Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Accra and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Accra: $1,073 a month against $1,526 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $5,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

52

Cost of Living Index in Accra
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Accra Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index

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Accra

🇬🇭 Ghana

$1,073

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,526

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Accra and in Istanbul

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Accra and in Istanbul actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,073 per month in Accra vs $1,526 in Istanbul, rent included.

Accra $1,073
Istanbul $1,526

A couple spends around $1,700 per month in Accra vs $2,399 in Istanbul, rent included.

Accra $1,700
Istanbul $2,399

A family of three spends $2,327 per month in Accra vs $3,272 in Istanbul, rent included.

Accra $2,327
Istanbul $3,272

Accra is about 30% cheaper than Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Accra sits 20% below the global median, while Istanbul is 14% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.11 GHS 95.1

$11.88 ₺585

-31.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$51.8 GHS 608

$55.1 ₺2,715

-5.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.46 GHS 123

$9.14 ₺450

14.44%

Cappuccino

$4.51 GHS 52.9

$4.24 ₺209

6.37%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.54 GHS 18.10

$1.75 ₺86.0

-12.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.45 GHS 5.24

$0.54 ₺26.84

-16.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.86 GHS 21.84

$4.69 ₺231

-60.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.24 GHS 26.29

$5.97 ₺294

-62.48%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.61 GHS 42.37

$1.26 ₺62.1

186.51%

White Bread (500g)

$1.59 GHS 18.64

$0.95 ₺46.82

67.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.19 GHS 37.42

$2.31 ₺114

38.10%

Eggs

$2.58 GHS 30.24

$2.47 ₺122

4.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.93 GHS 140

$10.55 ₺520

13.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.02 GHS 82.3

$5.60 ₺276

25.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.91 GHS 116

$21.21 ₺1,045

-53.28%

Apples (1kg)

$3.69 GHS 43.24

$1.93 ₺95.1

91.19%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 GHS 16.41

$2.29 ₺113

-38.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.78 GHS 20.85

$1.28 ₺63.1

39.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.68 GHS 43.12

$1.84 ₺90.8

100.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.64 GHS 31.00

$0.67 ₺32.87

294.03%

Onion (1kg)

$2.62 GHS 30.68

$0.59 ₺29.31

344.07%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.76 GHS 8.86

$1.33 ₺65.4

-42.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 GHS 6.97

$0.59 ₺29.11

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.50 GHS 29.32

$2.36 ₺116

5.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.33 GHS 86.0

$13.47 ₺664

-45.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 GHS 14.99

$2.42 ₺119

-47.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.29 GHS 26.89

$3.54 ₺174

-35.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.47 GHS 17.28

$0.83 ₺40.65

77.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.26 GHS 472

$66.5 ₺3,274

-39.41%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.72 GHS 20.23

$1.35 ₺66.6

27.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.25 GHS 14.70

$0.85 ₺42.06

47.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.16 GHS 48.79

$10.86 ₺535

-61.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 GHS 15.06

$1.47 ₺72.3

-12.93%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$8,061 GHS 94.6K

$51.6K ₺2.5M

-84.38%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$9,921 GHS 116.4K

$44.4K ₺2.2M

-77.68%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$74.8 GHS 877

$89.2 ₺4,396

-16.22%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$18.90 GHS 222

$11.60 ₺572

62.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.82 GHS 491

$16.10 ₺793

159.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 GHS 840

$77.3 ₺3,806

-7.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.07 GHS 212

$22.66 ₺1,116

-20.26%

Cinema Ticket

$12.59 GHS 148

$8.34 ₺411

50.96%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$470 GHS 5,510

$974 ₺48.0K

-51.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.6K GHS 218.4K

$25.8K ₺1.3M

-27.77%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$14.28 GHS 167

$52.7 ₺2,597

-72.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$18.36 GHS 215

$39.16 ₺1,930

-53.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$36.02 GHS 423

$103 ₺5,084

-65.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$52.4 GHS 615

$96.6 ₺4,760

-45.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$691 GHS 8,109

$994 ₺49.0K

-30.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$280 GHS 3,286

$629 ₺31.0K

-55.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,092 GHS 12.8K

$2,024 ₺99.7K

-46.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$467 GHS 5,480

$1,155 ₺56.9K

-59.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,799 GHS 32.8K

$3,160 ₺155.7K

-11.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,424 GHS 16.7K

$1,838 ₺90.5K

-22.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$175 GHS 2,048

$1,203 ₺59.3K

-85.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

26.75

41.09

-34.90%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Accra: October 4, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Accra

$280 26.2%

Istanbul

$629 41.2% 125% $349

Groceries & Markets

Accra

$277 25.9%

Istanbul

$264 17.3% 4.7% $13

Eating Out

Accra

$172 16.1%

Istanbul

$218 14.3% 26.6% $46

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Accra

$135 12.7%

Istanbul

$117 7.7% 13.7% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Accra

$97 9%

Istanbul

$94 6.1% 2.9% $2.8

Clothing & Footwear

Accra

$54 5.1%

Istanbul

$131 8.6% 141% $77

Getting Around

Accra

$54 5.1%

Istanbul

$75 4.9% 39.2% $21

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $691 in Accra versus $994 in Istanbul. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 589% higher in Istanbul, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $52.0 in Accra versus $55.0 in Istanbul. Groceries tell a different story – $277 in Accra vs $264 in Istanbul – so Istanbul wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇭 Accra

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

03:47 3:47 AM

06:47 6:47 AM

3 h ahead of Accra

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,388,000 Capital

15,701,602

💱 Currency

Ghanaian Cedi GHS ₵

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

100 GHS = 8.53 USD

100 GHS = 7.6 EUR

100 TRY = 2.03 USD

100 TRY = 1.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to GHS – Ghanaian Cedi Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇭 Ghanaian Cedi (₵)

Ghanaian Cedi exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 11.73 GHS (100 GHS = 8.53 USD). 1 EUR = 13.16 GHS (100 GHS = 7.6 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 49.27 TRY (100 TRY = 2.03 USD). 1 EUR = 55.26 TRY (100 TRY = 1.81 EUR).

USD to GHS in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Accra Istanbul 4,890 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Accra
Istanbul

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Accra vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,073 in Accra, $1,526 in Istanbul – roughly 42% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,610 per month in Accra and $2,289 in Istanbul. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Accra, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 5% cheaper in Istanbul – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $52.0 in Accra and $55.0 in Istanbul. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Accra, where all-in costs run around $1,073, than in Istanbul at $1,526. In Accra it covers expenses comfortably, while in Istanbul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Accra has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,073 in Accra to $1,526 in Istanbul. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Accra. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Istanbul makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.