Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Bhisho

For one person, living is cheaper in Bhisho: $1,136 a month against $1,550 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $5,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

75

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index
56

Cost of Living Index in Bhisho
Learn more

Bhisho Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,550

/mo nomad

Bhisho

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,136

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Bhisho

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,550 in Istanbul versus $1,136 in Bhisho.

Istanbul $1,550
Bhisho $1,136

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,415 in Istanbul versus $1,800 in Bhisho.

Istanbul $2,415
Bhisho $1,800

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,281 in Istanbul versus $2,464 in Bhisho.

Istanbul $3,281
Bhisho $2,464

Living in Istanbul is roughly 36% more expensive than in Bhisho, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Istanbul is 15% above, Bhisho is 16% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.30 ₺609

$10.77 R 177

14.21%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.7 ₺2,708

$41.53 R 684

31.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.22 ₺456

$5.87 R 96.7

57.07%

Cappuccino

$4.40 ₺218

$2.05 R 33.84

114.63%

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

$1.68 ₺83.1

$1.01 R 16.59

66.34%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.59 ₺29.40

$0.77 R 12.66

-23.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.70 ₺233

$2.75 R 45.31

70.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.91 ₺292

$3.18 R 52.4

85.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.21 ₺60.0

$1.13 R 18.66

7.08%

White Bread (500g)

$0.89 ₺44.10

$0.99 R 16.34

-10.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.19 ₺108

$1.51 R 24.92

45.03%

Eggs

$2.35 ₺116

$2.81 R 46.36

-16.37%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.42 ₺516

$8.66 R 143

20.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.65 ₺280

$5.36 R 88.4

5.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.94 ₺1,037

$8.29 R 137

152.59%

Apples (1kg)

$1.90 ₺94.1

$2.16 R 35.55

-12.04%

Banana (1kg)

$2.31 ₺114

$1.54 R 25.36

50.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.28 ₺63.1

$1.67 R 27.56

-23.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺89.0

$1.79 R 29.54

0.56%

Potato (1kg)

$0.65 ₺32.16

$1.72 R 28.35

-62.21%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺31.91

$1.42 R 23.42

-54.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 ₺62.1

$1.25 R 20.58

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺27.58

$1.01 R 16.70

-44.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.37 ₺118

$3.14 R 51.7

-24.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.42 ₺664

$4.92 R 81.1

172.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.40 ₺119

$1.27 R 21.00

88.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 ₺172

$1.78 R 29.40

95.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.89 ₺43.84

$1.46 R 24.02

-39.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$67.4 ₺3,338

$24.01 R 396

180.84%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.29 ₺64.1

$0.63 R 10.32

104.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 ₺45.70

$0.46 R 7.58

100.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.96 ₺542

$8.49 R 140

29.09%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ₺72.9

$1.44 R 23.78

2.08%

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

$50.8K ₺2.5M

$35.1K R 577.7K

44.83%

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

$44.5K ₺2.2M

$33.0K R 544.3K

34.79%

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

$88.6 ₺4,387

$123 R 2,028

-28.02%

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

$11.59 ₺574

$33.89 R 558

-65.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.81 ₺783

$44.33 R 730

-64.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$77.2 ₺3,820

$32.50 R 535

137.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.74 ₺1,126

$10.66 R 176

113.32%

Cinema Ticket

$8.14 ₺403

$10.57 R 174

-22.99%

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

$1,008 ₺49.9K

$180 R 2,959

461.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.6K ₺1.3M

$6,106 R 100.6K

318.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.0 ₺2,671

$71.8 R 1,184

-24.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.83 ₺2,021

$38.18 R 629

6.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.9 ₺4,895

$111 R 1,831

-11.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.6 ₺4,783

$94.7 R 1,560

2.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$985 ₺48.7K

$396 R 6,517

148.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$650 ₺32.2K

$354 R 5,828

83.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,983 ₺98.2K

$723 R 11.9K

174.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,180 ₺58.4K

$742 R 12.2K

59.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,138 ₺155.4K

$887 R 14.6K

253.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,780 ₺88.1K

$641 R 10.6K

177.51%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,205 ₺59.7K

$3,248 R 53.5K

-62.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.92

11.94

242.71%

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

Last update for Istanbul: October 13, 2026

Last update for Bhisho: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$650 41.9%

Bhisho

$354 31.1% 45.6% $296

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$260 16.8%

Bhisho

$197 17.3% 24.2% $63

Eating Out

Istanbul

$223 14.4%

Bhisho

$156 13.7% 30.3% $68

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$131 8.4%

Bhisho

$142 12.5% 8.8% $12

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$116 7.5%

Bhisho

$201 17.7% 73.5% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$93 6%

Bhisho

$54 4.7% 42.6% $40

Getting Around

Istanbul

$77 5%

Bhisho

$33 2.9% 57.4% $44

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $985 in Istanbul and $396 in Bhisho. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bhisho pays 169% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $55.0 in Istanbul vs $42.00 in Bhisho for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $260 vs $197 per month, with Bhisho cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇿🇦 Bhisho

🕒 Local time

10:17 10:17 AM

09:17 9:17 AM

1 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

137,287

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to TRY – Turkish Lira Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇷 Turkish Lira (₺)

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 49.51 TRY (100 TRY = 2.02 USD). 1 EUR = 55.66 TRY (100 TRY = 1.8 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Istanbul Bhisho 8,210 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Bhisho

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 Bhisho: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bhisho wins on cost – living expenses run 36% lower than in Istanbul. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Bhisho the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 169% lower in Bhisho. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $985 in Istanbul versus $396 in Bhisho. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,008 in Istanbul versus $180 in Bhisho. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 32% higher in Istanbul. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,136 in Bhisho versus $1,550 in Istanbul, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Bhisho but tight or insufficient in Istanbul. The gap between the two cities makes Bhisho the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Bhisho delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,136 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Bhisho hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Istanbul and Bhisho 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 Bhisho gentler on the wallet – expenses run 36% less than in Istanbul. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.