Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Aswan

For one person, living is cheaper in Aswan: $408 a month against $1,519 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $13,300 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
19

Cost of Living Index in Aswan
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Aswan Living Index

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Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

Aswan

🇪🇬 Egypt

$408

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Aswan

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

A single person spends $1,519 per month in Istanbul vs $408 in Aswan, rent included.

Istanbul $1,519
Aswan $408

A couple spends around $2,365 per month in Istanbul vs $658 in Aswan, rent included.

Istanbul $2,365
Aswan $658

A family of three spends $3,212 per month in Istanbul vs $909 in Aswan, rent included.

Istanbul $3,212
Aswan $909

Istanbul costs about 273% more than Aswan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Istanbul sits 12% above the global median, while Aswan is 70% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.81 ₺591

$3.54 E£191

233.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.9 ₺2,748

$14.09 E£759

289.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.26 ₺463

$4.53 E£244

104.42%

Cappuccino

$4.30 ₺215

$1.17 E£63.2

267.52%

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

$1.77 ₺88.8

$0.30 E£16.26

490.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺28.26

$0.12 E£6.22

366.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.69 ₺234

$1.27 E£68.3

269.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.12 ₺356

$2.68 E£144

165.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 ₺62.6

$0.81 E£43.50

54.32%

White Bread (500g)

$0.88 ₺44.07

$0.62 E£33.43

41.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 ₺110

$0.55 E£29.69

300.00%

Eggs

$2.43 ₺122

$1.16 E£62.4

109.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.48 ₺524

$3.14 E£169

233.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.31 ₺266

$3.83 E£207

38.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.10 ₺1,056

$7.60 E£410

177.63%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 ₺92.9

$1.43 E£77.1

30.07%

Banana (1kg)

$2.30 ₺115

$0.59 E£31.98

289.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.22 ₺60.8

$0.46 E£24.75

165.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺90.0

$0.32 E£17.28

462.50%

Potato (1kg)

$0.69 ₺34.75

$0.32 E£17.25

115.62%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺32.09

$0.29 E£15.51

120.69%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.36 ₺67.8

$0.23 E£12.35

491.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 ₺28.88

$0.17 E£9.02

241.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.34 ₺117

$1.81 E£97.4

29.28%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 ₺652

$5.75 E£310

126.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.36 ₺118

$1.15 E£62.0

105.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.32 ₺166

$1.82 E£97.8

82.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 ₺43.97

$0.18 E£9.60

388.89%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.1 ₺3,309

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 ₺64.3

$0.34 E£18.53

276.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 ₺42.70

$0.20 E£10.64

325.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.09 ₺555

$1.18 E£63.9

839.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 ₺73.9

$0.43 E£23.03

244.19%

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

$48.6K ₺2.4M

$30.0K E£1.6M

61.96%

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

$42.0K ₺2.1M

$23.0K E£1.2M

82.49%

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

$92.7 ₺4,639

$13.95 E£752

564.59%

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

$11.20 ₺560

$6.54 E£353

71.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.89 ₺795

$12.62 E£680

25.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.7 ₺3,737

$15.35 E£827

386.51%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.95 ₺1,149

$4.48 E£242

412.28%

Cinema Ticket

$8.05 ₺403

$2.60 E£140

209.62%

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

$948 ₺47.5K

$81.1 E£4,373

1069.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.9K ₺1.8M

$1,813 E£97.7K

1936.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₺2,696

$16.30 E£878

230.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.49 ₺2,076

$41.35 E£2,229

0.34%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 ₺5,049

$108 E£5,840

-6.89%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.3 ₺4,570

$52.9 E£2,850

72.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,014 ₺50.7K

$126 E£6,777

706.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$625 ₺31.3K

$72.0 E£3,882

767.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,005 ₺100.4K

$244 E£13.1K

722.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,126 ₺56.3K

$134 E£7,247

737.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,988 ₺149.5K

$715 E£38.5K

317.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,730 ₺86.6K

$332 E£17.9K

421.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,136 ₺56.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.42

16.21

149.35%

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

Last update for Istanbul: November 2, 2026

Last update for Aswan: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$625 41.1%

Aswan

$72 17.7% 88.5% $553

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$258 17%

Aswan

$112 27.5% 56.6% $146

Eating Out

Istanbul

$221 14.6%

Aswan

$69 17% 68.6% $152

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$129 8.5%

Aswan

$98 24.2% 23.9% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$120 7.9%

Aswan

$33 8.1% 72.4% $87

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$91 6%

Aswan

$21 5% 77.4% $70

Getting Around

Istanbul

$75 5%

Aswan

$2 * 0.5% 97.3% $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 $126 in Aswan. 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 $14 in Aswan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $112 – making Aswan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇪🇬 Aswan

🕒 Local time

10:41 10:41 AM

09:41 9:41 AM

1 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

241,261

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

100 EGP = 1.86 USD

100 EGP = 1.65 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 = 50.04 TRY (100 TRY = 2 USD). 1 EUR = 56.2 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 53.9 EGP (100 EGP = 1.86 USD). 1 EUR = 60.53 EGP (100 EGP = 1.65 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Istanbul Aswan 1,920 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Aswan

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 Aswan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Istanbul is pricier by about 273%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,278 per month in Istanbul and $611 in Aswan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Aswan, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $126 there versus $1,014 in Istanbul.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $55 in Istanbul and $14 in Aswan. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 131% more in Istanbul, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Aswan, where all-in costs run around $408, than in Istanbul at $1,519. In Aswan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Istanbul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Aswan – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.