Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Edinburgh and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,526 a month against $2,625 in Edinburgh, rent and utilities included – about $13,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

127

Cost of Living Index in Edinburgh
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Edinburgh Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index

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Edinburgh

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,625

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,526

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,625 per month in Edinburgh vs $1,526 in Istanbul, rent included.

Edinburgh $2,625
Istanbul $1,526

A couple spends around $3,915 per month in Edinburgh vs $2,399 in Istanbul, rent included.

Edinburgh $3,915
Istanbul $2,399

A family of three spends $5,205 per month in Edinburgh vs $3,272 in Istanbul, rent included.

Edinburgh $5,205
Istanbul $3,272

Edinburgh costs about 72% more than Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Edinburgh and Istanbul sit above the global median – Edinburgh by 96%, Istanbul by 14%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.18 £18.28

$11.88 ₺585

103.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$106 £80.0

$55.1 ₺2,715

92.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.45 £7.90

$9.14 ₺450

14.33%

Cappuccino

$5.24 £3.96

$4.24 ₺209

23.58%

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

$2.48 £1.88

$1.75 ₺86.0

41.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.16 £1.63

$0.54 ₺26.84

300.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.95 £6.01

$4.69 ₺231

69.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.09 £6.12

$5.97 ₺294

35.51%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 £1.28

$1.26 ₺62.1

34.92%

White Bread (500g)

$2.34 £1.77

$0.95 ₺46.82

146.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.33 £1.76

$2.31 ₺114

0.87%

Eggs

$5.17 £3.91

$2.47 ₺122

109.31%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.33 £7.05

$10.55 ₺520

-11.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.42 £7.12

$5.60 ₺276

68.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.77 £11.92

$21.21 ₺1,045

-25.65%

Apples (1kg)

$3.06 £2.32

$1.93 ₺95.1

58.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 £1.48

$2.29 ₺113

-14.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.34 £2.53

$1.28 ₺63.1

160.94%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.61 £2.73

$1.84 ₺90.8

96.20%

Potato (1kg)

$2.01 £1.52

$0.67 ₺32.87

200.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.52 £1.15

$0.59 ₺29.31

157.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.27 £0.96

$1.33 ₺65.4

-4.51%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.83 £1.39

$0.59 ₺29.11

210.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.49 £17.76

$2.36 ₺116

895.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.05 £8.35

$13.47 ₺664

-17.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.23 £2.44

$2.42 ₺119

33.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.21 £2.43

$3.54 ₺174

-9.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.10 £2.34

$0.83 ₺40.65

273.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$95.8 £72.4

$66.5 ₺3,274

44.12%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.23 £3.95

$1.35 ₺66.6

287.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.89 £1.43

$0.85 ₺42.06

122.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.39 £21.46

$10.86 ₺535

161.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.07 £1.57

$1.47 ₺72.3

40.82%

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

$37.9K £28.6K

$51.6K ₺2.5M

-26.66%

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

$39.7K £30.0K

$44.4K ₺2.2M

-10.66%

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

$324 £245

$89.2 ₺4,396

263.63%

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

$16.36 £12.37

$11.60 ₺572

41.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.13 £32.61

$16.10 ₺793

167.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.93 £33.96

$77.3 ₺3,806

-41.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.12 £17.48

$22.66 ₺1,116

2.03%

Cinema Ticket

$14.35 £10.85

$8.34 ₺411

72.06%

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

$1,783 £1,348

$974 ₺48.0K

83.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.1K £19.0K

$25.8K ₺1.3M

-2.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$81.8 £61.8

$52.7 ₺2,597

55.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.85 £37.68

$39.16 ₺1,930

27.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 £81.0

$103 ₺5,084

3.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 £88.8

$96.6 ₺4,760

21.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,623 £1,227

$994 ₺49.0K

63.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,180 £892

$629 ₺31.0K

87.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,741 £2,072

$2,024 ₺99.7K

35.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,084 £1,576

$1,155 ₺56.9K

80.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,661 £5,035

$3,160 ₺155.7K

110.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,622 £3,493

$1,838 ₺90.5K

151.49%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,603 £2,724

$1,203 ₺59.3K

199.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.77

41.09

-88.39%

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

Last update for Edinburgh: October 5, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Edinburgh

$1.2K 45.1%

Istanbul

$629 41.2% 46.7% $551

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Edinburgh

$384 14.7%

Istanbul

$117 7.7% 69.5% $267

Eating Out

Edinburgh

$362 13.9%

Istanbul

$218 14.3% 39.8% $144

Groceries & Markets

Edinburgh

$332 12.7%

Istanbul

$264 17.3% 20.5% $68

Clothing & Footwear

Edinburgh

$160 6.1%

Istanbul

$131 8.6% 18.1% $29

Getting Around

Edinburgh

$123 4.7%

Istanbul

$75 4.9% 38.6% $47

Sport & Entertainment

Edinburgh

$74 2.8%

Istanbul

$94 6.1% 27.6% $20

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,623 in Edinburgh versus $994 in Istanbul. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 199% higher in Edinburgh, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $106 in Edinburgh versus $55.0 in Istanbul. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $332 vs $264 – making Istanbul the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Edinburgh

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

01:36 1:36 AM

03:36 3:36 AM

2 h ahead of Edinburgh

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

488,050

15,701,602

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

100 TRY = 2.03 USD

100 TRY = 1.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 49.27 TRY (100 TRY = 2.03 USD). 1 EUR = 55.26 TRY (100 TRY = 1.81 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Edinburgh Istanbul 2,850 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Edinburgh
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

Edinburgh vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Edinburgh is pricier by about 72%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,937 per month in Edinburgh and $2,289 in Istanbul. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Istanbul, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $106 in Edinburgh and $55.0 in Istanbul. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,625 in Edinburgh and $1,526 in Istanbul. That's a gap of about 72%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Istanbul, where all-in costs run around $1,526, than in Edinburgh at $2,625. In Istanbul it covers expenses comfortably, while in Edinburgh it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Istanbul – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Istanbul. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Edinburgh makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.