Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Banha

For one person, living is cheaper in Banha: $373 a month against $1,519 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $13,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

73

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index
18

Cost of Living Index in Banha
Learn more

Banha Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

Banha

🇪🇬 Egypt

$373

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Banha

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

A single person spends $1,519 per month in Istanbul vs $373 in Banha, rent included.

Istanbul $1,519
Banha $373

A couple spends around $2,365 per month in Istanbul vs $596 in Banha, rent included.

Istanbul $2,365
Banha $596

A family of three spends $3,212 per month in Istanbul vs $819 in Banha, rent included.

Istanbul $3,212
Banha $819

Istanbul costs about 307% more than Banha, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Istanbul sits 12% above the global median, while Banha is 72% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.81 ₺592

$3.56 E£192

231.74%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.9 ₺2,754

$10.57 E£569

419.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.26 ₺465

$2.74 E£147

237.96%

Cappuccino

$4.30 ₺216

$0.45 E£24.25

855.56%

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

$1.77 ₺89.0

$0.30 E£16.24

490.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺28.32

$0.09 E£4.82

522.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.69 ₺235

$1.22 E£65.8

284.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.12 ₺357

$2.63 E£142

170.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 ₺62.7

$0.78 E£41.89

60.26%

White Bread (500g)

$0.88 ₺44.17

$0.62 E£33.59

41.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 ₺111

$0.56 E£30.00

292.86%

Eggs

$2.43 ₺122

$1.06 E£57.1

129.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.48 ₺526

$1.80 E£97.1

482.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.31 ₺267

$4.08 E£220

30.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.10 ₺1,058

$8.68 E£468

143.09%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 ₺93.1

$1.47 E£79.0

26.53%

Banana (1kg)

$2.30 ₺115

$0.45 E£24.42

411.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.22 ₺61.0

$0.48 E£26.06

154.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺90.2

$0.30 E£16.03

500.00%

Potato (1kg)

$0.69 ₺34.83

$0.25 E£13.52

176.00%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺32.16

$0.28 E£14.89

128.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.36 ₺68.0

$0.25 E£13.55

444.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 ₺28.94

$0.22 E£11.67

163.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.34 ₺117

$1.25 E£67.4

87.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 ₺653

$5.41 E£291

140.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.36 ₺118

$1.17 E£63.0

101.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.32 ₺166

$2.07 E£112

60.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 ₺44.07

$0.18 E£9.89

388.89%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.1 ₺3,316

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 ₺64.4

$0.51 E£27.71

150.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 ₺42.80

$0.20 E£10.71

325.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.09 ₺556

$0.86 E£46.26

1189.53%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 ₺74.0

$0.40 E£21.63

270.00%

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

$48.6K ₺2.4M

$31.2K E£1.7M

55.80%

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

$42.0K ₺2.1M

$24.5K E£1.3M

71.55%

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

$92.7 ₺4,650

$13.12 E£707

606.63%

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

$11.20 ₺562

$2.18 E£117

413.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.89 ₺797

$12.28 E£661

29.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.7 ₺3,745

$15.03 E£809

396.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.95 ₺1,151

Cinema Ticket

$8.05 ₺404

$2.69 E£145

199.26%

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

$948 ₺47.6K

$81.5 E£4,388

1063.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.9K ₺1.9M

$2,017 E£108.6K

1730.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₺2,702

$6.17 E£332

773.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.49 ₺2,081

$10.45 E£563

297.03%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 ₺5,060

$119 E£6,413

-15.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.3 ₺4,580

$51.9 E£2,796

75.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,014 ₺50.8K

$126 E£6,781

704.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$625 ₺31.3K

$71.6 E£3,855

772.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,005 ₺100.6K

$244 E£13.1K

722.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,126 ₺56.5K

$135 E£7,261

735.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,988 ₺149.8K

$719 E£38.7K

315.30%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,730 ₺86.8K

$329 E£17.7K

425.62%

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 Banha: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$625 41.1%

Banha

$72 19.2% 88.5% $553

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$258 17%

Banha

$112 29.9% 56.8% $147

Eating Out

Istanbul

$221 14.6%

Banha

$55 14.8% 75.1% $166

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$129 8.5%

Banha

$84 22.7% 34.8% $45

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$120 7.9%

Banha

$28 7.4% 77% $92

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$91 6%

Banha

$20 5.5% 77.5% $70

Getting Around

Istanbul

$75 5%

Banha

$2.2 * 0.6% 97% $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 Banha. 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 $11 in Banha. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $112 – making Banha the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇪🇬 Banha

🕒 Local time

14:20 2:20 PM

13:20 1:20 PM

1 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

167,029

💱 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 = 1.65 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 = 50.15 TRY (100 TRY = 1.99 USD). 1 EUR = 56.33 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 53.85 EGP (100 EGP = 1.86 USD). 1 EUR = 60.48 EGP (100 EGP = 1.65 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Istanbul Banha 1,190 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Banha

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 Banha: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,519 in Istanbul, $373 in Banha – Banha comes out roughly 75% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,278 per month in Istanbul and $559 in Banha. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,519 in Istanbul and $373 in Banha. That makes Banha about 75% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $948 per month in Istanbul and $81 in Banha. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Banha, where all-in costs run around $373, than in Istanbul at $1,519. In Banha it covers expenses comfortably, while in Istanbul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Banha – 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.