Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Hitchin

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,550 a month against $2,537 in Hitchin, rent and utilities included – about $11,800 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
123

Cost of Living Index in Hitchin
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Hitchin Living Index

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Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,550

/mo nomad

Hitchin

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,537

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Hitchin

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,550 in Istanbul versus $2,537 in Hitchin.

Istanbul $1,550
Hitchin $2,537

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,415 in Istanbul versus $3,631 in Hitchin.

Istanbul $2,415
Hitchin $3,631

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,281 in Istanbul versus $4,726 in Hitchin.

Istanbul $3,281
Hitchin $4,726

Living in Istanbul costs roughly 39% less than in Hitchin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Istanbul 15% above, Hitchin 88% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.30 ₺609

$26.20 £19.65

-53.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.7 ₺2,708

$79.9 £60.0

-31.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.22 ₺456

$8.10 £6.08

13.83%

Cappuccino

$4.40 ₺218

$4.51 £3.38

-2.44%

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

$1.68 ₺83.1

$1.30 £0.98

29.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.59 ₺29.40

$1.33 £1.00

-55.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.70 ₺233

$5.54 £4.15

-15.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.91 ₺292

$5.51 £4.13

7.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.21 ₺60.0

$1.50 £1.13

-19.33%

White Bread (500g)

$0.89 ₺44.10

$1.86 £1.39

-52.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.19 ₺108

$2.54 £1.91

-13.78%

Eggs

$2.35 ₺116

$3.19 £2.39

-26.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.42 ₺516

$9.45 £7.09

10.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.65 ₺280

$7.92 £5.94

-28.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.94 ₺1,037

$16.40 £12.30

27.68%

Apples (1kg)

$1.90 ₺94.1

$3.39 £2.54

-43.95%

Banana (1kg)

$2.31 ₺114

$1.29 £0.97

79.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.28 ₺63.1

$2.33 £1.75

-45.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺89.0

$3.40 £2.55

-47.06%

Potato (1kg)

$0.65 ₺32.16

$1.14 £0.86

-42.98%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺31.91

$1.30 £0.98

-50.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 ₺62.1

$1.25 £0.93

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺27.58

$1.25 £0.94

-55.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.37 ₺118

$19.62 £14.72

-87.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.42 ₺664

$9.85 £7.39

36.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.40 ₺119

$2.47 £1.85

-2.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 ₺172

$2.92 £2.19

19.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.89 ₺43.84

$3.49 £2.62

-74.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$67.4 ₺3,338

$94.5 £70.9

-28.61%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.29 ₺64.1

$4.16 £3.12

-68.99%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 ₺45.70

$3.78 £2.83

-75.66%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.96 ₺542

$32.36 £24.28

-66.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ₺72.9

$1.95 £1.47

-24.62%

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

$50.8K ₺2.5M

$38.0K £28.5K

33.70%

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

$44.5K ₺2.2M

$39.9K £29.9K

11.63%

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

$88.6 ₺4,387

$360 £270

-75.40%

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

$11.59 ₺574

$17.54 £13.16

-33.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.81 ₺783

$43.34 £32.51

-63.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$77.2 ₺3,820

$45.66 £34.25

68.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.74 ₺1,126

$14.68 £11.01

54.90%

Cinema Ticket

$8.14 ₺403

$12.98 £9.74

-37.29%

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

$1,008 ₺49.9K

$1,556 £1,167

-35.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.6K ₺1.3M

$22.1K £16.6K

15.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.0 ₺2,671

$86.8 £65.1

-37.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.83 ₺2,021

$39.50 £29.64

3.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.9 ₺4,895

$73.1 £54.9

35.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.6 ₺4,783

$60.2 £45.13

60.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$985 ₺48.7K

$1,225 £919

-19.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$650 ₺32.2K

$1,170 £878

-44.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,983 ₺98.2K

$2,065 £1,549

-3.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,180 ₺58.4K

$1,833 £1,375

-35.61%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,138 ₺155.4K

$4,970 £3,728

-36.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,780 ₺88.1K

$3,828 £2,872

-53.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,205 ₺59.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.92

5.21

685.41%

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

Last update for Istanbul: October 13, 2026

Last update for Hitchin: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$650 41.9%

Hitchin

$1.2K 46.1% 80.1% $521

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$260 16.8%

Hitchin

$289 11.4% 11.1% $29

Eating Out

Istanbul

$223 14.4%

Hitchin

$337 13.3% 51% $114

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$131 8.4%

Hitchin

$117 4.6% 10.6% $14

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$116 7.5%

Hitchin

$421 16.6% 263% $305

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$93 6%

Hitchin

$72 2.8% 23.4% $22

Getting Around

Istanbul

$77 5%

Hitchin

$131 5.2% 71% $55

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $985 in Istanbul and $1,225 in Hitchin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $55.0 in Istanbul vs $80.0 in Hitchin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $260 vs $289 per month, with Istanbul cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇬🇧 Hitchin

🕒 Local time

09:46 9:46 AM

07:46 7:46 AM

2 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

34,266

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, 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).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Istanbul Hitchin 2,520 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Hitchin

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 Hitchin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Istanbul is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and transport. The 64% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $2,325 in Istanbul and $3,806 in Hitchin to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $985 in Istanbul versus $1,225 in Hitchin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 11% higher in Hitchin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Istanbul – a meal for two runs $55.0 versus $80.0 in Hitchin. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,550 in Istanbul versus $2,537 in Hitchin, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Istanbul but tight or insufficient in Hitchin. 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 Hitchin, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Istanbul and Hitchin 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 64% less than in Hitchin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.