Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ankara and Varanasi

For one person, living is cheaper in Varanasi: $293 a month against $1,389 in Ankara, rent and utilities included – about $13,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

67

Cost of Living Index in Ankara
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Ankara Living Index
14

Cost of Living Index in Varanasi
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Varanasi Living Index

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Ankara

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,389

/mo nomad

Varanasi

🇮🇳 India

$293

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ankara and in Varanasi

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

A single person spends $1,389 per month in Ankara vs $293 in Varanasi, rent included.

Ankara $1,389
Varanasi $293

A couple spends around $2,087 per month in Ankara vs $483 in Varanasi, rent included.

Ankara $2,087
Varanasi $483

A family of three spends $2,785 per month in Ankara vs $672 in Varanasi, rent included.

Ankara $2,785
Varanasi $672

Ankara costs about 374% more than Varanasi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Ankara sits 3% above the global median, while Varanasi is 78% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.10 ₺507

$1.89 ₹177

434.39%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.81 ₺2,197

$8.02 ₹753

446.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.78 ₺490

$3.21 ₹302

204.67%

Cappuccino

$4.12 ₺207

$1.65 ₹155

149.70%

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

$1.68 ₺84.3

$0.41 ₹38.43

309.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.72 ₺36.05

$0.11 ₹10.02

554.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.02 ₺252

$1.62 ₹152

209.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.60 ₺331

$2.12 ₹199

211.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 ₺58.4

$0.66 ₹62.1

75.76%

White Bread (500g)

$0.96 ₺48.39

$0.29 ₹27.01

231.03%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.25 ₺113

$0.54 ₹50.3

316.67%

Eggs

$2.66 ₺134

$0.83 ₹77.9

220.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.09 ₺506

$3.28 ₹308

207.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.43 ₺272

$2.13 ₹200

154.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.99 ₺1,003

Apples (1kg)

$1.91 ₺95.8

$1.43 ₹134

33.57%

Banana (1kg)

$2.18 ₺109

$0.65 ₹60.8

235.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.26 ₺63.3

$0.89 ₹83.8

41.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.65 ₺82.6

$0.35 ₹32.45

371.43%

Potato (1kg)

$0.65 ₺32.69

$0.26 ₹24.48

150.00%

Onion (1kg)

$0.55 ₺27.40

$0.24 ₹22.53

129.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.99 ₺49.75

$0.46 ₹42.93

115.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 ₺32.90

$0.28 ₹26.36

135.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.25 ₺113

$3.20 ₹300

-29.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.37 ₺620

$5.83 ₹548

112.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.12 ₺106

$1.61 ₹151

31.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.20 ₺161

$1.98 ₹186

61.62%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$4.24 ₹398

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.77 ₺38.86

$0.55 ₹52.0

40.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.85 ₺595

$9.71 ₹912

22.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 ₺64.3

$0.24 ₹22.52

433.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.84 ₺42.02

$0.12 ₹10.89

600.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.22 ₺412

$1.04 ₹98.0

690.38%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.39 ₺69.5

$1.05 ₹99.1

32.38%

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

$48.4K ₺2.4M

$11.3K ₹1.1M

329.93%

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

$40.2K ₺2.0M

$22.2K ₹2.1M

81.22%

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

$99.9 ₺5,011

$12.68 ₹1,191

687.93%

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

$11.15 ₺559

$3.63 ₹341

207.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.94 ₺900

$6.84 ₹643

162.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$72.0 ₺3,611

$12.72 ₹1,194

465.96%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.80 ₺742

Cinema Ticket

$7.77 ₺390

$2.91 ₹273

167.01%

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

$1,084 ₺54.3K

$38.77 ₹3,641

2694.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.5K ₺1.1M

$1,088 ₹102.2K

1966.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.4 ₺2,677

$23.62 ₹2,218

125.99%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.87 ₺2,401

$25.11 ₹2,358

90.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 ₺5,229

$38.81 ₹3,644

168.64%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.8 ₺4,905

$25.32 ₹2,377

286.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$748 ₺37.5K

$114 ₹10.7K

556.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$557 ₺27.9K

$46.99 ₹4,413

1084.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,142 ₺57.3K

$200 ₹18.7K

472.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$902 ₺45.2K

$140 ₹13.1K

544.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,644 ₺82.5K

$560 ₹52.5K

193.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,142 ₺57.3K

$340 ₹31.9K

236.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,058 ₺53.1K

$575 ₹53.9K

84.24%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

43.85

8.53

414.07%

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

Last update for Ankara: November 2, 2026

Last update for Varanasi: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ankara

$557 40.1%

Varanasi

$47 16% 91.6% $510

Groceries & Markets

Ankara

$251 18.1%

Varanasi

$82 28% 67.4% $169

Eating Out

Ankara

$208 14.9%

Varanasi

$59 20.1% 71.6% $149

Clothing & Footwear

Ankara

$136 9.8%

Varanasi

$51 17.3% 62.8% $86

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ankara

$129 9.3%

Varanasi

$23 7.9% 82% $106

Sport & Entertainment

Ankara

$88 6.3%

Varanasi

$19 6.3% 78.8% $69

Getting Around

Ankara

$20 1.5%

Varanasi

$13 4.4% 37.6% $7.7

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $748 in Ankara versus $114 in Varanasi. 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 84% higher in Ankara, 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 $44 in Ankara versus $8 in Varanasi. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $251 vs $82 – making Varanasi the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Ankara

🇮🇳 Varanasi

🕒 Local time

23:10 11:10 PM

01:40 1:40 AM

2 h 30 min ahead of Ankara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,864,049 Capital

3,100,000

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 1.99 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.65 USD

1,000 INR = 9.53 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, USD, EUR to TRY – Turkish Lira Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇷 Turkish Lira (₺)

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).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 93.9 INR (100 INR = 1.06 USD). 1 EUR = 105 INR (1,000 INR = 9.53 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Ankara Varanasi 4,900 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Ankara
Varanasi

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

Ankara vs Varanasi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ankara costs about 374% more than Varanasi, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,083 per month in Ankara and $440 in Varanasi. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Varanasi, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $114 there versus $748 in Ankara.

Kindergarten costs $1,084 per month in Ankara and $39 in Varanasi. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 206% more in Ankara, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Varanasi, where all-in costs run around $293, than in Ankara at $1,389. In Varanasi it covers expenses comfortably, while in Ankara it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Varanasi – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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