Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ashkelon and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,519 a month against $2,345 in Ashkelon, rent and utilities included – about $9,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

112

Cost of Living Index in Ashkelon
Learn more

Ashkelon Living Index
73

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index

Jump to prices

Ashkelon

🇮🇱 Israel

$2,345

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,345 in Ashkelon versus $1,519 in Istanbul.

Ashkelon $2,345
Istanbul $1,519

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,478 in Ashkelon versus $2,365 in Istanbul.

Ashkelon $3,478
Istanbul $2,365

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,611 in Ashkelon versus $3,212 in Istanbul.

Ashkelon $4,611
Istanbul $3,212

Living in Ashkelon is roughly 54% more expensive than in Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Ashkelon 73% above, Istanbul 12% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.53 ₪72.2

$11.81 ₺592

90.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.5 ₪255

$54.9 ₺2,754

44.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$17.33 ₪55.5

$9.26 ₺465

87.15%

Cappuccino

$4.67 ₪14.96

$4.30 ₺216

8.60%

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

$3.38 ₪10.85

$1.77 ₺89.0

90.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 ₪8.81

$0.56 ₺28.32

391.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$11.51 ₪36.89

$4.69 ₺235

145.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.42 ₪23.78

$7.12 ₺357

4.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.32 ₪7.43

$1.25 ₺62.7

85.60%

White Bread (500g)

$2.59 ₪8.30

$0.88 ₺44.17

194.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.00 ₪9.62

$2.20 ₺111

36.36%

Eggs

$4.66 ₪14.93

$2.43 ₺122

91.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$20.43 ₪65.5

$10.48 ₺526

94.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.54 ₪40.19

$5.31 ₺267

136.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$23.99 ₪76.9

$21.10 ₺1,058

13.70%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 ₪13.00

$1.86 ₺93.1

117.74%

Banana (1kg)

$3.27 ₪10.50

$2.30 ₺115

42.17%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.27 ₪7.29

$1.22 ₺61.0

86.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.11 ₪9.95

$1.80 ₺90.2

72.78%

Potato (1kg)

$1.55 ₪4.97

$0.69 ₺34.83

124.64%

Onion (1kg)

$1.88 ₪6.01

$0.64 ₺32.16

193.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.57 ₪8.23

$1.36 ₺68.0

88.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 ₪3.13

$0.58 ₺28.94

68.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.54 ₪43.40

$2.34 ₺117

478.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.46 ₪36.72

$13.03 ₺653

-12.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.53 ₪8.10

$2.36 ₺118

7.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.96 ₪6.27

$3.32 ₺166

-40.96%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.60 ₪8.33

$0.88 ₺44.07

195.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.47 ₪143

$66.1 ₺3,316

-32.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.87 ₪12.40

$1.28 ₺64.4

202.34%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.64 ₪5.25

$0.85 ₺42.80

92.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$37.93 ₪122

$11.09 ₺556

242.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.58 ₪8.26

$1.48 ₺74.0

74.32%

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

$53.2K ₪170.5K

$48.6K ₺2.4M

9.38%

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

$51.6K ₪165.5K

$42.0K ₺2.1M

23.02%

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

$207 ₪664

$92.7 ₺4,650

123.31%

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

$11.78 ₪37.76

$11.20 ₺562

5.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.43 ₪130

$15.89 ₺797

154.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.86 ₪147

$74.7 ₺3,745

-38.59%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$31.79 ₪102

$22.95 ₺1,151

38.52%

Cinema Ticket

$15.39 ₪49.32

$8.05 ₺404

91.18%

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

$1,195 ₪3,831

$948 ₺47.6K

26.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.9K ₺1.9M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 ₪332

$53.9 ₺2,702

92.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$74.1 ₪237

$41.49 ₺2,081

78.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 ₪357

$101 ₺5,060

10.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$143 ₪460

$91.3 ₺4,580

57.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,121 ₪3,592

$1,014 ₺50.8K

10.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$952 ₪3,052

$625 ₺31.3K

52.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,737 ₪5,567

$2,005 ₺100.6K

-13.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,460 ₪4,679

$1,126 ₺56.5K

29.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,845 ₪18.7K

$2,988 ₺149.8K

95.62%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,481 ₪17.6K

$1,730 ₺86.8K

216.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,831 ₪9,074

$1,136 ₺57.0K

149.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.98

40.42

-87.68%

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

Last update for Ashkelon: 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

Ashkelon

$952 40.6%

Istanbul

$625 41.1% 34.4% $328

Groceries & Markets

Ashkelon

$410 17.5%

Istanbul

$258 17% 37% $152

Eating Out

Ashkelon

$385 16.4%

Istanbul

$221 14.6% 42.6% $164

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ashkelon

$259 11.1%

Istanbul

$120 7.9% 53.8% $139

Clothing & Footwear

Ashkelon

$195 8.3%

Istanbul

$129 8.5% 33.5% $65

Sport & Entertainment

Ashkelon

$77 3.3%

Istanbul

$91 6% 18.4% $14

Getting Around

Ashkelon

$67 2.9%

Istanbul

$75 5% 12.3% $8.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,121 in Ashkelon and $1,014 in Istanbul. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ashkelon pays about 2.5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $79 in Ashkelon vs $55 in Istanbul for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $410 vs $258 per month, with Istanbul cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇱 Ashkelon

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

03:18 3:18 AM

04:18 4:18 AM

1 h ahead of Ashkelon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

152,439

15,701,602

💱 Currency

Israeli New Shekel ILS ₪

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 ILS = 0.312 USD

1 ILS = 0.278 EUR

100 TRY = 1.99 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to ILS – Israeli New Shekel Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇱 Israeli New Shekel (₪)

Israeli New Shekel exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3.21 ILS (1 ILS = 0.312 USD). 1 EUR = 3.6 ILS (1 ILS = 0.278 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 50.15 TRY (100 TRY = 1.99 USD). 1 EUR = 56.3 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

USD to ILS in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ashkelon Istanbul 1,150 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Ashkelon
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

Ashkelon vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Istanbul wins on cost – living expenses run 35% lower than in Ashkelon. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Istanbul the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Ashkelon is about 2.5 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,121 in Ashkelon versus $1,014 in Istanbul. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Istanbul – a meal for two runs $55 versus $79 in Ashkelon. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $2,345 per month in Ashkelon versus $1,519 in Istanbul – Istanbul is about 35% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,500. Istanbul 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.

Safety-wise, Ashkelon and Istanbul are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Istanbul wins on affordability, Ashkelon on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.