Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Biella and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Biella: $1,453 a month against $1,550 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $1,200 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Istanbul outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

71

Cost of Living Index in Biella
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Biella Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index

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Biella

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,453

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,550

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,453 in Biella versus $1,550 in Istanbul.

Biella $1,453
Istanbul $1,550

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,249 in Biella versus $2,415 in Istanbul.

Biella $2,249
Istanbul $2,415

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,046 in Biella versus $3,281 in Istanbul.

Biella $3,046
Istanbul $3,281

Living in Biella costs roughly 6% less than in Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Biella 8% above, Istanbul 15% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.91 €15.04

$12.30 ₺609

37.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.0 €59.6

$54.7 ₺2,708

22.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.80 €9.61

$9.22 ₺456

17.14%

Cappuccino

$1.77 €1.57

$4.40 ₺218

-59.77%

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

$2.92 €2.60

$1.68 ₺83.1

73.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 €1.16

$0.59 ₺29.40

122.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.11 €4.54

$4.70 ₺233

8.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 €3.99

$5.91 ₺292

-24.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.24 €1.10

$1.21 ₺60.0

2.48%

White Bread (500g)

$2.19 €1.94

$0.89 ₺44.10

146.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.90 €2.58

$2.19 ₺108

32.42%

Eggs

$3.75 €3.34

$2.35 ₺116

59.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.50 €12.90

$10.42 ₺516

39.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.11 €8.11

$5.65 ₺280

61.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.04 €18.72

$20.94 ₺1,037

0.48%

Apples (1kg)

$3.11 €2.77

$1.90 ₺94.1

63.68%

Banana (1kg)

$2.13 €1.90

$2.31 ₺114

-7.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.00 €1.78

$1.28 ₺63.1

56.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.65 €4.14

$1.80 ₺89.0

158.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.87 €1.67

$0.65 ₺32.16

187.69%

Onion (1kg)

$1.77 €1.57

$0.64 ₺31.91

176.56%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 €1.36

$1.25 ₺62.1

22.40%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.34 €0.30

$0.56 ₺27.58

-39.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.63 €5.90

$2.37 ₺118

179.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.57 €5.84

$13.42 ₺664

-51.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.99 €1.77

$2.40 ₺119

-17.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.65 €2.36

$3.48 ₺172

-23.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.01 €1.79

$0.89 ₺43.84

125.84%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$38.10 €33.89

$67.4 ₺3,338

-43.50%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$14.72 €13.10

$1.29 ₺64.1

1041.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.70 €1.51

$0.92 ₺45.70

84.78%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.90 €25.70

$10.96 ₺542

163.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.05 €1.82

$1.47 ₺72.9

39.46%

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

$35.7K €31.7K

$50.8K ₺2.5M

-29.79%

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

$35.0K €31.2K

$44.5K ₺2.2M

-21.35%

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

$192 €171

$88.6 ₺4,387

117.21%

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

$7.90 €7.03

$11.59 ₺574

-31.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.83 €23.87

$15.81 ₺783

69.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.3 €59.0

$77.2 ₺3,820

-14.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.49 €21.78

$22.74 ₺1,126

7.70%

Cinema Ticket

$8.75 €7.78

$8.14 ₺403

7.49%

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

$688 €612

$1,008 ₺49.9K

-31.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.2K €9,087

$25.6K ₺1.3M

-60.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.9 €77.3

$54.0 ₺2,671

61.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.89 €39.93

$40.83 ₺2,021

9.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.3 €75.9

$98.9 ₺4,895

-13.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$111 €98.4

$96.6 ₺4,783

14.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$421 €375

$985 ₺48.7K

-57.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$365 €325

$650 ₺32.2K

-43.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$687 €611

$1,983 ₺98.2K

-65.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$568 €505

$1,180 ₺58.4K

-51.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,589 €1,414

$3,138 ₺155.4K

-49.35%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$871 €775

$1,780 ₺88.1K

-51.05%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,889 €1,680

$1,205 ₺59.7K

56.71%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.65

40.92

-91.08%

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

Last update for Biella: October 12, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Biella

$365 25.1%

Istanbul

$650 41.9% 78.1% $285

Groceries & Markets

Biella

$320 22%

Istanbul

$260 16.8% 19% $61

Eating Out

Biella

$240 16.5%

Istanbul

$223 14.4% 7.1% $17

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Biella

$227 15.6%

Istanbul

$116 7.5% 48.9% $111

Clothing & Footwear

Biella

$147 10.2%

Istanbul

$131 8.4% 11.4% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Biella

$84 5.8%

Istanbul

$93 6% 11.5% $9.6

Getting Around

Biella

$69 4.8%

Istanbul

$77 5% 10.9% $7.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $421 in Biella and $985 in Istanbul. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Biella pays 57% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $67.0 in Biella vs $55.0 in Istanbul for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $260 per month, with Istanbul cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇹 Biella

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

13:32 1:32 PM

14:32 2:32 PM

1 h ahead of Biella

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

45,740

15,701,602

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Biella Istanbul 1,760 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Biella
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

Biella vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Biella and Istanbul differ by about 7% in total monthly costs ($1,453 vs $1,550 including rent). Biella is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 57% higher in Biella, 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: $421 in Biella versus $985 in Istanbul. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $688 in Biella versus $1,008 in Istanbul. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Istanbul pay roughly 23% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,453 in Biella versus $1,550 in Istanbul, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Biella but tight or insufficient in Istanbul. The gap between the two cities makes Biella the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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, Biella 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 Biella gentler on the wallet – expenses run 7% less than in Istanbul. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.