Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Berat

For one person, living is cheaper in Berat: $1,147 a month against $1,526 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $4,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Berat
Learn more

Berat Living Index

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Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,526

/mo nomad

Berat

🇦🇱 Albania

$1,147

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Berat

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

A single person spends $1,526 per month in Istanbul vs $1,147 in Berat, rent included.

Istanbul $1,526
Berat $1,147

A couple spends around $2,399 per month in Istanbul vs $1,701 in Berat, rent included.

Istanbul $2,399
Berat $1,701

A family of three spends $3,272 per month in Istanbul vs $2,256 in Berat, rent included.

Istanbul $3,272
Berat $2,256

Istanbul costs about 33% more than Berat, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Istanbul sits 14% above the global median, while Berat is 14% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.88 ₺585

$9.69 ALL 788

22.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.1 ₺2,715

$34.12 ALL 2,775

61.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.14 ₺450

$8.37 ALL 681

9.20%

Cappuccino

$4.24 ₺209

$1.85 ALL 151

129.19%

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

$1.75 ₺86.0

$1.79 ALL 145

-2.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 ₺26.84

$0.98 ALL 80.0

-44.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.69 ₺231

$2.71 ALL 221

73.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.97 ₺294

$3.60 ALL 293

65.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.26 ₺62.1

$2.03 ALL 165

-37.93%

White Bread (500g)

$0.95 ₺46.82

$1.16 ALL 94.2

-18.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 ₺114

$2.31 ALL 188

Eggs

$2.47 ₺122

$3.03 ALL 246

-18.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.55 ₺520

$11.01 ALL 895

-4.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.60 ₺276

$8.31 ALL 676

-32.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.21 ₺1,045

$16.67 ALL 1,356

27.23%

Apples (1kg)

$1.93 ₺95.1

$1.92 ALL 156

0.52%

Banana (1kg)

$2.29 ₺113

$2.48 ALL 202

-7.66%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.28 ₺63.1

$1.62 ALL 132

-20.99%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.84 ₺90.8

$1.43 ALL 116

28.67%

Potato (1kg)

$0.67 ₺32.87

$0.98 ALL 79.9

-31.63%

Onion (1kg)

$0.59 ₺29.31

$1.25 ALL 101

-52.80%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.33 ₺65.4

$0.82 ALL 66.8

62.20%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 ₺29.11

$0.70 ALL 56.8

-15.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.36 ₺116

$4.66 ALL 379

-49.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.47 ₺664

$10.19 ALL 829

32.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.42 ₺119

$1.25 ALL 102

93.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.54 ₺174

$1.49 ALL 121

137.58%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.83 ₺40.65

$0.36 ALL 29.06

130.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.5 ₺3,274

$19.80 ALL 1,611

235.61%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.35 ₺66.6

$3.70 ALL 301

-63.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 ₺42.06

$3.74 ALL 304

-77.27%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.86 ₺535

$18.46 ALL 1,502

-41.17%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ₺72.3

$2.15 ALL 175

-31.63%

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

$51.6K ₺2.5M

$33.6K ALL 2.7M

53.78%

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

$44.4K ₺2.2M

$35.1K ALL 2.9M

26.61%

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

$89.2 ₺4,396

$84.7 ALL 6,888

5.36%

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

$11.60 ₺572

$18.04 ALL 1,467

-35.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.10 ₺793

$19.88 ALL 1,617

-19.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$77.3 ₺3,806

$54.8 ALL 4,456

41.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.66 ₺1,116

$18.37 ALL 1,494

23.35%

Cinema Ticket

$8.34 ₺411

$9.65 ALL 785

-13.58%

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

$974 ₺48.0K

$185 ALL 15.1K

426.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.8K ₺1.3M

$1,810 ALL 147.2K

1323.97%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.7 ₺2,597

$48.80 ALL 3,970

8.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.16 ₺1,930

$47.56 ALL 3,869

-17.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 ₺5,084

$120 ALL 9,768

-14.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.6 ₺4,760

$116 ALL 9,396

-16.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$994 ₺49.0K

$468 ALL 38.1K

112.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$629 ₺31.0K

$332 ALL 27.0K

89.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,024 ₺99.7K

$690 ALL 56.1K

193.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,155 ₺56.9K

$465 ALL 37.8K

148.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,160 ₺155.7K

$1,837 ALL 149.5K

72.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,838 ₺90.5K

$1,225 ALL 99.6K

50.04%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,203 ₺59.3K

$794 ALL 64.6K

51.51%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

41.09

4.75

765.05%

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

Last update for Istanbul: October 3, 2026

Last update for Berat: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$629 41.2%

Berat

$332 29.1% 47.2% $297

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$264 17.3%

Berat

$263 23% 0.5% $1.3

Eating Out

Istanbul

$218 14.3%

Berat

$157 13.7% 28.1% $61

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$131 8.6%

Berat

$149 13.1% 13.8% $18

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$117 7.7%

Berat

$123 10.7% 4.8% $5.7

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$94 6.1%

Berat

$74 6.5% 21.1% $20

Getting Around

Istanbul

$75 4.9%

Berat

$44 3.8% 42.1% $32

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $994 in Istanbul versus $468 in Berat. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 52% higher in Istanbul, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $55.0 in Istanbul versus $34.00 in Berat. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $264 vs $263 – making Berat the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇦🇱 Berat

🕒 Local time

08:09 8:09 AM

07:09 7:09 AM

1 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

32,606

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Albanian Lek ALL L

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2.03 USD

100 TRY = 1.81 EUR

100 ALL = 1.23 USD

100 ALL = 1.1 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ALL, USD, EUR to TRY – Turkish Lira Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇷 Turkish Lira (₺)

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 49.27 TRY (100 TRY = 2.03 USD). 1 EUR = 55.26 TRY (100 TRY = 1.81 EUR).

Albanian Lek exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 81.35 ALL (100 ALL = 1.23 USD). 1 EUR = 91.24 ALL (100 ALL = 1.1 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Istanbul Berat 760 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Berat

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 Berat: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Istanbul is pricier by about 33%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,289 per month in Istanbul and $1,720 in Berat. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Berat, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 0% more in Istanbul, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $55.0 in Istanbul and $34.00 in Berat. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Berat, where all-in costs run around $1,147, than in Istanbul at $1,526. In Berat it covers expenses comfortably, while in Istanbul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Berat. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Istanbul makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.