Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ilford and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,550 a month against $2,414 in Ilford, rent and utilities included – about $10,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Ilford
Learn more

Ilford Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index

Jump to prices

Ilford

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,414

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,550

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,414 per month in Ilford vs $1,550 in Istanbul, rent included.

Ilford $2,414
Istanbul $1,550

A couple spends around $3,764 per month in Ilford vs $2,415 in Istanbul, rent included.

Ilford $3,764
Istanbul $2,415

A family of three spends $5,115 per month in Ilford vs $3,281 in Istanbul, rent included.

Ilford $5,115
Istanbul $3,281

Ilford costs about 56% more than Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Ilford and Istanbul sit above the global median – Ilford by 79%, Istanbul by 15%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.28 £15.97

$12.30 ₺609

73.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$93.9 £70.5

$54.7 ₺2,708

71.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.51 £7.89

$9.22 ₺456

13.99%

Cappuccino

$4.60 £3.45

$4.40 ₺218

4.55%

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

$2.81 £2.11

$1.68 ₺83.1

67.26%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 £1.38

$0.59 ₺29.40

210.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.91 £5.93

$4.70 ₺233

68.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.43 £4.82

$5.91 ₺292

8.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.64 £1.23

$1.21 ₺60.0

35.54%

White Bread (500g)

$1.72 £1.29

$0.89 ₺44.10

93.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.30 £1.72

$2.19 ₺108

5.02%

Eggs

$4.60 £3.45

$2.35 ₺116

95.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.46 £7.09

$10.42 ₺516

-9.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.61 £7.21

$5.65 ₺280

70.09%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.45 £11.59

$20.94 ₺1,037

-26.22%

Apples (1kg)

$2.94 £2.21

$1.90 ₺94.1

54.74%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 £1.06

$2.31 ₺114

-38.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.96 £2.22

$1.28 ₺63.1

131.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.28 £2.46

$1.80 ₺89.0

82.22%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 £1.25

$0.65 ₺32.16

156.92%

Onion (1kg)

$1.77 £1.33

$0.64 ₺31.91

176.56%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 £0.96

$1.25 ₺62.1

2.40%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 £1.33

$0.56 ₺27.58

216.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.20 £16.65

$2.37 ₺118

836.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.88 £8.16

$13.42 ₺664

-18.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.04 £2.28

$2.40 ₺119

26.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.92 £2.94

$3.48 ₺172

12.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.43 £2.57

$0.89 ₺43.84

285.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$97.6 £73.2

$67.4 ₺3,338

44.79%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 £4.05

$1.29 ₺64.1

317.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.61 £1.96

$0.92 ₺45.70

183.70%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$25.45 £19.09

$10.96 ₺542

132.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.11 £1.58

$1.47 ₺72.9

43.54%

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

$38.9K £29.2K

$50.8K ₺2.5M

-23.32%

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

$40.9K £30.7K

$44.5K ₺2.2M

-8.08%

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

$334 £250

$88.6 ₺4,387

276.39%

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

$18.31 £13.73

$11.59 ₺574

57.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.86 £30.65

$15.81 ₺783

158.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.93 £33.70

$77.2 ₺3,820

-41.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.74 ₺1,126

Cinema Ticket

$17.09 £12.82

$8.14 ₺403

109.95%

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

$2,535 £1,902

$1,008 ₺49.9K

151.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.1K £26.3K

$25.6K ₺1.3M

37.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.0 £66.0

$54.0 ₺2,671

63.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.25 £34.69

$40.83 ₺2,021

13.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.0 £69.8

$98.9 ₺4,895

-5.96%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.2 £72.1

$96.6 ₺4,783

-0.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,350 £1,013

$985 ₺48.7K

37.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 £768

$650 ₺32.2K

57.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,960 £2,221

$1,983 ₺98.2K

49.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,099 £1,575

$1,180 ₺58.4K

77.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,983 £3,738

$3,138 ₺155.4K

58.81%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,831 £2,874

$1,780 ₺88.1K

115.24%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,485 £2,614

$1,205 ₺59.7K

189.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.04

40.92

-87.68%

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

Last update for Ilford: 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

Ilford

$1K 42.4%

Istanbul

$650 41.9% 36.5% $374

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ilford

$393 16.3%

Istanbul

$116 7.5% 70.5% $277

Eating Out

Ilford

$328 13.6%

Istanbul

$223 14.4% 31.9% $105

Groceries & Markets

Ilford

$315 13.1%

Istanbul

$260 16.8% 17.6% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Ilford

$146 6%

Istanbul

$131 8.4% 10.3% $15

Getting Around

Ilford

$130 5.4%

Istanbul

$77 5% 40.8% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Ilford

$79 3.3%

Istanbul

$93 6% 18.1% $14

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,350 in Ilford versus $985 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 189% higher in Ilford, 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 $94.0 in Ilford versus $55.0 in Istanbul. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $315 vs $260 – making Istanbul the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Ilford

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

23:02 11:02 PM

01:02 1:02 AM

2 h ahead of Ilford

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

168,168

15,701,602

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 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 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 49.51 TRY (100 TRY = 2.02 USD). 1 EUR = 55.66 TRY (100 TRY = 1.8 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ilford Istanbul 2,490 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Ilford
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

Ilford vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ilford costs about 56% more than Istanbul, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,620 per month in Ilford and $2,325 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.

Groceries cost about 21% more in Ilford, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $94.0 in Ilford and $55.0 in Istanbul. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Istanbul, where all-in costs run around $1,550, than in Ilford at $2,414. In Istanbul it covers expenses comfortably, while in Ilford it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Istanbul costs $1,550 versus $2,414 in Ilford. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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, Ilford makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.