How Much Does It Cost to Live In Tallinn?
The most northern capital in Europe is a large seaport, the challenging and catching city in Estonia.
Tallinn has wonderfully combined the old and the modern.
It smells like Medieval ages when you come up to the old churches and towers, walk the narrow streets and pass by the ancient houses.
The old part of Tallinn is on the list of UNESCO as one of the really well-preserved monuments.
What will you feel when you arrive in the modern part of Tallinn?
You’ll probably have a flashback from the school course in history when you were taught about the Soviet past in Estonia.
Estonia : Cost of Living by City
RESTAURANTS
Millions of tourists come here annually to see the contrast between the old city and the typical concrete buildings.
Good restaurants can be found in either part of the city.
The central square has some really expensive offers, while some less popular regions outside the downtown serve cheap and same delicious traditional Estonian food along with the other world cuisines.
MARKETS
Did you know that one of the shopping ‘meccas’ in Europe is Tallinn?
Whether you are hunting for souvenirs, clothes, shoes, jewelry, furs or handmade stuff, be sure you will find it all here.
The central market is somewhere you can buy basic products like eggs, rice, cheese, meat, milk, and bread.
TRANSPORTATION
Public transport in Tallinn is represented by buses, trams, and trolleybuses.
The prices for these means of transport are rather high.
Although, they are convenient in terms of speed and good scheduling.
To move around the old city, there’s nothing better than your feet.
UTILITIES (MONTHLY)
Many tourists really get shocked when they see the utility bills in the houses of Tallinn, especially in winter.
Despite the fact that the winter temperature in Tallinn rarely goes below 7 degrees Celsius, the prices in the bills often go far beyond.
Well, you can see that basic utilities cost around $215 per house.
SPORTS & LEISURE
Leisure time in Tallinn can be filled with joy if you visit one of the numerous night clubs, walk in the greenest parks ever, see the waterfalls, or watch a film in the local cinema.
Tallinn has sports schools and the healthy lifestyle is supported at the governmental level.
The prices are fair: $52 for an adult monthly fee to a fitness club, $25 for an hour at the tennis court and $9 for a seat in the cinema.
CLOTHING & SHOES
Local Tallinners buy sweaters, cardigans, T-shirts, running shoes and business outfit in local boutiques, malls, and large chain stores.
Estonia is the country of shopping, so Tallinn has amazing opportunities to pack your bags full with different pretty things from nightgowns to suits.
RENT PER MONTH
Just like in any other city in the world, temporary apartments and houses are much easier to rent than some permanent accommodation.
Apparently, there are budget hostels as well as spacious apartments around the city.
Locals suggest searching for a permanent flat when you are physically in Tallinn because of numerous frauds on the web.
Cost of Living Averages Table for Tallinn
*Note: All prices are indicated in USD.| Average Restaurant Prices | |
|---|---|
| Meal (Inexpensive Restaurant) | $9.04 |
| Domestic Beer (0.5 Liter) | $4.52 |
| Water (0.33 Liter) | $1.62 | Average Market Prices |
| Milk (1 Liter) | $0.77 |
| Loaf Bread (500g) | $0.86 |
| Eggs (12) | $1.60 | Average Transport Prices |
| One Way Ticket | $2.26 |
| Monthly Pass | $25.99 |
| Gasoline | $1.52 | Average Utilities Prices |
| Basic (Water, Electricity, Garbage, Heating, Cooling) | $215.12 |
| 1 min. of Prepaid Mobile Tariff Local | $0.05 |
| Internet (Unlimited Data, Cable/ADSL) | $24.90 | Average Leisure Prices |
| Fitness Club, Monthly Fee for 1 Adult | $52.07 |
| Tennis Court Rent (1 Hour) | $25.66 |
| Cinema, 1 Seat, International Release | $9.04 | Average Clothing Prices |
| 1 Pair of Jeans (Levis 501 Or Comparable) | $79.70 |
| 1 Summer Dress in a Chain Store (Zara, etc...) | $30.23 |
| 1 Pair of Adidas Walking Shoes (Mid-Range) | $81.09 | Average Rent Prices |
| Apartment (1 bedroom) in City Center | $557.71 |
| Apartment (1 bedroom) Outside of Center | $382.37 |
| Apartment (3 bedrooms) in City Center | $968.17 |
How Does the Average Person Spend Their Money in Tallinn?
There are two biggest items of expenditure in Tallinn, the monthly rent, and the markets.
People tend to spend more on products that can be cooked at home, whereas about 16.8% of the income is still given to eating out.
Sports and leisure are of much more interest for the citizens than shopping.
The latter is left for the guests of the city.
Despite massive complaints about huge figures in the bills for heating in winter, the Tallinners spend as much on all the utilities as they pay for their leisure time.
We have left 11.9% of the salary which is usually wasted on transportation.
Average Costs Breakdown
Tallinn: Average Salary, Minimum Wage & Mortgages
The salary of an average Estonian guy or girl, as well as any foreign specialist who is officially employed in Tallinn, is $1,216.13 per month.
This is a net sum where the taxes are excluded.
The average salary is twice as big as the minimum wage ($618.3) and this now explains well why around 19% of the Estonia population are rather poor than rich.
No doubts, Tallinn has lots of international companies which give great opportunities to the employees.
In particular, the IT industry has been developing fast.
With this in mind, many young men and women from the post-Soviet countries tend to move to Tallinn or work remotely.
They get the chance so to get residence in this country and take a mortgage, the interest rate of which is only 2.64% per year (which lasts for 20 years, though).
Tallinn Safety Overview
READ THE FULL REPORT: Tallinn Safety Review
Safety Index:
- OVERALL RISK: LOW
- TRANSPORT & TAXIS RISK: MEDIUM
- PICKPOCKETS RISK: HIGH
- NATURAL DISASTERS RISK: LOW
- MUGGING RISK: MEDIUM
- TERRORISM RISK: LOW
- SCAMS RISK: MEDIUM
- WOMEN TRAVELERS RISK: LOW
Cost of Living by City in Tallinn
| City | Cost of Living Index |
|---|---|
| Tartu | 49.65 |
