Cost of living in Almaty

Cost of living

Currently the exchange rate is USD 1 to 150 KZT (Kazakh Tenge)

The following prices will give you a rough idea of what to expect (Dated: Oct 2012)

Bread between 50-150KZT ($0.33- $1)

Milk roughly 150KZT ($1) depending on the brand and type, you get lots of milk products ranging from fresh to curd/ sour and from cow to camel... it can all be a bit confusing shopping for milk the first time.

Meat is more difficult to price as it depends on where you buy it - either at the market or the supermarket and whether it is chicken, beef, lamb or pork (yes, you can get pork and bacon here, but only at selected shops like Bekker, Ramstore and a few other supermarkets). If you are brave enough you could buy your meat at the market, but you need to find a good seller and build a relationship with them to get the best cuts and best quality meat.

During summer, local fruits and vegetables can be very cheap like 300KZT ($2) for a kilo of raspberries and 600KZT ($4) for a kilo of cherries. During the winter the prices are excessive and the quality is really poor where tomatoes and potatoes don’t even last a day or two.

I advise you to check the dates on all products... that is if they have expiry dates... as various food items are still repackaged by the individual stores into smaller clear plastic bags.  And don’t be surprised if you see the whole team of supermarket packers standing around a shopping cart filled with fresh bread packing them with their bear hands into small packets... Hygiene is not a top priority.

Expect your monthly grocery bill to be roughly 100 000+ KZT for a couple, which includes the odd imported product.

Eating out can be every expensive or very cheap depending on where you go. Restaurants that locals frequent are well priced and from my experience the service is much better. Restaurants that cater for foreign tastes are expensive and could easily cost 5 000 KZT ($33) per person for a meal and a drink, if not more. Generally, customer service is very poor and don’t expect starters to arrive before the main meal as they might all arrive at the same time or in drips and drabs. We have also learned to ask for the bill as soon as the food arrives as this can also take a while.  

The monthly rent for apartments in the centre of town range from about $900 to $3000 for a decent apartment. Houses in desirable areas are generally about +- $4000-7000 and above... if you are planing on living in a house you will need to also have a car and I suggest a driver as well... as they drive like maniacs here... expect a two lane road to become a four or five lane road as everyone tries to squeeze in and get ahead of the other.

Internet costs about 4000KZT per month, but even though it claims to be high speed, the infrastructure and amount users on the system slows it down considerably. 

Mobile coverage is good within the city and there are various service providers available like Kcell, Beeline and Activ. Pay as you go is very popular and kiosks are available almost everywhere in densely populated areas.

Am I missing something? Please let me know

I would love to hear from you, feedback is welcomed. Also if there is anything you would like me to discuss please feel free to email me or Facebook

Tulipa Kazakhstan

Tulipakz@gmail.com