Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Damietta

For one person, living is cheaper in Damietta: $321 a month against $1,519 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $14,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

73

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index
15

Cost of Living Index in Damietta
Learn more

Damietta Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

Damietta

🇪🇬 Egypt

$321

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Damietta

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,519 in Istanbul versus $321 in Damietta.

Istanbul $1,519
Damietta $321

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,365 in Istanbul versus $543 in Damietta.

Istanbul $2,365
Damietta $543

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,212 in Istanbul versus $764 in Damietta.

Istanbul $3,212
Damietta $764

Living in Istanbul is roughly 373% more expensive than in Damietta, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Istanbul is 12% above, Damietta is 76% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.81 ₺592

$3.91 E£210

202.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.9 ₺2,754

$10.69 E£575

413.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.26 ₺465

$4.48 E£241

106.70%

Cappuccino

$4.30 ₺216

$1.25 E£67.6

244.00%

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

$1.77 ₺89.0

$0.29 E£15.59

510.34%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺28.32

$0.11 E£6.19

409.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.69 ₺235

$1.25 E£67.2

275.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.12 ₺357

$2.79 E£150

155.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 ₺62.7

$0.69 E£37.19

81.16%

White Bread (500g)

$0.88 ₺44.17

$0.28 E£15.22

214.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 ₺111

$0.61 E£32.66

260.66%

Eggs

$2.43 ₺122

$1.13 E£60.8

115.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.48 ₺526

$2.16 E£116

385.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.31 ₺267

$2.39 E£129

122.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.10 ₺1,058

$7.60 E£409

177.63%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 ₺93.1

$1.39 E£74.9

33.81%

Banana (1kg)

$2.30 ₺115

$0.65 E£34.95

253.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.22 ₺61.0

$0.49 E£26.37

148.98%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺90.2

$0.21 E£11.26

757.14%

Potato (1kg)

$0.69 ₺34.83

$0.24 E£12.87

187.50%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺32.16

$0.27 E£14.69

137.04%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.36 ₺68.0

$0.23 E£12.36

491.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 ₺28.94

$0.16 E£8.87

262.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.34 ₺117

$1.68 E£90.3

39.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 ₺653

$4.58 E£247

184.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.36 ₺118

$1.18 E£63.4

100.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.32 ₺166

$1.66 E£89.7

100.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 ₺44.07

$0.09 E£4.98

877.78%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.1 ₺3,316

$3.85 E£208

1617.40%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 ₺64.4

$0.38 E£20.27

236.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 ₺42.80

$0.20 E£10.83

325.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.09 ₺556

$1.09 E£58.7

917.43%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 ₺74.0

$0.44 E£23.52

236.36%

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

$48.6K ₺2.4M

$22.3K E£1.2M

118.57%

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

$42.0K ₺2.1M

$23.7K E£1.3M

76.92%

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

$92.7 ₺4,650

$14.76 E£795

528.12%

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

$11.20 ₺562

$6.74 E£363

66.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.89 ₺797

$12.43 E£669

27.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.7 ₺3,745

$20.51 E£1,105

264.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.95 ₺1,151

$3.64 E£196

530.49%

Cinema Ticket

$8.05 ₺404

$2.78 E£150

189.57%

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

$948 ₺47.6K

$53.7 E£2,890

1667.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.9K ₺1.9M

$1,140 E£61.4K

3138.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₺2,702

$10.08 E£543

434.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.49 ₺2,081

$35.77 E£1,926

15.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 ₺5,060

$44.61 E£2,402

126.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.3 ₺4,580

$57.4 E£3,089

59.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,014 ₺50.8K

$26.79 E£1,443

3683.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$625 ₺31.3K

$21.84 E£1,176

2759.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,005 ₺100.6K

$107 E£5,737

1782.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,126 ₺56.5K

$90.3 E£4,861

1147.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,988 ₺149.8K

$892 E£48.0K

234.97%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,730 ₺86.8K

$636 E£34.2K

172.24%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,136 ₺57.0K

$115 E£6,213

884.91%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.42

405.25%

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

Last update for Istanbul: November 2, 2026

Last update for Damietta: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$625 41.1%

Damietta

$22 6.8% 96.5% $603

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$258 17%

Damietta

$94 29.4% 63.5% $164

Eating Out

Istanbul

$221 14.6%

Damietta

$73 22.8% 66.9% $148

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$129 8.5%

Damietta

$67 20.7% 48.6% $63

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$120 7.9%

Damietta

$34 10.6% 71.7% $86

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$91 6%

Damietta

$26 8.1% 71.3% $65

Getting Around

Istanbul

$75 5%

Damietta

$5.6 1.7% 92.5% $70

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,014 in Istanbul and $27 in Damietta. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Istanbul pays about 9.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $55 in Istanbul vs $11 in Damietta for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $258 vs $94 per month, with Damietta cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇪🇬 Damietta

🕒 Local time

23:13 11:13 PM

22:13 10:13 PM

1 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

267,000

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 1.99 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

100 EGP = 1.86 USD

100 EGP = 1.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, 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 = 56.05 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 53.85 EGP (100 EGP = 1.86 USD). 1 EUR = 60.18 EGP (100 EGP = 1.66 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Istanbul Damietta 1,100 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Damietta

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 Damietta: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Damietta wins on cost – living expenses run 79% lower than in Istanbul. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Damietta the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Istanbul is about 9.8 times higher, 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 $27 in Damietta. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,519 per month in Istanbul versus $321 in Damietta – Damietta is about 79% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Damietta runs roughly 94% less than in Istanbul. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

At $321 in Damietta versus $1,519 in Istanbul, a $800 budget is realistic in Damietta but tight or insufficient in Istanbul. The gap between the two cities makes Damietta 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 Damietta are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Damietta gentler on the wallet – expenses run 79% less than in Istanbul. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.