Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Fgura

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,550 a month against $1,945 in Fgura, rent and utilities included – about $4,700 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
95

Cost of Living Index in Fgura
Learn more

Fgura Living Index

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Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,550

/mo nomad

Fgura

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,945

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Fgura

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,550 in Istanbul versus $1,945 in Fgura.

Istanbul $1,550
Fgura $1,945

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,415 in Istanbul versus $2,894 in Fgura.

Istanbul $2,415
Fgura $2,894

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,281 in Istanbul versus $3,843 in Fgura.

Istanbul $3,281
Fgura $3,843

Living in Istanbul costs roughly 20% less than in Fgura, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Istanbul 15% above, Fgura 44% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.30 ₺609

$19.48 €17.33

-36.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.7 ₺2,708

$57.8 €51.4

-5.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.22 ₺456

$13.37 €11.89

-31.04%

Cappuccino

$4.40 ₺218

$2.69 €2.39

63.57%

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

$1.68 ₺83.1

$3.17 €2.82

-47.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.59 ₺29.40

$2.20 €1.96

-73.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.70 ₺233

$4.54 €4.04

3.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.91 ₺292

$5.24 €4.66

12.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.21 ₺60.0

$1.33 €1.19

-9.02%

White Bread (500g)

$0.89 ₺44.10

$1.09 €0.97

-18.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.19 ₺108

$4.38 €3.89

-50.00%

Eggs

$2.35 ₺116

$4.34 €3.86

-45.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.42 ₺516

$8.36 €7.43

24.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.65 ₺280

$10.30 €9.16

-45.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.94 ₺1,037

$18.09 €16.09

15.75%

Apples (1kg)

$1.90 ₺94.1

$4.05 €3.60

-53.09%

Banana (1kg)

$2.31 ₺114

$2.83 €2.51

-18.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.28 ₺63.1

$3.56 €3.17

-64.04%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺89.0

$3.28 €2.91

-45.12%

Potato (1kg)

$0.65 ₺32.16

$2.51 €2.23

-74.10%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺31.91

$1.99 €1.77

-67.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 ₺62.1

$2.27 €2.01

-44.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺27.58

$1.31 €1.16

-57.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.37 ₺118

$6.75 €6.00

-64.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.42 ₺664

$8.28 €7.36

62.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.40 ₺119

$1.78 €1.58

34.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 ₺172

$2.34 €2.08

48.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.89 ₺43.84

$2.46 €2.19

-63.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$67.4 ₺3,338

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.29 ₺64.1

$5.71 €5.08

-77.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 ₺45.70

$2.26 €2.01

-59.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.96 ₺542

$26.64 €23.69

-58.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ₺72.9

$1.46 €1.30

0.68%

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

$50.8K ₺2.5M

$37.9K €33.7K

33.87%

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

$44.5K ₺2.2M

$38.7K €34.4K

15.06%

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

$88.6 ₺4,387

$100 €89.4

-11.80%

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

$11.59 ₺574

$16.92 €15.05

-31.50%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.81 ₺783

$42.24 €37.57

-62.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$77.2 ₺3,820

$62.1 €55.2

24.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.74 ₺1,126

Cinema Ticket

$8.14 ₺403

$10.12 €9.00

-19.57%

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

$1,008 ₺49.9K

$359 €319

181.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.6K ₺1.3M

$11.1K €9,836

131.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.0 ₺2,671

$86.2 €76.6

-37.38%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.83 ₺2,021

$40.04 €35.62

1.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.9 ₺4,895

$98.8 €87.9

0.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.6 ₺4,783

$78.5 €69.8

23.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$985 ₺48.7K

$1,137 €1,012

-13.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$650 ₺32.2K

$933 €830

-30.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,983 ₺98.2K

$1,748 €1,554

13.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,180 ₺58.4K

$1,519 €1,351

-22.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,138 ₺155.4K

$3,924 €3,491

-20.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,780 ₺88.1K

$2,769 €2,463

-35.72%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,205 ₺59.7K

$2,138 €1,901

-43.61%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.92

2.9

1311.03%

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

Last update for Istanbul: October 13, 2026

Last update for Fgura: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$650 41.9%

Fgura

$933 48% 43.6% $283

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$260 16.8%

Fgura

$324 16.7% 24.8% $64

Eating Out

Istanbul

$223 14.4%

Fgura

$283 14.5% 26.7% $60

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$131 8.4%

Fgura

$137 7% 4.6% $5.9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$116 7.5%

Fgura

$160 8.2% 37.6% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$93 6%

Fgura

$82 4.2% 11.9% $11

Getting Around

Istanbul

$77 5%

Fgura

$27 * 1.4% 65.1% $50

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 $985 in Istanbul and $1,137 in Fgura. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Fgura pays 77% 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 $58.0 in Fgura for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $260 vs $324 per month, with Istanbul cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇲🇹 Fgura

🕒 Local time

14:55 2:55 PM

13:55 1:55 PM

1 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

11,670

💱 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 Fgura 1,380 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Fgura

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 Fgura: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Istanbul and Fgura differ by about 26% in total monthly costs ($1,550 vs $1,945 including rent). Istanbul is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 77% lower in Fgura. 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 $1,137 in Fgura. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,008 in Istanbul versus $359 in Fgura. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Istanbul – a meal for two runs $55.0 versus $58.0 in Fgura. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,550 in Istanbul versus $1,945 in Fgura, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Istanbul but tight or insufficient in Fgura. The gap between the two cities makes Istanbul 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 Fgura 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 26% less than in Fgura. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.