Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Braila

For one person, living is cheaper in Braila: $1,082 a month against $1,519 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 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
51

Cost of Living Index in Braila
Learn more

Braila Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

Braila

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,082

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Braila

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,519 in Istanbul versus $1,082 in Braila.

Istanbul $1,519
Braila $1,082

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,365 in Istanbul versus $1,632 in Braila.

Istanbul $2,365
Braila $1,632

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,212 in Istanbul versus $2,182 in Braila.

Istanbul $3,212
Braila $2,182

Living in Istanbul is roughly 40% more expensive than in Braila, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Istanbul is 12% above, Braila is 20% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.81 ₺592

$14.56 RON 69.2

-18.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.9 ₺2,754

$42.00 RON 200

30.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.26 ₺465

$7.32 RON 34.76

26.50%

Cappuccino

$4.30 ₺216

$2.64 RON 12.52

62.88%

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

$1.77 ₺89.0

$2.04 RON 9.70

-13.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺28.32

$1.89 RON 8.96

-70.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.69 ₺235

$2.12 RON 10.09

121.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.12 ₺357

$2.11 RON 10.03

237.44%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 ₺62.7

$1.62 RON 7.71

-22.84%

White Bread (500g)

$0.88 ₺44.17

$1.38 RON 6.57

-36.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 ₺111

$1.71 RON 8.13

28.65%

Eggs

$2.43 ₺122

$3.52 RON 16.72

-30.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.48 ₺526

$8.95 RON 42.51

17.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.31 ₺267

$6.94 RON 32.99

-23.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.10 ₺1,058

$9.23 RON 43.84

128.60%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 ₺93.1

$1.04 RON 4.95

78.85%

Banana (1kg)

$2.30 ₺115

$1.40 RON 6.64

64.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.22 ₺61.0

$1.56 RON 7.39

-21.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺90.2

$1.80 RON 8.57

Potato (1kg)

$0.69 ₺34.83

$0.97 RON 4.59

-28.87%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺32.16

$0.78 RON 3.71

-17.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.36 ₺68.0

$0.68 RON 3.25

100.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 ₺28.94

$0.90 RON 4.26

-35.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.34 ₺117

$6.21 RON 29.52

-62.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 ₺653

$6.14 RON 29.18

112.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.36 ₺118

$0.98 RON 4.67

140.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.32 ₺166

$1.50 RON 7.12

121.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 ₺44.07

$0.61 RON 2.89

44.26%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.1 ₺3,316

$15.81 RON 75.1

318.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 ₺64.4

$0.61 RON 2.91

109.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 ₺42.80

$0.60 RON 2.86

41.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.09 ₺556

$6.19 RON 29.40

79.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 ₺74.0

$1.89 RON 8.96

-21.69%

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

$48.6K ₺2.4M

$28.8K RON 136.8K

68.92%

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

$42.0K ₺2.1M

$26.2K RON 124.3K

60.44%

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

$92.7 ₺4,650

$140 RON 666

-33.90%

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

$11.20 ₺562

$8.45 RON 40.16

32.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.89 ₺797

$9.15 RON 43.49

73.66%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.7 ₺3,745

$33.00 RON 157

126.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.95 ₺1,151

$14.49 RON 68.9

58.39%

Cinema Ticket

$8.05 ₺404

$7.55 RON 35.89

6.62%

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

$948 ₺47.6K

$365 RON 1,735

159.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.9K ₺1.9M

$8,499 RON 40.4K

334.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₺2,702

$94.8 RON 450

-43.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.49 ₺2,081

$38.42 RON 183

7.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 ₺5,060

$82.4 RON 391

22.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.3 ₺4,580

$89.9 RON 427

1.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,014 ₺50.8K

$382 RON 1,815

165.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$625 ₺31.3K

$309 RON 1,467

102.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,005 ₺100.6K

$553 RON 2,628

262.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,126 ₺56.5K

$448 RON 2,129

151.23%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,988 ₺149.8K

$1,912 RON 9,086

56.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,730 ₺86.8K

$1,302 RON 6,186

32.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,136 ₺57.0K

$839 RON 3,985

35.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.42

6.75

498.81%

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

Last update for Istanbul: November 2, 2026

Last update for Braila: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$625 41.1%

Braila

$309 28.5% 50.6% $316

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$258 17%

Braila

$207 19.2% 19.8% $51

Eating Out

Istanbul

$221 14.6%

Braila

$201 18.5% 9.2% $20

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$129 8.5%

Braila

$137 12.7% 6.2% $8.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$120 7.9%

Braila

$158 14.6% 31.8% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$91 6%

Braila

$48 4.5% 47% $43

Getting Around

Istanbul

$75 5%

Braila

$22 2% 70.9% $53

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,014 in Istanbul and $382 in Braila. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Istanbul pays 35% 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 in Istanbul vs $42 in Braila for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $258 vs $207 per month, with Braila cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇷🇴 Braila

🕒 Local time

11:06 11:06 AM

10:06 10:06 AM

1 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

180,302

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 1.99 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

1 RON = 0.21 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, 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).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 4.75 RON (1 RON = 0.21 USD). 1 EUR = 5.34 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Istanbul Braila 480 km

From you

Istanbul
Braila

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 Braila: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Braila wins on cost – living expenses run 29% lower than in Istanbul. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Braila the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 35% 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: $1,014 in Istanbul versus $382 in Braila. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Braila runs roughly 76% less than in Istanbul. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $948 in Istanbul versus $365 in Braila. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Braila is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.

Expats usually find Braila gentler on the wallet – expenses run 29% less than in Istanbul. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.