Best cities to live in Russia for foreigners

Whether you’re planning to rent in Russia or buy Russian property may influence where you decide to live in Russia. Housing prices in the popular Russian cities are considerably higher, however.

Moscow and St Petersburg. While these are often the best places to live in Russia, there are several attractive Russian cities that are growing in industry, IT, and research.

This article helps foreigners decide where to live in Russia, with a short explanation to Russia’s popular and emerging cities:

Best places to live in Russia
Where to live in Moscow
Where to live in Saint Petersburg
Popular Russian cities for foreigners
Nizhny Novgorod
Yekaterinburg
Novosibirsk

Best places to live in Russia

Expats in Russia enjoy a comparatively high standard of living to many of their Russian counterparts. Many opt for gated developments or in expensive apartments in city centers. You can also read more about the history of Russian housing.

Expat communities in Russia have a particular draw, partly because of Russia’s vastness, its significant rich/poor divide and the lack of interaction between locals and western expats, which some put down to the difficult language barrier.

This is one reason why Moscow is popular for foreigners. Its concentration of expat dominated housing developments, English-language international schools in Moscow and good access to private healthcare centres, for expats who find the Russian healthcare system limited compared to what they are accustomed to.

St Petersburg is also a beautiful Russian city. It’s located on the Baltic Sea with Baroque-style architecture. The city has a reputation as one of Russia’s main cultural centres, with important art, ballet and theatre centres.

Where to live in Moscow

Moscow has, by far, the largest expat community in Russia. Many foreigners work in numerous international companies in the Russian capital. However, Moscow’s most central and expat-friendly areas carry a high cost of living in comparison to many other places in Russia.

Below is a brief explanation of Moscow’s suburbs and neighborhoods that are popular with foreigners; for the full lowdown, see our guide on where to live in Moscow.

Boulevard Ring: Moscow’s most central area boasts the popular neighborhoods of Tverskaya. This is the perfect place for younger expats who want to be at the center of it all. There’s also Patriarshiye Prudy, which boasts a beautiful city park and has high property prices to match.

Garden Ring: The neighborhood of Arbat features beautiful architecture within close proximity of the foreign embassies. Property prices are expensive in this attractive area. Elsewhere, the Tretyakov Gallery area is more up-and-coming, with lots of shops and cafes on its two busy main roads.

Pokrovsky Hills: Although a little farther out, the guarded community of Pokrovsky Hills is popular with expats. It’s home to the Anglo-American School of Moscow with a European Medical Center on-site.

Roskina: While Roskina is outside of the city boundaries, it’s a great place for expats who work in the west of the city. It’s home to the British International School.

Where to live in Saint Petersburg

St Petersburg is Russia’s second-largest city, with a population of more than five million people. While the market isn’t as thriving as in Moscow, properties in the city center can still be expensive. City workers tend to prefer the 1930s and 1950s homes compared to the more modern equivalents.

Expats working in the city center could be better off buying or renting a property farther out, but need to consider that the traffic coming in and out of the city during rush hour can make commuting a very difficult task.

Popular Russian cities for foreigners

Nizhny Novgorod

A little under 500 kilometers to the southeast of Moscow, Nizhny Novgorod is quickly developing as a location for expats. Russia’s fifth-largest city has a couple of flourishing industries that attract expats. Thankfully, property prices are nowhere near as high as Moscow or Saint Petersburg. Nizhny Novgorod is one of the main centers for the IT industry, particularly hardware and software development. It also has a growing car manufacturing industry.

Yekaterinburg

To the east of the Ural Mountains, Yekaterinburg is Russia’s first Asian outpost. The popularity of the city is growing, with the five-hectare commercial district of Yekaterinburg-City currently under development on the banks of the Iset River. While development is slow, the new quarter is set to bring more jobs to the city. With an abundance of natural resources in the area, the metal industry is among the most popular here and while property prices can be expensive, they’re still lower than in the capital.

Novosibirsk

Deep in Asian Russia, Novosibirsk might seem like a pretty remote place to move to. Siberia’s reputation as being completely isolated is a little unfair, however. Novosibirsk is the third-largest city in Russia and has a thriving industrial sector. IT is an emerging industry as well, and expats interested in pursuing science careers will find themselves in one of Russia’s research centers. With a smaller expat community than some other popular Russian cities, being able to speak fluent Russian here is a distinct advantage.

We do really recommend you to live in the next cities in Russia:

– Алабушево;

– Александров;

– Алматы;

– Альметьевск;

– Анапа;

– Ангарск;

– Апрелевка;

– Арзамас;

– Армавир;

– Архангельск;

– Астрахань;

– Ачинск;

– Ашукино;

– Балаково;

– Балашиха;

– Барнаул;

– Белгород;

– Белореченск;

– Бердск;

– Березники;

– Благовещенск;

– Братск;

– Брянск;

– Бузулук;

– Великий Новгород;

– Великий Устюг;

– Верхняя Пышма;

– Верхняя Салда;

– Видное;

– Владивосток;

– Владикавказ;

– Владимир;

– Волгоград;

– Волгодонск;

– Волжский;

– Вологда;

– Вольск;

– Воронеж;

– Воскресенск;

– Всеволожск;

– Выборг;

– Высокая Гора;

– Вязьма;

– Гатчина;

– Геленджик;

– Глазов;

– Горячий Ключ;

– Губкинский;

– Дедовск;

– Джубга;

– Дзержинск;

– Дзержинский;

– Димитровград;

– Дмитров;

– Долгопрудный;

– Домодедово;

– Дубна;

– Егорьевск;

– Ейск;

– Екатеринбург;

– Ессентуки;

– Железнодорожный;

– Жуковский;

– Заводоуковск;

– Зарайск;

– Звенигород;

– Зеленоград;

– Зеленоградск;

– Иваново;

– Ивантеевка;

– Ижевск;

– Иннополис;

– Иркутск;

– Искитим;

– Ишим;

– Йошкар-Ола;

– Казань;

– Калачинск;

– Калининград;

– Калуга;

– Каменск-Уральский;

– Каменск-Шахтинский;

– Кашира;

– Кемерово;

– Кимры;

– Киров;

– Кировск;

– Кисловодск;

– Климовск;

– Клин;

– Клинцы;

– Ковров;

– Когалым;

– Коломна;

– Колпино;

– Кольчугино;

– Комсомольск-на-Амуре;

– Кореновск;

– Королев;

– Кострома;

– Котельники;

– Красногорск;

– Краснодар;

– Краснокамск;

– Красноярск;

– Кронштадт;

– Кропоткин;

– Крымск;

– Кстово;

– Кудрово;

– Курган;

– Курск;

– Курчатов;

– Лабытнанги;

– Лангепас;

– Лениногорск;

– Лесосибирск;

– Липецк;

– Лобня;

– Ломоносов;

– Лосино-Петровский;

– Луга;

– Луховицы;

– Лыткарино;

– Люберцы;

– Лянтор;

– Магнитогорск;

– Майкоп;

– Махачкала;

– Междуреченск;

– Миасс;

– Минеральные Воды;

– Минск;

– Михайловка;

– Михайловск;

– Мичуринск;

– Можга;

– Москва;

– Муравленко;

– Мурманск;

– Муром;

– Мытищи;

– Набережные Челны;

– Нальчик;

– Наро-Фоминск;

– Нахабино;

– Находка;

– Невинномысск;

– Нефтекамск;

– Нефтеюганск;

– Нижневартовск;

– Нижнекамск;

– Нижний Тагил;

– Новозыбков;

– Новокузнецк;

– Новороссийск;

– Новосибирск;

– Новый Уренгой;

– Ногинск;

– Норильск;

– Ноябрьск;

– Нур-Султан (Астана);

– Нурлат;

– Нягань;

– Обнинск;

– Одинцово;

– Озёры;

– Омск;

– Орёл;

– Оренбург;

– Орехово-Зуево;

– Павлово;

– Павловский Посад;

– Пенза;

– Первомайское;

– Переславль-Залесский;

– Пермь;

– Петергоф;

– Петрозаводск;

– Петропавловск-Камчатский;

– Подольск;

– Псков;

– Пушкин;

– Пушкино;

– Пыть-Ях;

– Пятигорск;

– Радужный;

– Раменское;

– Реутов;

– Россошь;

– Рубцовск;

– Руза;

– Рыбинск;

– Рязань;

– Салават;

– Самара;

– Санкт-Петербург;

– Саранск;

– Сарапул;

– Саратов;

– Сатино-Русское;

– Свердловский;

– Северодвинск;

– Североморск;

– Северск;

– Семикаракорск;

– Сергиев Посад;

– Серов;

– Серпухов;

– Сертолово;

– Славянск-на-Кубани;

– Смоленск;

– Соликамск;

– Солнечногорск;

– Сосновый Бор;

– Сочи;

– Ставрополь;

– Старая Купавна;

– Старый Оскол;

– Стерлитамак;

– Строитель;

– Ступино;

– Суздаль;

– Сургут;

– Сыктывкар;

– Таганрог;

– Тамбов;

– Тарасково;

– Тверь;

– Тимашевск;

– Тихвин;

– Тихорецк;

– Тольятти;

– Томск;

– Троицк;

– Туапсе;

– Тула;

– Улан-Удэ;

– Ульяновск;

– Урай;

– Усинск;

– Усолье-Сибирское;

– Уссурийск;

– Усть-Лабинск;

– Уфа;

– Ухта;

– Фрязино;

– Хабаровск;

– Ханты-Мансийск;

– Хасавюрт;

– Химки;

– Чебаркуль;

– Чебоксары;

– Челябинск;

– Череповец;

– Чехов;

– Чита;

– Чусовой;

– Шатура;

– Шахты;

– Щёлково;

– Щербинка;

– Электросталь;

– Элиста;

– Энгельс;

– Югорск;

– Якутск;

– Ялуторовск;

– Ярославль.