Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Al-hawamidiyah

For one person, living is cheaper in Al-hawamidiyah: $430 a month against $1,519 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $13,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

73

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index
20

Cost of Living Index in Al-hawamidiyah
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Al-hawamidiyah Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

Al-hawamidiyah

🇪🇬 Egypt

$430

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Al-hawamidiyah

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Istanbul and in Al-hawamidiyah actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,519 per month in Istanbul vs $430 in Al-hawamidiyah, rent included.

Istanbul $1,519
Al-hawamidiyah $430

A couple spends around $2,365 per month in Istanbul vs $704 in Al-hawamidiyah, rent included.

Istanbul $2,365
Al-hawamidiyah $704

A family of three spends $3,212 per month in Istanbul vs $977 in Al-hawamidiyah, rent included.

Istanbul $3,212
Al-hawamidiyah $977

Istanbul costs about 253% more than Al-hawamidiyah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Istanbul sits 12% above the global median, while Al-hawamidiyah is 68% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.81 ₺592

$4.04 E£217

192.33%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.9 ₺2,754

$17.42 E£937

215.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.26 ₺465

$4.42 E£238

109.50%

Cappuccino

$4.30 ₺216

$1.22 E£65.6

252.46%

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

$1.77 ₺89.0

$0.30 E£16.32

490.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺28.32

$0.12 E£6.31

366.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.69 ₺235

$1.26 E£67.9

272.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.12 ₺357

$2.74 E£148

159.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 ₺62.7

$0.81 E£43.33

54.32%

White Bread (500g)

$0.88 ₺44.17

$0.66 E£35.58

33.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 ₺111

$0.61 E£32.57

260.66%

Eggs

$2.43 ₺122

$1.09 E£58.7

122.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.48 ₺526

$3.51 E£189

198.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.31 ₺267

$4.11 E£221

29.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.10 ₺1,058

$8.80 E£473

139.77%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 ₺93.1

$1.39 E£74.6

33.81%

Banana (1kg)

$2.30 ₺115

$0.75 E£40.26

206.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.22 ₺61.0

$0.48 E£26.00

154.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺90.2

$0.32 E£17.23

462.50%

Potato (1kg)

$0.69 ₺34.83

$0.23 E£12.34

200.00%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺32.16

$0.28 E£14.84

128.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.36 ₺68.0

$0.23 E£12.29

491.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 ₺28.94

$0.17 E£8.94

241.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.34 ₺117

$1.80 E£96.6

30.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 ₺653

$5.28 E£284

146.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.36 ₺118

$1.13 E£60.7

108.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.32 ₺166

$2.05 E£110

61.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 ₺44.07

$0.20 E£11.02

340.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.1 ₺3,316

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 ₺64.4

$0.55 E£29.39

132.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 ₺42.80

$0.17 E£8.88

400.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.09 ₺556

$1.06 E£56.9

946.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 ₺74.0

$0.40 E£21.58

270.00%

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

$48.6K ₺2.4M

$31.4K E£1.7M

54.96%

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

$42.0K ₺2.1M

$24.0K E£1.3M

74.55%

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

$92.7 ₺4,650

$13.45 E£723

589.29%

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

$11.20 ₺562

$6.43 E£346

74.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.89 ₺797

$12.64 E£679

25.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.7 ₺3,745

$15.26 E£821

389.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.95 ₺1,151

Cinema Ticket

$8.05 ₺404

$2.65 E£143

203.77%

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

$948 ₺47.6K

$80.8 E£4,343

1074.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.9K ₺1.9M

$1,946 E£104.7K

1796.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₺2,702

$31.19 E£1,677

72.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.49 ₺2,081

$42.90 E£2,307

-3.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 ₺5,060

$119 E£6,393

-15.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.3 ₺4,580

$53.0 E£2,848

72.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,014 ₺50.8K

$127 E£6,833

697.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$625 ₺31.3K

$72.4 E£3,892

762.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,005 ₺100.6K

$246 E£13.2K

714.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,126 ₺56.5K

$137 E£7,348

723.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,988 ₺149.8K

$704 E£37.9K

324.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,730 ₺86.8K

$326 E£17.5K

430.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,136 ₺57.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.42

21.33

89.50%

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

Last update for Istanbul: November 2, 2026

Last update for Al-hawamidiyah: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$625 41.1%

Al-hawamidiyah

$72 16.8% 88.4% $552

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$258 17%

Al-hawamidiyah

$118 27.5% 54.2% $140

Eating Out

Istanbul

$221 14.6%

Al-hawamidiyah

$74 17.1% 66.6% $147

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$129 8.5%

Al-hawamidiyah

$111 25.7% 14.5% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$120 7.9%

Al-hawamidiyah

$33 7.6% 72.9% $87

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$91 6%

Al-hawamidiyah

$21 4.8% 77.3% $70

Getting Around

Istanbul

$75 5%

Al-hawamidiyah

$2.2 * 0.5% 97.1% $73

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,014 in Istanbul versus $127 in Al-hawamidiyah. 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 $55 in Istanbul versus $17 in Al-hawamidiyah. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $118 – making Al-hawamidiyah the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇪🇬 Al-hawamidiyah

🕒 Local time

02:05 2:05 AM

01:05 1:05 AM

1 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

155,055

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 1.99 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

100 EGP = 1.86 USD

100 EGP = 1.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, USD, EUR to TRY – Turkish Lira Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇷 Turkish Lira (₺)

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 50.15 TRY (100 TRY = 1.99 USD). 1 EUR = 56.05 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 53.77 EGP (100 EGP = 1.86 USD). 1 EUR = 60.09 EGP (100 EGP = 1.66 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Istanbul Al-hawamidiyah 1,250 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Al-hawamidiyah

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

Istanbul vs Al-hawamidiyah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Istanbul costs about 253% more than Al-hawamidiyah, 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 $2,278 per month in Istanbul and $646 in Al-hawamidiyah. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Al-hawamidiyah, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $127 there versus $1,014 in Istanbul.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $55 in Istanbul and $17 in Al-hawamidiyah. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 118% more in Istanbul, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Al-hawamidiyah, where all-in costs run around $430, than in Istanbul at $1,519. In Al-hawamidiyah it covers expenses comfortably, while in Istanbul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Al-hawamidiyah – 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.