Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Iskele

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,519 a month against $2,047 in Iskele, rent and utilities included – about $6,300 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
98

Cost of Living Index in Iskele
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Iskele Living Index

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Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

Iskele

🇨🇾 Cyprus

$2,047

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Iskele

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,519 in Istanbul versus $2,047 in Iskele.

Istanbul $1,519
Iskele $2,047

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,365 in Istanbul versus $3,137 in Iskele.

Istanbul $2,365
Iskele $3,137

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,212 in Istanbul versus $4,227 in Iskele.

Istanbul $3,212
Iskele $4,227

Living in Istanbul costs roughly 26% less than in Iskele, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Istanbul 12% above, Iskele 51% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.81 ₺592

$22.29 €19.84

-47.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.9 ₺2,754

$79.6 €70.9

-31.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.26 ₺465

$9.43 €8.40

-1.80%

Cappuccino

$4.30 ₺216

$3.86 €3.43

11.40%

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

$1.77 ₺89.0

$1.97 €1.76

-10.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺28.32

$1.26 €1.13

-55.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.69 ₺235

$5.16 €4.60

-9.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.12 ₺357

$5.61 €5.00

26.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 ₺62.7

$1.90 €1.69

-34.21%

White Bread (500g)

$0.88 ₺44.17

$2.45 €2.18

-64.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 ₺111

$3.03 €2.70

-27.39%

Eggs

$2.43 ₺122

$4.77 €4.25

-49.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.48 ₺526

$13.41 €11.94

-21.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.31 ₺267

$9.79 €8.72

-45.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.10 ₺1,058

$13.92 €12.40

51.58%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 ₺93.1

$3.39 €3.02

-45.13%

Banana (1kg)

$2.30 ₺115

$2.33 €2.08

-1.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.22 ₺61.0

$2.96 €2.64

-58.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺90.2

$3.74 €3.33

-51.87%

Potato (1kg)

$0.69 ₺34.83

$2.08 €1.86

-66.83%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺32.16

$1.55 €1.38

-58.71%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.36 ₺68.0

$1.31 €1.16

3.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 ₺28.94

$1.08 €0.96

-46.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.34 ₺117

$6.68 €5.95

-64.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 ₺653

$9.11 €8.11

43.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.36 ₺118

$1.81 €1.62

30.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.32 ₺166

$2.87 €2.56

15.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 ₺44.07

$2.22 €1.98

-60.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.1 ₺3,316

$49.59 €44.16

33.33%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 ₺64.4

$9.93 €8.84

-87.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 ₺42.80

$2.21 €1.97

-61.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.09 ₺556

$22.51 €20.04

-50.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 ₺74.0

$1.80 €1.60

-17.78%

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

$48.6K ₺2.4M

$30.8K €27.4K

58.08%

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

$42.0K ₺2.1M

$30.6K €27.3K

37.02%

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

$92.7 ₺4,650

$239 €213

-61.21%

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

$11.20 ₺562

$20.68 €18.41

-45.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.89 ₺797

$32.07 €28.55

-50.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.7 ₺3,745

$66.8 €59.5

11.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.95 ₺1,151

$24.71 €22.01

-7.12%

Cinema Ticket

$8.05 ₺404

$13.64 €12.15

-40.98%

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

$948 ₺47.6K

$687 €611

38.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.9K ₺1.9M

$10.6K €9,477

246.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₺2,702

$95.8 €85.3

-43.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.49 ₺2,081

$50.6 €45.09

-18.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 ₺5,060

$110 €98.2

-8.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.3 ₺4,580

$113 €101

-19.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,014 ₺50.8K

$1,087 €967

-6.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$625 ₺31.3K

$785 €699

-20.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,005 ₺100.6K

$1,779 €1,584

12.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,126 ₺56.5K

$1,380 €1,229

-18.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,988 ₺149.8K

$2,982 €2,655

0.21%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,730 ₺86.8K

$2,244 €1,998

-22.88%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,136 ₺57.0K

$905 €806

25.60%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.42

3.93

928.50%

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

Last update for Istanbul: November 2, 2026

Last update for Iskele: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$625 41.1%

Iskele

$785 38.3% 25.7% $160

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$258 17%

Iskele

$328 16% 26.9% $69

Eating Out

Istanbul

$221 14.6%

Iskele

$303 14.8% 37.1% $82

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$129 8.5%

Iskele

$166 8.1% 28.6% $37

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$120 7.9%

Iskele

$292 14.3% 144% $172

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$91 6%

Iskele

$94 4.6% 3.6% $3.3

Getting Around

Istanbul

$75 5%

Iskele

$79 3.9% 5.7% $4.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,014 in Istanbul and $1,087 in Iskele. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Istanbul pays 26% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $55 in Istanbul vs $80 in Iskele for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $258 vs $328 per month, with Istanbul cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇨🇾 Iskele

🕒 Local time

15:22 3:22 PM

14:22 2:22 PM

1 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

4,490

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 1.99 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 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 November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 50.15 TRY (100 TRY = 1.99 USD). 1 EUR = 56.33 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.89 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Istanbul Iskele 770 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Iskele

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 Iskele: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Istanbul wins on cost – living expenses run 26% lower than in Iskele. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Istanbul the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 26% higher in Istanbul, 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 $1,087 in Iskele. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $948 in Istanbul versus $687 in Iskele. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 27% higher in Iskele. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,500. Istanbul is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.