Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Dikirnis

For one person, living is cheaper in Dikirnis: $407 a month against $1,519 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $13,300 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
19

Cost of Living Index in Dikirnis
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Dikirnis Living Index

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Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

Dikirnis

🇪🇬 Egypt

$407

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Dikirnis

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,519 in Istanbul versus $407 in Dikirnis.

Istanbul $1,519
Dikirnis $407

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,365 in Istanbul versus $656 in Dikirnis.

Istanbul $2,365
Dikirnis $656

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,212 in Istanbul versus $905 in Dikirnis.

Istanbul $3,212
Dikirnis $905

Living in Istanbul is roughly 274% more expensive than in Dikirnis, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Istanbul is 12% above, Dikirnis is 70% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.81 ₺592

$3.56 E£192

231.74%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.9 ₺2,754

$14.05 E£755

290.82%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.26 ₺465

$4.57 E£246

102.63%

Cappuccino

$4.30 ₺216

$1.16 E£62.6

270.69%

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

$1.77 ₺89.0

$0.28 E£15.02

532.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺28.32

$0.11 E£5.79

409.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.69 ₺235

$1.27 E£68.3

269.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.12 ₺357

$2.63 E£141

170.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 ₺62.7

$0.78 E£41.92

60.26%

White Bread (500g)

$0.88 ₺44.17

$0.65 E£35.09

35.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 ₺111

$0.59 E£31.48

272.88%

Eggs

$2.43 ₺122

$1.13 E£60.5

115.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.48 ₺526

$3.05 E£164

243.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.31 ₺267

$3.82 E£205

39.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.10 ₺1,058

$7.38 E£397

185.91%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 ₺93.1

$1.42 E£76.6

30.99%

Banana (1kg)

$2.30 ₺115

$0.63 E£33.97

265.08%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.22 ₺61.0

$0.46 E£24.70

165.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺90.2

$0.32 E£17.44

462.50%

Potato (1kg)

$0.69 ₺34.83

$0.32 E£17.36

115.62%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺32.16

$0.31 E£16.76

106.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.36 ₺68.0

$0.23 E£12.36

491.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 ₺28.94

$0.17 E£9.15

241.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.34 ₺117

$1.74 E£93.4

34.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 ₺653

$5.81 E£312

124.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.36 ₺118

$1.16 E£62.5

103.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.32 ₺166

$1.89 E£102

75.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 ₺44.07

$0.16 E£8.77

450.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.1 ₺3,316

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 ₺64.4

$0.38 E£20.32

236.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 ₺42.80

$0.16 E£8.62

431.25%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.09 ₺556

$1.18 E£63.6

839.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 ₺74.0

$0.42 E£22.70

252.38%

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

$48.6K ₺2.4M

$29.7K E£1.6M

63.71%

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

$42.0K ₺2.1M

$23.1K E£1.2M

81.71%

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

$92.7 ₺4,650

$14.40 E£774

543.82%

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

$11.20 ₺562

$6.27 E£337

78.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.89 ₺797

$12.54 E£674

26.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.7 ₺3,745

$15.23 E£819

390.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.95 ₺1,151

Cinema Ticket

$8.05 ₺404

$2.73 E£147

194.87%

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

$948 ₺47.6K

$79.8 E£4,291

1088.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.9K ₺1.9M

$1,801 E£96.9K

1949.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₺2,702

$15.99 E£860

236.96%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.49 ₺2,081

$40.81 E£2,194

1.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 ₺5,060

$110 E£5,917

-8.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.3 ₺4,580

$51.3 E£2,756

78.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,014 ₺50.8K

$124 E£6,651

719.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$625 ₺31.3K

$71.7 E£3,855

771.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,005 ₺100.6K

$242 E£13.0K

727.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,126 ₺56.5K

$137 E£7,393

718.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,988 ₺149.8K

$708 E£38.1K

321.84%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,730 ₺86.8K

$334 E£17.9K

418.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,136 ₺57.0K

$124 E£6,648

819.19%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.42

16.21

149.35%

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

Last update for Istanbul: November 2, 2026

Last update for Dikirnis: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$625 41.1%

Dikirnis

$72 17.6% 88.5% $553

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$258 17%

Dikirnis

$112 27.5% 56.8% $147

Eating Out

Istanbul

$221 14.6%

Dikirnis

$69 17.1% 68.6% $152

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$129 8.5%

Dikirnis

$98 24.1% 24.2% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$120 7.9%

Dikirnis

$33 8.2% 72.3% $87

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$91 6%

Dikirnis

$21 5.1% 77.2% $70

Getting Around

Istanbul

$75 5%

Dikirnis

$1.8 * 0.5% 97.6% $73

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,014 in Istanbul and $124 in Dikirnis. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Istanbul pays about 9.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $55 in Istanbul vs $14 in Dikirnis for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $258 vs $112 per month, with Dikirnis cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇪🇬 Dikirnis

🕒 Local time

19:35 7:35 PM

18:35 6:35 PM

1 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

137,542

💱 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 = 56.33 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 53.77 EGP (100 EGP = 1.86 USD). 1 EUR = 60.39 EGP (100 EGP = 1.66 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Istanbul Dikirnis 1,130 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Dikirnis

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 Dikirnis: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dikirnis wins on cost – living expenses run 73% lower than in Istanbul. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Dikirnis the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Istanbul is about 9.2 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 $124 in Dikirnis. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 131% higher in Istanbul. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,519 per month in Istanbul versus $407 in Dikirnis – Dikirnis is about 73% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $407 in Dikirnis versus $1,519 in Istanbul, a $800 budget is realistic in Dikirnis but tight or insufficient in Istanbul. The gap between the two cities makes Dikirnis 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.

It comes down to priorities – Dikirnis wins on affordability, Istanbul on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.