Kazakhstanis Made 27 Million Cinema Visits Last Year

The Bureau of National Statistics published data on cinemas in Kazakhstan. In 2025, people visited the country’s cinemas more than 27 million times, Orda.kz reports.

Kazakhstan had 118 cinemas and 512 cinema halls. Over the year, the total number of visits exceeded 27 million. For comparison, cinemas recorded 23.2 million visits in 2024. Attendance increased by about 16 % year-on-year.

Almaty remains the country’s main film distribution center. The city had 21 cinemas and 167 cinema halls, while attendance exceeded 9.1 million visits.

Astana ranked second, with 11 cinemas, 69 halls, and more than 4.8 million visits. Shymkent came third, with seven cinemas, 38 halls, and more than 2.2 million visits.

Aktobe region ranked fourth, where cinemas were visited more than 1.3 million times. Kyzylorda region came fifth, with about 960,000 cinema visits.

At the same time, infrastructure remains extremely modest in some regions. For example, Ulytau region has only three cinemas. Fewer than 5,000 screenings were held there over the year, with attendance at about 70,000 people.

Only six state-run cinemas remain in the country. They operate in West Kazakhstan, Zhambyl, Karaganda, and Pavlodar regions, as well as in Almaty. In all other regions, film distribution is fully handled by private venues.

Original author: Alexander Zhdanov

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