Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Iskele and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,519 a month against $2,047 in Iskele, rent and utilities included – about $6,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

98

Cost of Living Index in Iskele
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Iskele Living Index
73

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index

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Iskele

🇨🇾 Cyprus

$2,047

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,047 in Iskele versus $1,519 in Istanbul.

Iskele $2,047
Istanbul $1,519

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,137 in Iskele versus $2,365 in Istanbul.

Iskele $3,137
Istanbul $2,365

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,227 in Iskele versus $3,212 in Istanbul.

Iskele $4,227
Istanbul $3,212

Living in Iskele is roughly 35% more expensive than in Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Iskele 51% above, Istanbul 12% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.29 €19.84

$11.81 ₺592

88.74%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.6 €70.9

$54.9 ₺2,754

44.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.43 €8.40

$9.26 ₺465

1.84%

Cappuccino

$3.86 €3.43

$4.30 ₺216

-10.23%

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

$1.97 €1.76

$1.77 ₺89.0

11.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.26 €1.13

$0.56 ₺28.32

125.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.16 €4.60

$4.69 ₺235

10.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.61 €5.00

$7.12 ₺357

-21.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.90 €1.69

$1.25 ₺62.7

52.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.45 €2.18

$0.88 ₺44.17

178.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.03 €2.70

$2.20 ₺111

37.73%

Eggs

$4.77 €4.25

$2.43 ₺122

96.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.41 €11.94

$10.48 ₺526

27.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.79 €8.72

$5.31 ₺267

84.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.92 €12.40

$21.10 ₺1,058

-34.03%

Apples (1kg)

$3.39 €3.02

$1.86 ₺93.1

82.26%

Banana (1kg)

$2.33 €2.08

$2.30 ₺115

1.30%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.96 €2.64

$1.22 ₺61.0

142.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.74 €3.33

$1.80 ₺90.2

107.78%

Potato (1kg)

$2.08 €1.86

$0.69 ₺34.83

201.45%

Onion (1kg)

$1.55 €1.38

$0.64 ₺32.16

142.19%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.31 €1.16

$1.36 ₺68.0

-3.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 €0.96

$0.58 ₺28.94

86.21%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.68 €5.95

$2.34 ₺117

185.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.11 €8.11

$13.03 ₺653

-30.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.81 €1.62

$2.36 ₺118

-23.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.87 €2.56

$3.32 ₺166

-13.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.22 €1.98

$0.88 ₺44.07

152.27%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$49.59 €44.16

$66.1 ₺3,316

-25.00%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$9.93 €8.84

$1.28 ₺64.4

675.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.21 €1.97

$0.85 ₺42.80

160.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$22.51 €20.04

$11.09 ₺556

102.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.60

$1.48 ₺74.0

21.62%

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

$30.8K €27.4K

$48.6K ₺2.4M

-36.74%

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

$30.6K €27.3K

$42.0K ₺2.1M

-27.02%

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

$239 €213

$92.7 ₺4,650

157.79%

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

$20.68 €18.41

$11.20 ₺562

84.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.07 €28.55

$15.89 ₺797

101.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.8 €59.5

$74.7 ₺3,745

-10.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.71 €22.01

$22.95 ₺1,151

7.67%

Cinema Ticket

$13.64 €12.15

$8.05 ₺404

69.44%

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

$687 €611

$948 ₺47.6K

-27.61%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.6K €9,477

$36.9K ₺1.9M

-71.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$95.8 €85.3

$53.9 ₺2,702

77.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.6 €45.09

$41.49 ₺2,081

22.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 €98.2

$101 ₺5,060

9.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 €101

$91.3 ₺4,580

23.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,087 €967

$1,014 ₺50.8K

7.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$785 €699

$625 ₺31.3K

25.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,779 €1,584

$2,005 ₺100.6K

-11.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,380 €1,229

$1,126 ₺56.5K

22.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,982 €2,655

$2,988 ₺149.8K

-0.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,244 €1,998

$1,730 ₺86.8K

29.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$905 €806

$1,136 ₺57.0K

-20.38%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.93

40.42

-90.28%

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

Last update for Iskele: November 3, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Iskele

$785 38.3%

Istanbul

$625 41.1% 20.4% $160

Groceries & Markets

Iskele

$328 16%

Istanbul

$258 17% 21.2% $69

Eating Out

Iskele

$303 14.8%

Istanbul

$221 14.6% 27% $82

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Iskele

$292 14.3%

Istanbul

$120 7.9% 58.9% $172

Clothing & Footwear

Iskele

$166 8.1%

Istanbul

$129 8.5% 22.2% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Iskele

$94 4.6%

Istanbul

$91 6% 3.5% $3.3

Getting Around

Iskele

$79 3.9%

Istanbul

$75 5% 5.4% $4.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,087 in Iskele and $1,014 in Istanbul. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Istanbul pays 26% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $80 in Iskele vs $55 in Istanbul for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $328 vs $258 per month, with Istanbul cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇾 Iskele

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

13:26 1:26 PM

14:26 2:26 PM

1 h ahead of Iskele

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,490

15,701,602

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 TRY = 1.99 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Iskele Istanbul 770 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Iskele
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

Iskele vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Istanbul wins on cost – living expenses run 26% lower than in Iskele. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Istanbul the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 20% lower in Iskele. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,087 in Iskele versus $1,014 in Istanbul. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $687 in Iskele versus $948 in Istanbul. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 27% higher in Iskele. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,500. Istanbul is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.