Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cantù and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,550 a month against $1,674 in Cantù, rent and utilities included – about $1,500 less a year. The total is higher in Cantù despite lower rent and utilities.

84

Cost of Living Index in Cantù
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Cantù Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index

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Cantù

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,674

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,550

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,674 in Cantù versus $1,550 in Istanbul.

Cantù $1,674
Istanbul $1,550

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,639 in Cantù versus $2,415 in Istanbul.

Cantù $2,639
Istanbul $2,415

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,605 in Cantù versus $3,281 in Istanbul.

Cantù $3,605
Istanbul $3,281

Living in Cantù is roughly 8% more expensive than in Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Cantù 24% above, Istanbul 15% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.36 €19.89

$12.30 ₺609

81.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$89.6 €79.7

$54.7 ₺2,708

63.77%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.96 €9.75

$9.22 ₺456

18.87%

Cappuccino

$1.78 €1.58

$4.40 ₺218

-59.55%

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

$2.90 €2.58

$1.68 ₺83.1

72.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 €1.45

$0.59 ₺29.40

176.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 €5.10

$4.70 ₺233

22.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.16 €5.48

$5.91 ₺292

4.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.21 ₺60.0

13.22%

White Bread (500g)

$2.28 €2.03

$0.89 ₺44.10

156.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.40 €3.02

$2.19 ₺108

55.25%

Eggs

$4.18 €3.72

$2.35 ₺116

77.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.92 €13.27

$10.42 ₺516

43.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.81 €11.39

$5.65 ₺280

126.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.69 €15.74

$20.94 ₺1,037

-15.52%

Apples (1kg)

$2.81 €2.50

$1.90 ₺94.1

47.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.60 €1.42

$2.31 ₺114

-30.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.08 €2.74

$1.28 ₺63.1

140.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.26 €2.01

$1.80 ₺89.0

25.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$0.65 ₺32.16

184.62%

Onion (1kg)

$1.76 €1.56

$0.64 ₺31.91

175.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.70 €1.51

$1.25 ₺62.1

36.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.61 €0.54

$0.56 ₺27.58

8.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.62 €5.89

$2.37 ₺118

179.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.68 €5.05

$13.42 ₺664

-57.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 €0.82

$2.40 ₺119

-61.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.67 €1.49

$3.48 ₺172

-52.01%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.61 €1.43

$0.89 ₺43.84

80.90%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$39.33 €34.98

$67.4 ₺3,338

-41.67%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.45 €4.85

$1.29 ₺64.1

322.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.22 €1.97

$0.92 ₺45.70

141.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$38.55 €34.29

$10.96 ₺542

251.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 €1.82

$1.47 ₺72.9

38.78%

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

$36.4K €32.3K

$50.8K ₺2.5M

-28.41%

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

$34.3K €30.5K

$44.5K ₺2.2M

-22.93%

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

$192 €171

$88.6 ₺4,387

116.49%

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

$12.91 €11.49

$11.59 ₺574

11.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.52 €24.48

$15.81 ₺783

74.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.5 €47.59

$77.2 ₺3,820

-30.66%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.72 €21.10

$22.74 ₺1,126

4.31%

Cinema Ticket

$11.24 €10.00

$8.14 ₺403

38.08%

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

$721 €641

$1,008 ₺49.9K

-28.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,148 €6,358

$25.6K ₺1.3M

-72.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.9 €78.2

$54.0 ₺2,671

62.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.32 €39.42

$40.83 ₺2,021

8.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 €95.7

$98.9 ₺4,895

8.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$128 €114

$96.6 ₺4,783

32.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$771 €686

$985 ₺48.7K

-21.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$527 €469

$650 ₺32.2K

-18.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,137 €1,012

$1,983 ₺98.2K

-42.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$884 €787

$1,180 ₺58.4K

-25.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,313 €2,947

$3,138 ₺155.4K

5.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,168 €1,929

$1,780 ₺88.1K

21.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,815 €2,504

$1,205 ₺59.7K

133.49%

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 Cantù: October 10, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cantù

$527 31.5%

Istanbul

$650 41.9% 23.3% $123

Groceries & Markets

Cantù

$318 19%

Istanbul

$260 16.8% 18.4% $59

Eating Out

Cantù

$292 17.5%

Istanbul

$223 14.4% 23.6% $69

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cantù

$232 13.9%

Istanbul

$116 7.5% 50% $116

Clothing & Footwear

Cantù

$166 9.9%

Istanbul

$131 8.4% 21.2% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Cantù

$76 4.5%

Istanbul

$93 6% 23% $17

Getting Around

Cantù

$62 3.7%

Istanbul

$77 5% 23.4% $15

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $771 in Cantù and $985 in Istanbul. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cantù pays 133% 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: $90.0 in Cantù vs $55.0 in Istanbul for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $318 vs $260 per month, with Istanbul cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇹 Cantù

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

17:50 5:50 PM

18:50 6:50 PM

1 h ahead of Cantù

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

35,153

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

Cantù Istanbul 1,680 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Cantù
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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

Cantù vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cantù and Istanbul differ by about 8% in total monthly costs ($1,674 vs $1,550 including rent). Istanbul is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 133% higher in Cantù, 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: $771 in Cantù versus $985 in Istanbul. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $721 in Cantù versus $1,008 in Istanbul. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 23% higher in Cantù. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,550 in Istanbul versus $1,674 in Cantù, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Istanbul but tight or insufficient in Cantù. The gap between the two cities makes Istanbul 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, Cantù 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 Istanbul gentler on the wallet – expenses run 8% less than in Cantù. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.