Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Alexandria, Romania and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Alexandria: $862 a month against $1,519 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $7,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

41

Cost of Living Index in Alexandria
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Alexandria Living Index
73

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index

Jump to prices

Alexandria

🇷🇴 Romania

$862

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Alexandria 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 Alexandria and in Istanbul actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $862 in Alexandria versus $1,519 in Istanbul.

Alexandria $862
Istanbul $1,519

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,324 in Alexandria versus $2,365 in Istanbul.

Alexandria $1,324
Istanbul $2,365

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,786 in Alexandria versus $3,212 in Istanbul.

Alexandria $1,786
Istanbul $3,212

Living in Alexandria costs roughly 43% less than in Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Alexandria is 36% below, Istanbul is 12% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.36 RON 39.98

$11.81 ₺592

-29.21%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$30.49 RON 146

$54.9 ₺2,754

-44.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.22 RON 34.53

$9.26 ₺465

-22.03%

Cappuccino

$1.73 RON 8.26

$4.30 ₺216

-59.77%

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

$1.83 RON 8.75

$1.77 ₺89.0

3.39%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.43 RON 6.85

$0.56 ₺28.32

155.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.08 RON 9.95

$4.69 ₺235

-55.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 RON 11.96

$7.12 ₺357

-64.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.43 RON 6.86

$1.25 ₺62.7

14.40%

White Bread (500g)

$0.80 RON 3.83

$0.88 ₺44.17

-9.09%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.11 RON 5.29

$2.20 ₺111

-49.55%

Eggs

$2.10 RON 10.03

$2.43 ₺122

-13.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.12 RON 24.49

$10.48 ₺526

-51.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.52 RON 21.60

$5.31 ₺267

-14.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.77 RON 37.12

$21.10 ₺1,058

-63.18%

Apples (1kg)

$0.88 RON 4.23

$1.86 ₺93.1

-52.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.13 RON 5.41

$2.30 ₺115

-50.87%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.90 RON 4.32

$1.22 ₺61.0

-26.23%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.93 RON 4.43

$1.80 ₺90.2

-48.33%

Potato (1kg)

$0.71 RON 3.38

$0.69 ₺34.83

2.90%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 RON 3.08

$0.64 ₺32.16

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.72 RON 3.43

$1.36 ₺68.0

-47.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.81 RON 3.87

$0.58 ₺28.94

39.66%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.41 RON 25.86

$2.34 ₺117

131.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.18 RON 24.75

$13.03 ₺653

-60.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 RON 4.28

$2.36 ₺118

-61.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.07 RON 5.10

$3.32 ₺166

-67.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.65 RON 3.12

$0.88 ₺44.07

-26.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.50 RON 198

$66.1 ₺3,316

-37.24%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.40 RON 1.93

$1.28 ₺64.4

-68.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.40 RON 1.92

$0.85 ₺42.80

-52.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.53 RON 26.41

$11.09 ₺556

-50.14%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.73 RON 8.26

$1.48 ₺74.0

16.89%

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

$16.3K RON 77.8K

$48.6K ₺2.4M

-66.55%

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

$23.0K RON 109.8K

$42.0K ₺2.1M

-45.25%

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

$114 RON 544

$92.7 ₺4,650

22.68%

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

$5.17 RON 24.73

$11.20 ₺562

-53.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$7.66 RON 36.60

$15.89 ₺797

-51.79%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.7 RON 280

$74.7 ₺3,745

-21.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.39 RON 121

$22.95 ₺1,151

10.63%

Cinema Ticket

$6.17 RON 29.51

$8.05 ₺404

-23.35%

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

$317 RON 1,516

$948 ₺47.6K

-66.57%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.0K RON 47.9K

$36.9K ₺1.9M

-72.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.8 RON 248

$53.9 ₺2,702

-3.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.22 RON 106

$41.49 ₺2,081

-46.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$64.0 RON 306

$101 ₺5,060

-36.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$64.0 RON 306

$91.3 ₺4,580

-29.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$313 RON 1,497

$1,014 ₺50.8K

-69.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$241 RON 1,150

$625 ₺31.3K

-61.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$574 RON 2,746

$2,005 ₺100.6K

-71.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$418 RON 1,996

$1,126 ₺56.5K

-62.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,281 RON 6,123

$2,988 ₺149.8K

-57.12%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$786 RON 3,757

$1,730 ₺86.8K

-54.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$840 RON 4,014

$1,136 ₺57.0K

-26.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.73

40.42

-83.35%

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

Last update for Alexandria: November 1, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Alexandria

$241 27.9%

Istanbul

$625 41.1% 160% $384

Groceries & Markets

Alexandria

$149 17.3%

Istanbul

$258 17% 73.5% $109

Eating Out

Alexandria

$138 16%

Istanbul

$221 14.6% 60.3% $83

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Alexandria

$127 14.7%

Istanbul

$120 7.9% 5.4% $6.8

Clothing & Footwear

Alexandria

$91 10.5%

Istanbul

$129 8.5% 42.4% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Alexandria

$71 8.2%

Istanbul

$91 6% 27.8% $20

Getting Around

Alexandria

$47 5.4%

Istanbul

$75 5% 61.6% $29

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $313 in Alexandria and $1,014 in Istanbul. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Istanbul pays 35% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $30 in Alexandria vs $55 in Istanbul for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $149 vs $258 per month, with Alexandria cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Alexandria

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

23:56 11:56 PM

00:56 12:56 AM

1 h ahead of Alexandria

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

45,434

15,701,602

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.209 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

100 TRY = 1.99 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 4.78 RON (1 RON = 0.209 USD). 1 EUR = 5.34 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 50.15 TRY (100 TRY = 1.99 USD). 1 EUR = 56.05 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Alexandria Istanbul 440 km

From you

Alexandria
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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

Alexandria vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Alexandria wins on cost – living expenses run 43% lower than in Istanbul. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Alexandria the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 26% lower in Alexandria. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $313 in Alexandria versus $1,014 in Istanbul. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $862 per month in Alexandria versus $1,519 in Istanbul – Alexandria is about 43% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Alexandria runs roughly 37% less than in Istanbul. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Alexandria is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Alexandria gentler on the wallet – expenses run 43% less than in Istanbul. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.