Cost of living

Moscow is an expensive city. Depending on your personal needs and spending habits you may have to budget at least a minimum of €400 per month, or even €500-600 per month if you plan to do lots of shopping, travelling, etc. These estimates do not include the cost of housing which may be an additional €300 to €500 a month.

Money

Russian rubles are the only currency you can pay with when you stay in the country. It is very easy to find a place where you can exchange foreign banknotes. Though, to avoid deceit, we do not recommend exchanging the money in the street, even if the rates seem to be better than in banks.

You may keep your bank account at home and use your Visa-Card at any cash dispenser (automatic cash terminal, "bankomat") around the city. When you withdraw money from ATM, watch the people around you. We advise you to use cash dispensers that are inside bank office – and not those on the outside or in the street.

You can also use credit cards in most supermarkets and restaurants, but paying cash is preferable.

For current exchange rates and money converter click here.

Public transportation

Moscow metro is the fastest and most convenient way to go around the city. You may view the metro map and also estimate trip time here - just click on start station, then on end station, watch time in minutes and the fastest route through transfer points. One trip by metro costs 19 rubles (you only pay for the entrance each time). Please, note that metro is very crowded at rush hours (8-10 a.m. and 17-19 p.m.).

There are also buses, trolleybuses, and trams in the city. Sometimes it is easier to take a mini-bus ("marshrutnoye taxi") to get to the place you need, it costs around 15-25 rubles.
 
Useful information

a) Internet access

There are plenty internet-cafes around Moscow, and free wireless connection is available in many public places: movie theaters, restaurants, malls (as a rule, you will find a sign ‘Free Wi-Fi zone’ at the entrance). There is also an opportunity to use pre-paid cards to get access to a wireless network ‘Golden Wi-Fi’, which covers the center of Moscow.
 
b) Telephone

Mobile phones. Using mobile phones is probably the most convenient way to keep in touch with your Russian friends. You can purchase a SIM card from mobile phone providers such as MTS, BeeLine, and Megafone. The cheapest option is to get a pre-paid SIM card. Please, remember that in order to buy a SIM card you have to show your passport and your Moscow registration at the company office (read more about residence permit regulations here).

Mobile telephone numbers mostly contain 11 digits (+7-xxx-xx-xx-xx), where “+7” is international dialing code for Russia, and the following three digits show a code of the mobile company you use. You can also dial “8” instead of “+7”.

Regular phones. Most local telephone numbers in Moscow consist of seven digits. For example, 123-45-67.

If you wish to make a long-distance call, it is cheaper to use a regular phone. To call to another Russian city from a regular phone, dial “8” – then wait for a continious tone – and dial area code (three or four digits) – and the phone number. For example, to call to St. Petersburg from Moscow you will dial:
“8-tone-812-xxx-xx-xx”.

To make an international phone call, dial “8-tone-10” and then country code, etc.

c) Emergency

There are several emergency telephone numbers you always have to remember:
From mobile phone: “112” – joint emergency number for police, ambulance, or fire-call.
Regular phone:
“01” – fire-brigade
“02” – police
“03” – ambulance

d) Libraries