Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Drachten

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,550 a month against $2,483 in Drachten, rent and utilities included – about $11,200 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
122

Cost of Living Index in Drachten
Learn more

Drachten Living Index

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Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,550

/mo nomad

Drachten

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$2,483

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Drachten

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,550 in Istanbul versus $2,483 in Drachten.

Istanbul $1,550
Drachten $2,483

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,415 in Istanbul versus $3,657 in Drachten.

Istanbul $2,415
Drachten $3,657

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,281 in Istanbul versus $4,831 in Drachten.

Istanbul $3,281
Drachten $4,831

Living in Istanbul costs roughly 38% less than in Drachten, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Istanbul 15% above, Drachten 84% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.30 ₺609

$24.26 €21.58

-49.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.7 ₺2,708

$84.3 €75.0

-35.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.22 ₺456

$13.55 €12.05

-31.96%

Cappuccino

$4.40 ₺218

$3.98 €3.54

10.55%

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

$1.68 ₺83.1

$3.62 €3.22

-53.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.59 ₺29.40

$3.10 €2.75

-80.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.70 ₺233

$5.74 €5.11

-18.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.91 ₺292

$5.68 €5.05

4.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.21 ₺60.0

$1.16 €1.03

4.31%

White Bread (500g)

$0.89 ₺44.10

$1.34 €1.19

-33.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.19 ₺108

$1.59 €1.41

37.74%

Eggs

$2.35 ₺116

$5.00 €4.45

-53.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.42 ₺516

$12.45 €11.07

-16.31%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.65 ₺280

$13.26 €11.80

-57.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.94 ₺1,037

$12.08 €10.74

73.34%

Apples (1kg)

$1.90 ₺94.1

$1.86 €1.66

2.15%

Banana (1kg)

$2.31 ₺114

$2.49 €2.22

-7.23%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.28 ₺63.1

$1.89 €1.68

-32.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺89.0

$3.14 €2.79

-42.68%

Potato (1kg)

$0.65 ₺32.16

$1.64 €1.45

-60.37%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺31.91

$1.58 €1.41

-59.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 ₺62.1

$1.28 €1.14

-2.34%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺27.58

$0.65 €0.57

-13.85%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.37 ₺118

$8.96 €7.97

-73.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.42 ₺664

$6.86 €6.10

95.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.40 ₺119

$1.47 €1.31

63.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 ₺172

$2.65 €2.35

31.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.89 ₺43.84

$3.38 €3.00

-73.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$67.4 ₺3,338

$90.0 €80.1

-25.09%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.29 ₺64.1

$4.19 €3.73

-69.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 ₺45.70

$3.05 €2.71

-69.84%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.96 ₺542

$49.31 €43.86

-77.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ₺72.9

$2.27 €2.01

-35.24%

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

$50.8K ₺2.5M

$41.5K €36.9K

22.29%

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

$44.5K ₺2.2M

$37.3K €33.2K

19.45%

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

$88.6 ₺4,387

$276 €246

-67.93%

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

$11.59 ₺574

$24.01 €21.35

-51.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.81 ₺783

$49.46 €44.00

-68.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$77.2 ₺3,820

$41.09 €36.55

87.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.74 ₺1,126

$22.13 €19.68

2.76%

Cinema Ticket

$8.14 ₺403

$16.02 €14.25

-49.19%

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

$1,008 ₺49.9K

$2,305 €2,050

-56.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.6K ₺1.3M

$7,889 €7,018

223.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.0 ₺2,671

$59.0 €52.5

-8.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.83 ₺2,021

$44.14 €39.26

-7.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.9 ₺4,895

$87.4 €77.7

13.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.6 ₺4,783

$136 €121

-28.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$985 ₺48.7K

$1,430 €1,272

-31.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$650 ₺32.2K

$1,155 €1,027

-43.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,983 ₺98.2K

$2,384 €2,120

-16.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,180 ₺58.4K

$1,900 €1,690

-37.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,138 ₺155.4K

$5,428 €4,829

-42.19%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,780 ₺88.1K

$4,379 €3,895

-59.35%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,205 ₺59.7K

$2,515 €2,237

-52.07%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.92

4.3

851.63%

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

Last update for Istanbul: October 13, 2026

Last update for Drachten: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$650 41.9%

Drachten

$1.2K 46.5% 77.7% $505

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$260 16.8%

Drachten

$286 11.5% 10.2% $26

Eating Out

Istanbul

$223 14.4%

Drachten

$349 14.1% 56.5% $126

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$131 8.4%

Drachten

$147 5.9% 12.4% $16

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$116 7.5%

Drachten

$350 14.1% 202% $234

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$93 6%

Drachten

$73 3% 21.7% $20

Getting Around

Istanbul

$77 5%

Drachten

$123 5% 59.9% $46

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $985 in Istanbul and $1,430 in Drachten. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Drachten pays 109% 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 $84.0 in Drachten for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $260 vs $286 per month, with Istanbul cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇳🇱 Drachten

🕒 Local time

05:57 5:57 AM

04:57 4:57 AM

1 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

45,186

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD 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).

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Istanbul Drachten 2,180 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Drachten

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 Drachten: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Istanbul is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 60% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 109% lower in Drachten. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $985 in Istanbul versus $1,430 in Drachten. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,008 in Istanbul versus $2,305 in Drachten. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 10% higher in Drachten. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,550 in Istanbul versus $2,483 in Drachten, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Istanbul but tight or insufficient in Drachten. The gap between the two cities makes Istanbul the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Istanbul is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Drachten, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Istanbul and Drachten 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 Istanbul gentler on the wallet – expenses run 60% less than in Drachten. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.