Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hamra and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Hamra: $979 a month against $1,519 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $6,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

47

Cost of Living Index in Hamra
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Hamra Living Index
73

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index

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Hamra

🇱🇧 Lebanon

$979

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $979 in Hamra versus $1,519 in Istanbul.

Hamra $979
Istanbul $1,519

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,584 in Hamra versus $2,365 in Istanbul.

Hamra $1,584
Istanbul $2,365

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,189 in Hamra versus $3,212 in Istanbul.

Hamra $2,189
Istanbul $3,212

Living in Hamra costs roughly 36% less than in Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

The two cities straddle the global median: Hamra is 28% below, Istanbul is 12% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.03 LBP 1.1M

$11.81 ₺592

1.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.9 LBP 6.3M

$54.9 ₺2,754

27.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.98 LBP 893.0K

$9.26 ₺465

7.78%

Cappuccino

$4.48 LBP 401.1K

$4.30 ₺216

4.19%

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

$2.39 LBP 214.1K

$1.77 ₺89.0

35.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.84 LBP 75.0K

$0.56 ₺28.32

50.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.90 LBP 438.1K

$4.69 ₺235

4.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.87 LBP 436.2K

$7.12 ₺357

-31.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.98 LBP 176.9K

$1.25 ₺62.7

58.40%

White Bread (500g)

$0.92 LBP 82.6K

$0.88 ₺44.17

4.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 LBP 199.3K

$2.20 ₺111

1.36%

Eggs

$3.62 LBP 323.8K

$2.43 ₺122

48.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.26 LBP 1.0M

$10.48 ₺526

7.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.45 LBP 935.1K

$5.31 ₺267

96.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.83 LBP 1.3M

$21.10 ₺1,058

-29.72%

Apples (1kg)

$3.11 LBP 278.3K

$1.86 ₺93.1

67.20%

Banana (1kg)

$1.66 LBP 148.2K

$2.30 ₺115

-27.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.63 LBP 145.7K

$1.22 ₺61.0

33.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.54 LBP 137.9K

$1.80 ₺90.2

-14.44%

Potato (1kg)

$1.26 LBP 113.1K

$0.69 ₺34.83

82.61%

Onion (1kg)

$1.55 LBP 139.1K

$0.64 ₺32.16

142.19%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.22 LBP 109.2K

$1.36 ₺68.0

-10.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 LBP 64.3K

$0.58 ₺28.94

24.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.96 LBP 264.6K

$2.34 ₺117

26.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.80 LBP 967.0K

$13.03 ₺653

-17.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.32 LBP 118.1K

$2.36 ₺118

-44.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.47 LBP 220.7K

$3.32 ₺166

-25.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 ₺44.07

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.1 ₺3,316

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.99 LBP 446.3K

$1.28 ₺64.4

289.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.29 LBP 204.5K

$0.85 ₺42.80

169.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$22.59 LBP 2.0M

$11.09 ₺556

103.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.09 LBP 97.4K

$1.48 ₺74.0

-26.35%

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

$52.6K LBP 4.7B

$48.6K ₺2.4M

8.12%

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

$32.9K LBP 2.9B

$42.0K ₺2.1M

-21.68%

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

$210 LBP 18.8M

$92.7 ₺4,650

126.64%

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

$23.48 LBP 2.1M

$11.20 ₺562

109.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$38.34 LBP 3.4M

$15.89 ₺797

141.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.7 ₺3,745

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.95 ₺1,151

Cinema Ticket

$9.96 LBP 891.0K

$8.05 ₺404

23.73%

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

$686 LBP 61.4M

$948 ₺47.6K

-27.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.6K LBP 949.0M

$36.9K ₺1.9M

-71.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.4 LBP 6.1M

$53.9 ₺2,702

26.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.64 LBP 4.4M

$41.49 ₺2,081

17.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$136 LBP 12.2M

$101 ₺5,060

35.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 LBP 10.6M

$91.3 ₺4,580

29.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,014 ₺50.8K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$625 ₺31.3K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,005 ₺100.6K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,126 ₺56.5K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,988 ₺149.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,730 ₺86.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,136 ₺57.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.42

-72.79%

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

Last update for Hamra: 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

Hamra

$276 28.2%

Istanbul

$258 17% 6.5% $18

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hamra

$272 27.8%

Istanbul

$120 7.9% 55.9% $152

Eating Out

Hamra

$227 23.2%

Istanbul

$221 14.6% 2.7% $6.1

Clothing & Footwear

Hamra

$167 17.1%

Istanbul

$129 8.5% 22.7% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Hamra

$20 * 2%

Istanbul

$91 6% 356% $71

Getting Around

Hamra

$16 * 1.7%

Istanbul

$75 5% 358% $59

Accommodation & Living

Hamra

- * 0%

Istanbul

$625 41.1%

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $70 in Hamra vs $55 in Istanbul for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $276 vs $258 per month, with Istanbul cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇱🇧 Hamra

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

12:04 12:04 PM

13:04 1:04 PM

1 h ahead of Hamra

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,251,739

15,701,602

💱 Currency

Lebanese Pound LBP ل.ل

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1,000,000 LBP = 11.17 USD

1,000,000 LBP = 9.95 EUR

100 TRY = 1.99 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to LBP – Lebanese Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇱🇧 Lebanese Pound (ل.ل)

Lebanese Pound exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 89,500 LBP (100,000 LBP = 1.12 USD). 1 EUR = 100,517 LBP (1,000,000 LBP = 9.95 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 50.15 TRY (100 TRY = 1.99 USD). 1 EUR = 56.33 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

USD to LBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Hamra Istanbul 980 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Hamra
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

Hamra vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $979 in Hamra and $1,519 in Istanbul, so Hamra is about 36% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,468 in Hamra and $2,278 in Istanbul to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Childcare runs $686 in Hamra versus $948 in Istanbul. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Istanbul – a meal for two runs $55 versus $70 in Hamra. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $979 in Hamra versus $1,519 in Istanbul, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Hamra but tight or insufficient in Istanbul. The gap between the two cities makes Hamra 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.