Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Amarante

For one person, living costs are similar in Istanbul and in Amarante: $1,550 and $1,492 a month, rent and utilities included.

75

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index
70

Cost of Living Index in Amarante
Learn more

Amarante Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,550

/mo nomad

Amarante

🇵🇹 Portugal

$1,492

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Amarante

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 Amarante actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,550 in Istanbul versus $1,492 in Amarante.

Istanbul $1,550
Amarante $1,492

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,415 in Istanbul versus $2,025 in Amarante.

Istanbul $2,415
Amarante $2,025

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,281 in Istanbul versus $2,558 in Amarante.

Istanbul $3,281
Amarante $2,558

Living in Istanbul is roughly 4% more expensive than in Amarante, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Istanbul 15% above, Amarante 11% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.30 ₺609

$6.29 €5.60

95.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.7 ₺2,708

$22.17 €19.72

146.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.22 ₺456

$6.38 €5.68

44.51%

Cappuccino

$4.40 ₺218

$0.82 €0.73

436.59%

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

$1.68 ₺83.1

$1.52 €1.36

10.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.59 ₺29.40

$1.49 €1.33

-60.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.70 ₺233

$1.27 €1.13

270.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.91 ₺292

$1.42 €1.26

316.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.21 ₺60.0

$1.12 €0.99

8.04%

White Bread (500g)

$0.89 ₺44.10

$0.68 €0.61

30.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.19 ₺108

$1.26 €1.12

73.81%

Eggs

$2.35 ₺116

$2.99 €2.66

-21.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.42 ₺516

$13.11 €11.66

-20.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.65 ₺280

$2.51 €2.23

125.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.94 ₺1,037

$2.96 €2.63

607.43%

Apples (1kg)

$1.90 ₺94.1

$1.57 €1.40

21.02%

Banana (1kg)

$2.31 ₺114

$1.47 €1.31

57.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.28 ₺63.1

$1.84 €1.64

-30.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺89.0

$2.53 €2.25

-28.85%

Potato (1kg)

$0.65 ₺32.16

$1.76 €1.57

-63.07%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺31.91

$2.12 €1.88

-69.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 ₺62.1

$1.26 €1.12

-0.79%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺27.58

$1.09 €0.97

-48.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.37 ₺118

$6.83 €6.07

-65.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.42 ₺664

$4.54 €4.04

195.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.40 ₺119

$1.35 €1.20

77.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 ₺172

$3.32 €2.95

4.82%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.89 ₺43.84

$2.10 €1.87

-57.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$67.4 ₺3,338

$41.35 €36.78

63.07%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.29 ₺64.1

$1.19 €1.05

8.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 ₺45.70

$1.24 €1.10

-25.81%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.96 ₺542

$21.12 €18.79

-48.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ₺72.9

$2.14 €1.90

-31.31%

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

$50.8K ₺2.5M

$13.3K €11.8K

282.37%

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

$44.5K ₺2.2M

$26.4K €23.5K

68.82%

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

$88.6 ₺4,387

$102 €91.0

-13.38%

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

$11.59 ₺574

$17.59 €15.65

-34.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.81 ₺783

$43.43 €38.63

-63.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$77.2 ₺3,820

$37.68 €33.51

104.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.74 ₺1,126

$15.97 €14.20

42.39%

Cinema Ticket

$8.14 ₺403

$8.70 €7.74

-6.44%

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

$1,008 ₺49.9K

$454 €404

121.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.6K ₺1.3M

$6,252 €5,561

308.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.0 ₺2,671

$66.4 €59.1

-18.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.83 ₺2,021

$33.69 €29.97

21.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.9 ₺4,895

$68.3 €60.7

44.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.6 ₺4,783

$77.0 €68.5

25.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$985 ₺48.7K

$903 €803

9.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$650 ₺32.2K

$823 €732

-21.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,983 ₺98.2K

$1,347 €1,198

47.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,180 ₺58.4K

$1,156 €1,029

2.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,138 ₺155.4K

$2,919 €2,596

7.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,780 ₺88.1K

$2,452 €2,181

-27.41%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,205 ₺59.7K

$1,005 €894

19.90%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.92

3.7

1005.95%

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

Last update for Istanbul: October 13, 2026

Last update for Amarante: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$650 41.9%

Amarante

$823 55.2% 26.7% $173

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$260 16.8%

Amarante

$183 12.2% 29.7% $77

Eating Out

Istanbul

$223 14.4%

Amarante

$101 6.7% 55% $123

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$131 8.4%

Amarante

$110 7.4% 15.5% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$116 7.5%

Amarante

$163 10.9% 40.8% $47

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$93 6%

Amarante

$55 3.7% 41.1% $38

Getting Around

Istanbul

$77 5%

Amarante

$57 3.8% 25.7% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $985 in Istanbul and $903 in Amarante. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Istanbul pays 20% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $55.0 in Istanbul vs $22.00 in Amarante for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $260 vs $183 per month, with Amarante cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇵🇹 Amarante

🕒 Local time

04:09 4:09 AM

02:09 2:09 AM

2 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

52,119

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to TRY – Turkish Lira Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇷 Turkish Lira (₺)

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 49.51 TRY (100 TRY = 2.02 USD). 1 EUR = 55.66 TRY (100 TRY = 1.8 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Istanbul Amarante 3,080 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Amarante

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 Amarante: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Istanbul and Amarante differ by about 4% in total monthly costs ($1,550 vs $1,492 including rent). Amarante is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 20% higher in Istanbul, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $985 in Istanbul versus $903 in Amarante. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,008 in Istanbul versus $454 in Amarante. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 42% higher in Istanbul. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,492 in Amarante versus $1,550 in Istanbul, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Amarante but tight or insufficient in Istanbul. The gap between the two cities makes Amarante 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.

Safety-wise, Istanbul and Amarante are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Amarante gentler on the wallet – expenses run 4% less than in Istanbul. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.