

	Ashgabat	Thimphu
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$22.79 TMT80.00	$246.05 BTN21,002.56	+979.5%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	??	$677.73 BTN57,851.38
Average			+979.5%

Ashgabat vs. Thimphu - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 55.8% less for entertainment and sports

	Ashgabat	Thimphu
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$5.06 TMT17.75	$6.43 BTN548.99	+27.2%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$6.98 TMT24.50	$1.53 BTN130.79	-78.0%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$28.49 TMT100.00	$3.83 BTN326.99	-86.6%
Monthly membership at local gym	$147.20 TMT516.67	$49.11 BTN4,192.13	-66.6%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$14.25 TMT50.00	$3.54 BTN301.83	-75.2%
Average			-55.8%

Ashgabat vs. Thimphu - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 85.1% less for clothing

	Ashgabat	Thimphu
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$85.47 TMT300.00	$9.43 BTN804.89	-89.0%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$121.08 TMT425.00	$11.79 BTN1,006.11	-90.3%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$163.82 TMT575.00	$32.41 BTN2,766.80	-80.2%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$170.94 TMT600.00	$32.41 BTN2,766.80	-81.0%
Average			-85.1%

Ashgabat vs. Thimphu - Cost of clothing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

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

More cost comparisons

Ashgabat vs.

Beijing

Ashgabat vs.

Paris

Ashgabat vs.

Singapore

Ashgabat vs.

Kiev

Ashgabat vs.

Bangkok

Ashgabat vs.

Berlin

Ashgabat vs.

Phnom Penh

Ashgabat vs.

Manila

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

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

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 Ashgabat

Add prices for Thimphu

ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY

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