Rent is not the full price of an apartment. A winter heating bill in Tbilisi can be an unpleasant surprise, and listings never mention it. Here is every payment line by line: how much, to whom and how to pay.
Electricity
The tariff is around 0.25-0.30 GEL per kWh. An apartment with a fridge, washing machine and laptops burns 150-250 kWh in summer, that is 40-75 GEL a month. If you heat with air conditioners in winter, multiply by three or four: AC heating is the most expensive way to stay warm.
Gas and heating: the big line item
Gas costs about 1.3 GEL per cubic meter. In summer the stove and boiler take 15-30 GEL. Winter depends entirely on the heating type:
- Gas boiler (karma): the cheapest option, 150-300 GEL a month to heat a typical two-room flat
- Central heating: found in newer complexes, metered, comparable to a boiler
- Air conditioners: 300-500 GEL of electricity in the cold months
- None of the above: run. Space heaters will cost the same and you will still be cold
Ask "how is the apartment heated" before the viewing, it is filter number one for surviving winter.
Water, garbage, building fees
Water in Tbilisi is billed per registered person or by meter, usually 5-15 GEL per person. Garbage collection is 2.5 GEL per person, added to the electricity bill. New buildings add a management fee: 0.5-1 GEL per square meter, so 30-70 GEL for a two-room flat.
Internet and mobile
Magti or Silknet fiber: 30-60 GEL a month for 100+ Mbps. Mobile with a data package: 15-30 GEL. Installation takes a day or two if the building is already wired.
Seasonal totals
A two-room apartment in Tbilisi: 100-150 GEL a month in summer ($35-55), 250-400 GEL in winter with a gas boiler ($90-150). Batumi adds dehumidifier costs in winter, but the heating season is shorter.
How to pay
Everything is paid in minutes through any Georgian banking app, TBC Pay and Pay Box terminals, or provider websites. You will need the account numbers from the bills: get them from the owner at move-in and immediately check for unpaid debt. Debt sticks to the apartment, not the tenant, and can become your problem when the power gets cut.
Budgeting the whole move? District rent averages are on our statistics page, and fresh listings matching your filters come from @georgia_aparts_bot.