Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between El Mahalla El Kubra and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in El Mahalla El Kubra: $386 a month against $1,519 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $13,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

18

Cost of Living Index in El Mahalla El Kubra
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El Mahalla El Kubra Living Index
73

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index

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El Mahalla El Kubra

🇪🇬 Egypt

$386

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $386 per month in El Mahalla El Kubra vs $1,519 in Istanbul, rent included.

El Mahalla El Kubra $386
Istanbul $1,519

A couple spends around $625 per month in El Mahalla El Kubra vs $2,365 in Istanbul, rent included.

El Mahalla El Kubra $625
Istanbul $2,365

A family of three spends $864 per month in El Mahalla El Kubra vs $3,212 in Istanbul, rent included.

El Mahalla El Kubra $864
Istanbul $3,212

El Mahalla El Kubra is about 75% cheaper than Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

El Mahalla El Kubra sits 71% below the global median, while Istanbul is 12% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.99 E£215

$11.81 ₺591

-66.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$13.19 E£711

$54.9 ₺2,748

-75.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.91 E£157

$9.26 ₺463

-68.57%

Cappuccino

$1.22 E£66.0

$4.30 ₺215

-71.63%

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

$0.30 E£16.29

$1.77 ₺88.8

-83.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.10 E£5.14

$0.56 ₺28.26

-82.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.26 E£67.7

$4.69 ₺234

-73.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 E£142

$7.12 ₺356

-63.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.83 E£44.69

$1.25 ₺62.6

-33.60%

White Bread (500g)

$0.27 E£14.39

$0.88 ₺44.07

-69.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.50 E£26.91

$2.20 ₺110

-77.27%

Eggs

$1.05 E£56.8

$2.43 ₺122

-56.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$2.72 E£146

$10.48 ₺524

-74.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.80 E£205

$5.31 ₺266

-28.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.18 E£387

$21.10 ₺1,056

-65.97%

Apples (1kg)

$1.46 E£78.6

$1.86 ₺92.9

-21.51%

Banana (1kg)

$0.63 E£33.99

$2.30 ₺115

-72.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.46 E£24.84

$1.22 ₺60.8

-62.30%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.32 E£17.45

$1.80 ₺90.0

-82.22%

Potato (1kg)

$0.23 E£12.30

$0.69 ₺34.75

-66.67%

Onion (1kg)

$0.30 E£16.22

$0.64 ₺32.09

-53.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.25 E£13.48

$1.36 ₺67.8

-81.62%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.22 E£11.62

$0.58 ₺28.88

-62.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.82 E£98.1

$2.34 ₺117

-22.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.25 E£283

$13.03 ₺652

-59.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.11 E£59.8

$2.36 ₺118

-52.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 E£116

$3.32 ₺166

-35.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.16 E£8.54

$0.88 ₺43.97

-81.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.1 ₺3,309

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.32 E£17.36

$1.28 ₺64.3

-75.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.43 E£23.07

$0.85 ₺42.70

-49.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$0.92 E£49.70

$11.09 ₺555

-91.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.37 E£19.98

$1.48 ₺73.9

-75.00%

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

$30.5K E£1.6M

$48.6K ₺2.4M

-37.28%

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

$22.0K E£1.2M

$42.0K ₺2.1M

-47.63%

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

$13.25 E£714

$92.7 ₺4,639

-85.71%

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

$3.73 E£201

$11.20 ₺560

-66.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.07 E£435

$15.89 ₺795

-49.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$15.18 E£818

$74.7 ₺3,737

-79.67%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.95 ₺1,149

Cinema Ticket

$2.75 E£148

$8.05 ₺403

-65.84%

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

$29.42 E£1,586

$948 ₺47.5K

-96.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,981 E£106.8K

$36.9K ₺1.8M

-94.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$15.96 E£860

$53.9 ₺2,696

-70.38%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.93 E£2,206

$41.49 ₺2,076

-1.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$97.2 E£5,240

$101 ₺5,049

-3.64%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$52.2 E£2,813

$91.3 ₺4,570

-42.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$128 E£6,872

$1,014 ₺50.7K

-87.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$70.7 E£3,809

$625 ₺31.3K

-88.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$249 E£13.4K

$2,005 ₺100.4K

-87.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$133 E£7,151

$1,126 ₺56.3K

-88.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$718 E£38.7K

$2,988 ₺149.5K

-75.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$328 E£17.7K

$1,730 ₺86.6K

-81.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,136 ₺56.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

21.33

40.42

-47.23%

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

Last update for El Mahalla El Kubra: November 2, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

El Mahalla El Kubra

$106 27.4%

Istanbul

$258 17% 144% $153

Clothing & Footwear

El Mahalla El Kubra

$93 24%

Istanbul

$129 8.5% 39.4% $37

Accommodation & Living

El Mahalla El Kubra

$71 18.3%

Istanbul

$625 41.1% 784% $554

Eating Out

El Mahalla El Kubra

$69 17.7%

Istanbul

$221 14.6% 223% $152

Monthly Utilities & Internet

El Mahalla El Kubra

$25 6.5%

Istanbul

$120 7.9% 378% $95

Sport & Entertainment

El Mahalla El Kubra

$21 5.4%

Istanbul

$91 6% 339% $70

Getting Around

El Mahalla El Kubra

$3.1 * 0.8%

Istanbul

$75 5% 2325% $72

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $128 in El Mahalla El Kubra versus $1,014 in Istanbul. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $13 in El Mahalla El Kubra versus $55 in Istanbul. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $106 vs $258 – making El Mahalla El Kubra the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇬 El Mahalla El Kubra

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

03:46 3:46 AM

04:46 4:46 AM

1 h ahead of El Mahalla El Kubra

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

431,052

15,701,602

💱 Currency

Egyptian Pound EGP £

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

100 EGP = 1.86 USD

100 EGP = 1.65 EUR

100 TRY = 2 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to EGP – Egyptian Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇬 Egyptian Pound (£)

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 53.9 EGP (100 EGP = 1.86 USD). 1 EUR = 60.51 EGP (100 EGP = 1.65 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 50.04 TRY (100 TRY = 2 USD). 1 EUR = 56.18 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

USD to EGP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

El Mahalla El Kubra Istanbul 1,130 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

El Mahalla El Kubra
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

El Mahalla El Kubra vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $386 in El Mahalla El Kubra, $1,519 in Istanbul – El Mahalla El Kubra comes out roughly 75% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $580 per month in El Mahalla El Kubra and $2,278 in Istanbul. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in El Mahalla El Kubra, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $128 there versus $1,014 in Istanbul.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $386 in El Mahalla El Kubra and $1,519 in Istanbul. That makes El Mahalla El Kubra about 75% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $29 per month in El Mahalla El Kubra and $948 in Istanbul. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in El Mahalla El Kubra, where all-in costs run around $386, than in Istanbul at $1,519. In El Mahalla El Kubra it covers expenses comfortably, while in Istanbul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.