Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bečej and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Bečej: $844 a month against $1,525 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $8,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

41

Cost of Living Index in Bečej
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Bečej Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index

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Bečej

🇷🇸 Serbia

$844

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,525

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $844 in Bečej versus $1,525 in Istanbul.

Bečej $844
Istanbul $1,525

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,261 in Bečej versus $2,390 in Istanbul.

Bečej $1,261
Istanbul $2,390

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,679 in Bečej versus $3,256 in Istanbul.

Bečej $1,679
Istanbul $3,256

Living in Bečej costs roughly 45% less than in Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Bečej is 38% below, Istanbul is 13% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.50 RSD 677

$11.96 ₺592

-45.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$33.61 RSD 3,504

$57.2 ₺2,834

-41.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.59 RSD 1,000

$9.51 ₺471

0.84%

Cappuccino

$1.18 RSD 123

$4.40 ₺218

-73.18%

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

$1.40 RSD 146

$1.75 ₺86.6

-20.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.74 RSD 77.4

$0.56 ₺27.57

32.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.46 RSD 153

$4.71 ₺233

-69.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 RSD 198

$6.14 ₺304

-69.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.98 RSD 102

$1.24 ₺61.6

-20.97%

White Bread (500g)

$1.17 RSD 122

$0.95 ₺47.25

23.16%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.45 RSD 151

$2.28 ₺113

-36.40%

Eggs

$2.11 RSD 220

$2.45 ₺121

-13.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.84 RSD 921

$10.56 ₺523

-16.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.67 RSD 696

$5.50 ₺272

21.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.32 RSD 763

$21.65 ₺1,072

-66.19%

Apples (1kg)

$0.98 RSD 102

$1.83 ₺90.6

-46.45%

Banana (1kg)

$1.85 RSD 193

$2.29 ₺113

-19.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.55 RSD 162

$1.28 ₺63.4

21.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.86 RSD 194

$1.82 ₺90.1

2.20%

Potato (1kg)

$0.70 RSD 72.9

$0.66 ₺32.74

6.06%

Onion (1kg)

$0.32 RSD 33.01

$0.63 ₺31.14

-49.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.64 RSD 66.7

$1.27 ₺62.8

-49.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 RSD 56.7

$0.56 ₺27.62

-3.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.92 RSD 409

$2.36 ₺117

66.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.78 RSD 394

$12.98 ₺642

-70.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 RSD 68.4

$2.48 ₺123

-73.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.93 RSD 97.2

$3.50 ₺174

-73.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.90 RSD 93.9

$0.82 ₺40.77

9.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.2 ₺3,228

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.87 RSD 195

$1.33 ₺65.7

40.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.80 RSD 83.0

$0.90 ₺44.60

-11.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.43 RSD 983

$10.91 ₺540

-13.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.92 RSD 201

$1.43 ₺70.7

34.27%

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

$30.9K RSD 3.2M

$49.6K ₺2.5M

-37.74%

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

$23.7K RSD 2.5M

$43.2K ₺2.1M

-45.06%

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

$62.0 RSD 6,458

$88.8 ₺4,395

-30.21%

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

$9.59 RSD 999

$11.69 ₺579

-17.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.07 RSD 2,405

$16.09 ₺797

43.38%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.23 RSD 3,047

$76.3 ₺3,776

-61.67%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.72 ₺1,125

Cinema Ticket

$8.36 RSD 872

$8.26 ₺409

1.21%

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

$433 RSD 45.2K

$1,015 ₺50.2K

-57.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.2K RSD 1.2M

$25.8K ₺1.3M

-56.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$110 RSD 11.4K

$53.3 ₺2,636

105.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.52 RSD 4,953

$40.55 ₺2,008

17.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$63.3 RSD 6,601

$100 ₺4,956

-36.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 RSD 11.7K

$93.5 ₺4,630

20.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$316 RSD 33.0K

$977 ₺48.4K

-67.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$256 RSD 26.7K

$627 ₺31.0K

-59.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$434 RSD 45.2K

$1,980 ₺98.0K

-78.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$327 RSD 34.1K

$1,147 ₺56.8K

-71.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,136 RSD 222.7K

$3,095 ₺153.2K

-31.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,750 RSD 182.4K

$1,787 ₺88.5K

-2.10%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$526 RSD 54.8K

$1,213 ₺60.1K

-56.64%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.61

40.69

-88.67%

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

Last update for Bečej: October 18, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bečej

$256 30.3%

Istanbul

$627 41.1% 145% $371

Groceries & Markets

Bečej

$174 20.6%

Istanbul

$263 17.2% 51.3% $89

Clothing & Footwear

Bečej

$150 17.8%

Istanbul

$129 8.5% 13.7% $21

Eating Out

Bečej

$115 13.6%

Istanbul

$222 14.6% 93.8% $107

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bečej

$95 11.2%

Istanbul

$117 7.6% 23.2% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Bečej

$46 5.5%

Istanbul

$93 6.1% 102% $47

Getting Around

Bečej

$9.5 * 1.1%

Istanbul

$74 4.9% 686% $65

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $316 in Bečej and $977 in Istanbul. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Istanbul pays 131% 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: $34.00 in Bečej vs $57.0 in Istanbul for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $174 vs $263 per month, with Bečej cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇸 Bečej

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

16:42 4:42 PM

17:42 5:42 PM

1 h ahead of Bečej

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

19,492

15,701,602

💱 Currency

Serbian Dinar RSD din

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 RSD = 9.59 USD

1,000 RSD = 8.53 EUR

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to RSD – Serbian Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇸 Serbian Dinar (din)

Serbian Dinar exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 104 RSD (1,000 RSD = 9.59 USD). 1 EUR = 117 RSD (1,000 RSD = 8.53 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 49.51 TRY (100 TRY = 2.02 USD). 1 EUR = 55.66 TRY (100 TRY = 1.8 EUR).

USD to RSD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bečej Istanbul 880 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Bečej
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

Bečej vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bečej is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 81% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 131% lower in Istanbul. 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: $316 in Bečej versus $977 in Istanbul. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 51% higher in Istanbul. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $844 per month in Bečej versus $1,525 in Istanbul – a 81% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $844 in Bečej versus $1,525 in Istanbul, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Bečej but tight or insufficient in Istanbul. The gap between the two cities makes Bečej the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Bečej is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Istanbul, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Bečej and Istanbul are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Bečej gentler on the wallet – expenses run 81% less than in Istanbul. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.