Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Carthage

For one person, living is cheaper in Carthage: $693 a month against $1,550 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $10,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

75

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index
34

Cost of Living Index in Carthage
Learn more

Carthage Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,550

/mo nomad

Carthage

🇹🇳 Tunisia

$693

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Carthage

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,550 in Istanbul versus $693 in Carthage.

Istanbul $1,550
Carthage $693

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,415 in Istanbul versus $1,100 in Carthage.

Istanbul $2,415
Carthage $1,100

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,281 in Istanbul versus $1,508 in Carthage.

Istanbul $3,281
Carthage $1,508

Living in Istanbul is roughly 124% more expensive than in Carthage, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Istanbul is 15% above, Carthage is 49% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.30 ₺609

$4.09 TND 12.26

200.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.7 ₺2,708

$22.71 TND 68.0

140.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.22 ₺456

$5.89 TND 17.65

56.54%

Cappuccino

$4.40 ₺218

$1.15 TND 3.44

282.61%

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

$1.68 ₺83.1

$0.73 TND 2.20

130.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.59 ₺29.40

$0.29 TND 0.88

103.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.70 ₺233

$1.70 TND 5.08

176.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.91 ₺292

$2.05 TND 6.14

188.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.21 ₺60.0

$0.49 TND 1.46

146.94%

White Bread (500g)

$0.89 ₺44.10

$0.26 TND 0.78

242.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.19 ₺108

$1.78 TND 5.33

23.03%

Eggs

$2.35 ₺116

$1.84 TND 5.50

27.72%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.42 ₺516

$10.20 TND 30.56

2.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.65 ₺280

$5.74 TND 17.21

-1.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.94 ₺1,037

$14.42 TND 43.20

45.21%

Apples (1kg)

$1.90 ₺94.1

$1.31 TND 3.92

45.04%

Banana (1kg)

$2.31 ₺114

$3.65 TND 10.93

-36.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.28 ₺63.1

$1.17 TND 3.49

9.40%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺89.0

$0.83 TND 2.48

116.87%

Potato (1kg)

$0.65 ₺32.16

$0.90 TND 2.70

-27.78%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺31.91

$0.69 TND 2.07

-7.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 ₺62.1

$0.53 TND 1.60

135.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺27.58

$0.34 TND 1.03

64.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.37 ₺118

$3.59 TND 10.75

-33.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.42 ₺664

$6.62 TND 19.82

102.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.40 ₺119

$1.23 TND 3.68

95.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 ₺172

$1.24 TND 3.72

180.65%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.89 ₺43.84

$0.43 TND 1.30

106.98%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$67.4 ₺3,338

$13.96 TND 41.82

383.02%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.29 ₺64.1

$0.31 TND 0.92

316.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 ₺45.70

$0.34 TND 1.03

170.59%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.96 ₺542

$1.78 TND 5.34

515.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ₺72.9

$0.88 TND 2.63

67.05%

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

$50.8K ₺2.5M

$39.9K TND 119.4K

27.39%

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

$44.5K ₺2.2M

$35.4K TND 106.1K

25.65%

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

$88.6 ₺4,387

$45.22 TND 135

95.95%

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

$11.59 ₺574

$9.23 TND 27.63

25.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.81 ₺783

$20.98 TND 62.9

-24.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$77.2 ₺3,820

$32.18 TND 96.4

139.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.74 ₺1,126

$13.26 TND 39.70

71.49%

Cinema Ticket

$8.14 ₺403

$5.17 TND 15.49

57.45%

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

$1,008 ₺49.9K

$104 TND 311

869.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.6K ₺1.3M

$3,218 TND 9,637

694.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.0 ₺2,671

$43.72 TND 131

23.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.83 ₺2,021

$59.3 TND 178

-31.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.9 ₺4,895

$114 TND 340

-12.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.6 ₺4,783

$67.7 TND 203

42.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$985 ₺48.7K

$211 TND 633

366.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$650 ₺32.2K

$154 TND 463

320.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,983 ₺98.2K

$209 TND 625

850.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,180 ₺58.4K

$272 TND 815

333.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,138 ₺155.4K

$972 TND 2,911

222.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,780 ₺88.1K

$622 TND 1,862

186.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,205 ₺59.7K

$269 TND 807

347.35%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.92

10.28

298.05%

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

Last update for Istanbul: October 13, 2026

Last update for Carthage: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$650 41.9%

Carthage

$154 22.3% 76.2% $495

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$260 16.8%

Carthage

$194 28% 25.3% $66

Eating Out

Istanbul

$223 14.4%

Carthage

$81 11.7% 63.8% $142

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$131 8.4%

Carthage

$128 18.5% 2.1% $2.7

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$116 7.5%

Carthage

$75 10.9% 35% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$93 6%

Carthage

$43 6.1% 54.5% $51

Getting Around

Istanbul

$77 5%

Carthage

$18 2.6% 76.9% $59

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $985 in Istanbul and $211 in Carthage. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Istanbul pays 347% 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: $55.0 in Istanbul vs $23.00 in Carthage for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $260 vs $194 per month, with Carthage cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇹🇳 Carthage

🕒 Local time

12:28 12:28 PM

10:28 10:28 AM

2 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

21,276

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Tunisian Dinar TND د.ت

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

1 TND = 0.334 USD

1 TND = 0.297 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TND, 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).

Tunisian Dinar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 2.99 TND (1 TND = 0.334 USD). 1 EUR = 3.37 TND (1 TND = 0.297 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Istanbul Carthage 1,670 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Carthage

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 Carthage: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Istanbul and Carthage differ by about 124% in total monthly costs ($1,550 vs $693 including rent). Carthage is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 347% 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: $985 in Istanbul versus $211 in Carthage. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 34% higher in Istanbul. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Carthage – a meal for two runs $23.00 versus $55.0 in Istanbul. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $693 in Carthage versus $1,550 in Istanbul, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Carthage but tight or insufficient in Istanbul. The gap between the two cities makes Carthage the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Safety-wise, Istanbul and Carthage 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 Carthage gentler on the wallet – expenses run 124% less than in Istanbul. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.