structural:summarization
Cost of living

During Soviet times, apartments were lent to people by the government according to the square meters-per-person norm (some groups, including people's artists, heroes, and prominent scientists had bonuses according to their honors). Private ownership of apartments was limited until the 1990s when people were permitted to secure property rights to their inhabited places. Since the Soviet era, estate owners have had to pay the service charge for their residences, a fixed amount based on persons per living area.

The price of real estate in Moscow continues to rise. Today, one could expect to pay $4,000 on average per square meter (11 sq ft) on the outskirts of the city or US$6,500–$8,000 per square meter in a prestigious district. The price sometimes may exceed US$40,000 per square meter in a flat. It costs about US$1,200 per month to rent a one-bedroom apartment and about US$1,000 per month for a studio in the center of Moscow.

A typical one-bedroom apartment is about thirty square metres (320 square feet), a typical two-bedroom apartment is forty-five square metres (480 square feet), and a typical three-bedroom apartment is seventy square metres (750 square feet). Many cannot move out of their apartments, especially if a family lives in a two-room apartment originally granted by the state during the Soviet era. Some city residents have attempted to cope with the cost of living by renting their apartments while staying in dachas (country houses) outside the city.

In 2006, Mercer Human Resources Consulting named Moscow the world's most expensive city for expatriate employees, ahead of perennial winner Tokyo, due to the stable Russian ruble as well as increasing housing prices within the city. Moscow also ranked first in the 2007 edition and 2008 edition of the survey. However, Tokyo has overtaken Moscow as the most expensive city in the world, placing Moscow at third behind Osaka in second place.

In 2008, Moscow ranked top on the list of most expensive cities for the third year in a row.

In 2014, according to Forbes, Moscow was ranked the 9th most expensive city in the world. Forbes ranked Moscow the 2nd most expensive city the year prior.

In 2019 the Economist Intelligence Unit's Worldwide Cost of Living survey put Moscow to 102nd place in the biannual ranking of 133 most expensive cities. ECA International's Cost of Living 2019 Survey ranked Moscow at number 120 among 482 locations worldwide.