Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Cricova

For one person, living is cheaper in Cricova: $1,017 a month against $1,519 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $6,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

73

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Cricova
Learn more

Cricova Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

Cricova

🇲🇩 Moldova

$1,017

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Cricova

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,519 in Istanbul versus $1,017 in Cricova.

Istanbul $1,519
Cricova $1,017

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,365 in Istanbul versus $1,866 in Cricova.

Istanbul $2,365
Cricova $1,866

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,212 in Istanbul versus $2,715 in Cricova.

Istanbul $3,212
Cricova $2,715

Living in Istanbul is roughly 49% more expensive than in Cricova, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Istanbul is 12% above, Cricova is 25% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.81 ₺592

$8.57 MDL 152

37.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.9 ₺2,754

$28.08 MDL 499

95.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.26 ₺465

$10.43 MDL 185

-11.22%

Cappuccino

$4.30 ₺216

$1.03 MDL 18.29

317.48%

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

$1.77 ₺89.0

$1.04 MDL 18.54

70.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺28.32

$0.65 MDL 11.61

-13.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.69 ₺235

$1.97 MDL 34.97

138.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.12 ₺357

$2.26 MDL 40.16

215.04%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 ₺62.7

$2.32 MDL 41.32

-46.12%

White Bread (500g)

$0.88 ₺44.17

$0.45 MDL 8.03

95.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 ₺111

$1.04 MDL 18.51

111.54%

Eggs

$2.43 ₺122

$1.31 MDL 23.24

85.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.48 ₺526

$6.72 MDL 120

55.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.31 ₺267

$4.59 MDL 81.7

15.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.10 ₺1,058

$12.29 MDL 219

71.68%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 ₺93.1

$1.08 MDL 19.22

72.22%

Banana (1kg)

$2.30 ₺115

$0.88 MDL 15.61

161.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.22 ₺61.0

$1.07 MDL 19.06

14.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺90.2

$1.05 MDL 18.60

71.43%

Potato (1kg)

$0.69 ₺34.83

$0.76 MDL 13.54

-9.21%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺32.16

$1.05 MDL 18.66

-39.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.36 ₺68.0

$1.04 MDL 18.43

30.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 ₺28.94

$1.03 MDL 18.40

-43.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.34 ₺117

$3.38 MDL 60.1

-30.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 ₺653

$4.41 MDL 78.4

195.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.36 ₺118

$2.61 MDL 46.41

-9.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.32 ₺166

$4.29 MDL 76.4

-22.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 ₺44.07

$0.58 MDL 10.36

51.72%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.1 ₺3,316

$22.71 MDL 404

191.15%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 ₺64.4

$1.13 MDL 20.15

13.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 ₺42.80

$0.26 MDL 4.65

226.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.09 ₺556

$6.86 MDL 122

61.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 ₺74.0

$1.37 MDL 24.34

8.03%

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

$48.6K ₺2.4M

$28.9K MDL 513.5K

68.42%

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

$42.0K ₺2.1M

$23.9K MDL 425.1K

75.56%

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

$92.7 ₺4,650

$232 MDL 4,128

-60.07%

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

$11.20 ₺562

$7.86 MDL 140

42.49%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.89 ₺797

$11.37 MDL 202

39.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.7 ₺3,745

$54.7 MDL 972

36.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.95 ₺1,151

$11.10 MDL 197

106.76%

Cinema Ticket

$8.05 ₺404

$7.38 MDL 131

9.08%

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

$948 ₺47.6K

$110 MDL 1,961

759.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.9K ₺1.9M

$5,194 MDL 92.3K

610.83%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₺2,702

$56.6 MDL 1,006

-4.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.49 ₺2,081

$28.26 MDL 502

46.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 ₺5,060

$83.3 MDL 1,481

21.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.3 ₺4,580

$112 MDL 1,985

-18.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,014 ₺50.8K

$902 MDL 16.0K

12.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$625 ₺31.3K

$221 MDL 3,930

182.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,005 ₺100.6K

$1,401 MDL 24.9K

43.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,126 ₺56.5K

$1,132 MDL 20.1K

-0.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,988 ₺149.8K

$2,768 MDL 49.2K

7.95%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,730 ₺86.8K

$1,920 MDL 34.1K

-9.90%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,136 ₺57.0K

$569 MDL 10.1K

99.61%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.42

477.43%

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

Last update for Istanbul: November 2, 2026

Last update for Cricova: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$625 41.1%

Cricova

$221 21.7% 64.6% $403

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$258 17%

Cricova

$189 18.6% 26.9% $70

Eating Out

Istanbul

$221 14.6%

Cricova

$133 13.1% 39.7% $88

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$129 8.5%

Cricova

$126 12.4% 2.7% $3.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$120 7.9%

Cricova

$251 24.7% 110% $132

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$91 6%

Cricova

$69 6.8% 23.5% $21

Getting Around

Istanbul

$75 5%

Cricova

$27 2.7% 63.4% $48

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,014 in Istanbul and $902 in Cricova. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Istanbul pays 100% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $55 in Istanbul vs $28 in Cricova for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $258 vs $189 per month, with Cricova cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇲🇩 Cricova

🕒 Local time

16:47 4:47 PM

15:47 3:47 PM

1 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

10,642

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Moldovan Leu MDL L

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 1.99 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

100 MDL = 5.62 USD

100 MDL = 5.01 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MDL, 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).

Moldovan Leu exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 17.78 MDL (100 MDL = 5.62 USD). 1 EUR = 19.97 MDL (100 MDL = 5.01 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Istanbul Cricova 680 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Cricova

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 Cricova: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,519 in Istanbul and $1,017 in Cricova, so Cricova is about 33% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 100% 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 $902 in Cricova. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Cricova runs roughly 66% less than in Istanbul. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $948 in Istanbul versus $110 in Cricova. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Cricova gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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 Cricova gentler on the wallet – expenses run 33% less than in Istanbul. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.