Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cento and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,550 a month against $1,634 in Cento, rent and utilities included – about $1,000 less a year. The total is higher in Cento despite lower rent and utilities.

80

Cost of Living Index in Cento
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Cento Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index

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Cento

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,634

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,550

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,634 in Cento versus $1,550 in Istanbul.

Cento $1,634
Istanbul $1,550

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,647 in Cento versus $2,415 in Istanbul.

Cento $2,647
Istanbul $2,415

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,660 in Cento versus $3,281 in Istanbul.

Cento $3,660
Istanbul $3,281

Living in Cento is roughly 5% more expensive than in Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Cento 21% above, Istanbul 15% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.84 €17.65

$12.30 ₺609

61.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$87.8 €78.1

$54.7 ₺2,708

60.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.20 €11.74

$9.22 ₺456

43.17%

Cappuccino

$2.20 €1.96

$4.40 ₺218

-50.00%

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

$3.36 €2.99

$1.68 ₺83.1

100.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.55 €1.38

$0.59 ₺29.40

162.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.10 €5.42

$4.70 ₺233

29.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.56 €4.95

$5.91 ₺292

-5.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.36 €1.21

$1.21 ₺60.0

12.40%

White Bread (500g)

$2.85 €2.54

$0.89 ₺44.10

220.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.57 €2.29

$2.19 ₺108

17.35%

Eggs

$3.89 €3.46

$2.35 ₺116

65.53%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.10 €16.10

$10.42 ₺516

73.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.11 €10.77

$5.65 ₺280

114.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.33 €15.42

$20.94 ₺1,037

-17.24%

Apples (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$1.90 ₺94.1

13.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 €1.52

$2.31 ₺114

-26.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.88 €1.68

$1.28 ₺63.1

46.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.47 €2.20

$1.80 ₺89.0

37.22%

Potato (1kg)

$1.32 €1.17

$0.65 ₺32.16

103.08%

Onion (1kg)

$1.36 €1.21

$0.64 ₺31.91

112.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.70 €1.51

$1.25 ₺62.1

36.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 €0.50

$0.56 ₺27.58

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.79 €6.04

$2.37 ₺118

186.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.02 €7.13

$13.42 ₺664

-40.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.60 €1.43

$2.40 ₺119

-33.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 €1.66

$3.48 ₺172

-46.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.65 €1.47

$0.89 ₺43.84

85.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.56 €39.63

$67.4 ₺3,338

-33.92%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.55 €4.05

$1.29 ₺64.1

252.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.42 €1.27

$0.92 ₺45.70

54.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.64 €24.59

$10.96 ₺542

152.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.47 ₺72.9

38.10%

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

$36.8K €32.7K

$50.8K ₺2.5M

-27.54%

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

$35.6K €31.7K

$44.5K ₺2.2M

-20.01%

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

$234 €208

$88.6 ₺4,387

163.74%

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

$11.00 €9.78

$11.59 ₺574

-5.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.90 €24.82

$15.81 ₺783

76.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.9 €50.6

$77.2 ₺3,820

-26.28%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.47 €20.87

$22.74 ₺1,126

3.21%

Cinema Ticket

$9.89 €8.80

$8.14 ₺403

21.50%

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

$547 €487

$1,008 ₺49.9K

-45.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,422 €3,933

$25.6K ₺1.3M

-82.70%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.6 €78.8

$54.0 ₺2,671

64.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.28 €37.61

$40.83 ₺2,021

3.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.9 €85.3

$98.9 ₺4,895

-3.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$150 €134

$96.6 ₺4,783

55.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$533 €474

$985 ₺48.7K

-45.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$443 €394

$650 ₺32.2K

-31.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 €932

$1,983 ₺98.2K

-47.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$918 €817

$1,180 ₺58.4K

-22.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,197 €2,844

$3,138 ₺155.4K

1.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,863 €1,657

$1,780 ₺88.1K

4.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,766 €1,571

$1,205 ₺59.7K

46.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.19

40.92

-92.20%

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

Last update for Cento: 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

Cento

$443 27.1%

Istanbul

$650 41.9% 46.8% $207

Groceries & Markets

Cento

$324 19.8%

Istanbul

$260 16.8% 19.8% $64

Eating Out

Cento

$286 17.5%

Istanbul

$223 14.4% 21.9% $63

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cento

$273 16.7%

Istanbul

$116 7.5% 57.4% $157

Clothing & Footwear

Cento

$170 10.4%

Istanbul

$131 8.4% 23% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Cento

$77 4.7%

Istanbul

$93 6% 21.9% $17

Getting Around

Cento

$63 3.9%

Istanbul

$77 5% 22.3% $14

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $533 in Cento and $985 in Istanbul. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cento pays 47% 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: $88.0 in Cento vs $55.0 in Istanbul for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $324 vs $260 per month, with Istanbul cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇹 Cento

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

16:25 4:25 PM

17:25 5:25 PM

1 h ahead of Cento

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

35,582

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

Cento Istanbul 1,500 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Cento
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

Cento vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Istanbul wins on cost – living expenses run 5% lower than in Cento. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Istanbul the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 47% higher in Cento, 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: $533 in Cento versus $985 in Istanbul. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Istanbul runs roughly 51% less than in Cento. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $547 in Cento versus $1,008 in Istanbul. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,550 in Istanbul versus $1,634 in Cento, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Istanbul but tight or insufficient in Cento. The gap between the two cities makes Istanbul the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Istanbul delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,550 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Istanbul hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Cento 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 5% less than in Cento. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.