Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Frederiksberg

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,550 a month against $2,852 in Frederiksberg, rent and utilities included – about $15,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

75

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index
138

Cost of Living Index in Frederiksberg
Learn more

Frederiksberg Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,550

/mo nomad

Frederiksberg

🇩🇰 Denmark

$2,852

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Frederiksberg

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,550 in Istanbul versus $2,852 in Frederiksberg.

Istanbul $1,550
Frederiksberg $2,852

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,415 in Istanbul versus $4,193 in Frederiksberg.

Istanbul $2,415
Frederiksberg $4,193

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,281 in Istanbul versus $5,534 in Frederiksberg.

Istanbul $3,281
Frederiksberg $5,534

Living in Istanbul costs roughly 46% less than in Frederiksberg, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Istanbul 15% above, Frederiksberg 111% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.30 ₺609

$21.04 DKK 140

-41.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.7 ₺2,708

$120 DKK 801

-54.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.22 ₺456

$13.25 DKK 88.1

-30.42%

Cappuccino

$4.40 ₺218

$7.09 DKK 47.15

-37.94%

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

$1.68 ₺83.1

$4.21 DKK 28.02

-60.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.59 ₺29.40

$3.38 DKK 22.46

-82.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.70 ₺233

$8.83 DKK 58.7

-46.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.91 ₺292

$7.51 DKK 49.92

-21.30%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.21 ₺60.0

$1.96 DKK 13.01

-38.27%

White Bread (500g)

$0.89 ₺44.10

$3.90 DKK 25.94

-77.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.19 ₺108

$2.38 DKK 15.82

-7.98%

Eggs

$2.35 ₺116

$5.22 DKK 34.74

-54.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.42 ₺516

$15.69 DKK 104

-33.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.65 ₺280

$11.43 DKK 76.0

-50.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.94 ₺1,037

$18.00 DKK 120

16.33%

Apples (1kg)

$1.90 ₺94.1

$3.15 DKK 20.94

-39.68%

Banana (1kg)

$2.31 ₺114

$3.65 DKK 24.29

-36.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.28 ₺63.1

$3.74 DKK 24.84

-65.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺89.0

$5.21 DKK 34.64

-65.45%

Potato (1kg)

$0.65 ₺32.16

$2.23 DKK 14.84

-70.85%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺31.91

$2.02 DKK 13.43

-68.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 ₺62.1

$2.11 DKK 14.00

-40.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺27.58

$1.51 DKK 10.06

-62.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.37 ₺118

$9.89 DKK 65.8

-76.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.42 ₺664

$10.04 DKK 66.8

33.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.40 ₺119

$1.98 DKK 13.15

21.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 ₺172

$2.49 DKK 16.54

39.76%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.89 ₺43.84

$3.68 DKK 24.45

-75.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$67.4 ₺3,338

$56.1 DKK 373

20.11%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.29 ₺64.1

$5.86 DKK 38.98

-77.99%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 ₺45.70

$1.63 DKK 10.83

-43.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.96 ₺542

$61.3 DKK 408

-82.12%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ₺72.9

$2.58 DKK 17.18

-43.02%

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

$50.8K ₺2.5M

$50.4K DKK 335.2K

0.77%

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

$44.5K ₺2.2M

$52.6K DKK 350.0K

-15.40%

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

$88.6 ₺4,387

$181 DKK 1,204

-51.06%

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

$11.59 ₺574

$15.27 DKK 102

-24.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.81 ₺783

$37.62 DKK 250

-57.97%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$77.2 ₺3,820

$86.5 DKK 575

-10.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.74 ₺1,126

Cinema Ticket

$8.14 ₺403

$19.51 DKK 130

-58.28%

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

$1,008 ₺49.9K

$729 DKK 4,850

38.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.6K ₺1.3M

$5,927 DKK 39.4K

331.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.0 ₺2,671

$115 DKK 765

-53.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.83 ₺2,021

$49.12 DKK 327

-16.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.9 ₺4,895

$128 DKK 854

-22.96%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.6 ₺4,783

$192 DKK 1,277

-49.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$985 ₺48.7K

$1,858 DKK 12.4K

-47.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$650 ₺32.2K

$1,409 DKK 9,369

-53.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,983 ₺98.2K

$2,649 DKK 17.6K

-25.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,180 ₺58.4K

$2,075 DKK 13.8K

-43.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,138 ₺155.4K

$7,840 DKK 52.1K

-59.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,780 ₺88.1K

$5,238 DKK 34.8K

-66.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,205 ₺59.7K

$5,819 DKK 38.7K

-79.29%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.92

3.85

962.86%

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

Last update for Istanbul: October 13, 2026

Last update for Frederiksberg: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$650 41.9%

Frederiksberg

$1.4K 49.4% 117% $759

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$260 16.8%

Frederiksberg

$398 14% 53.3% $138

Eating Out

Istanbul

$223 14.4%

Frederiksberg

$383 13.4% 71.4% $159

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$131 8.4%

Frederiksberg

$218 7.7% 67% $87

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$116 7.5%

Frederiksberg

$234 8.2% 102% $118

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$93 6%

Frederiksberg

$125 4.4% 34.3% $32

Getting Around

Istanbul

$77 5%

Frederiksberg

$85 3% 10.4% $8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $985 in Istanbul and $1,858 in Frederiksberg. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Frederiksberg pays 383% 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 $120 in Frederiksberg for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $260 vs $398 per month, with Istanbul cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇩🇰 Frederiksberg

🕒 Local time

15:30 3:30 PM

14:30 2:30 PM

1 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

95,029

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Danish Krone DKK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

1 DKK = 0.15 USD

1 DKK = 0.134 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

DKK, USD, EUR 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).

Danish Krone exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 6.65 DKK (1 DKK = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.48 DKK (1 DKK = 0.134 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Istanbul Frederiksberg 2,020 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Frederiksberg

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 Frederiksberg: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Istanbul and Frederiksberg differ by about 84% in total monthly costs ($1,550 vs $2,852 including rent). Istanbul is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 383% lower in Frederiksberg. 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 $1,858 in Frederiksberg. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Istanbul – a meal for two runs $55.0 versus $120 in Frederiksberg. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,550 per month in Istanbul versus $2,852 in Frederiksberg – a 84% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,550 in Istanbul versus $2,852 in Frederiksberg, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Istanbul but tight or insufficient in Frederiksberg. 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 Frederiksberg 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 84% less than in Frederiksberg. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.