Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Janakpur

For one person, living is cheaper in Janakpur: $294 a month against $1,525 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $14,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index
14

Cost of Living Index in Janakpur
Learn more

Janakpur Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,525

/mo nomad

Janakpur

🇳🇵 Nepal

$294

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Janakpur

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

A single person spends $1,525 per month in Istanbul vs $294 in Janakpur, rent included.

Istanbul $1,525
Janakpur $294

A couple spends around $2,390 per month in Istanbul vs $506 in Janakpur, rent included.

Istanbul $2,390
Janakpur $506

A family of three spends $3,256 per month in Istanbul vs $718 in Janakpur, rent included.

Istanbul $3,256
Janakpur $718

Istanbul costs about 418% more than Janakpur, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Istanbul sits 13% above the global median, while Janakpur is 78% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.96 ₺592

$2.00 NPR 305

498.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.2 ₺2,834

$11.24 NPR 1,708

409.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.51 ₺471

$6.68 NPR 1,015

42.37%

Cappuccino

$4.40 ₺218

$1.50 NPR 228

193.33%

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

$1.75 ₺86.6

$0.54 NPR 82.3

224.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺27.57

$0.15 NPR 23.03

273.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.71 ₺233

$1.97 NPR 300

139.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.14 ₺304

$1.66 NPR 252

269.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.24 ₺61.6

$0.58 NPR 87.6

113.79%

White Bread (500g)

$0.95 ₺47.25

$0.35 NPR 52.5

171.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.28 ₺113

$0.85 NPR 130

168.24%

Eggs

$2.45 ₺121

$1.65 NPR 251

48.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.56 ₺523

$3.28 NPR 498

221.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.50 ₺272

$2.40 NPR 364

129.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.65 ₺1,072

$6.06 NPR 921

257.26%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 ₺90.6

$1.65 NPR 251

10.91%

Banana (1kg)

$2.29 ₺113

$0.66 NPR 100

246.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.28 ₺63.4

$1.01 NPR 154

26.73%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.82 ₺90.1

$0.54 NPR 81.3

237.04%

Potato (1kg)

$0.66 ₺32.74

$0.28 NPR 42.05

135.71%

Onion (1kg)

$0.63 ₺31.14

$0.51 NPR 77.4

23.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.27 ₺62.8

$0.22 NPR 33.32

477.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺27.62

$0.15 NPR 22.44

273.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.36 ₺117

$2.26 NPR 344

4.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.98 ₺642

$7.81 NPR 1,186

66.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.48 ₺123

$1.43 NPR 217

73.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.50 ₺174

$2.01 NPR 305

74.13%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.82 ₺40.77

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.2 ₺3,228

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.33 ₺65.7

$0.63 NPR 96.1

111.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 ₺44.60

$1.20 NPR 183

-25.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.91 ₺540

$3.24 NPR 493

236.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.43 ₺70.7

$1.03 NPR 156

38.83%

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

$49.6K ₺2.5M

$23.0K NPR 3.5M

115.77%

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

$43.2K ₺2.1M

$26.1K NPR 4.0M

65.39%

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

$88.8 ₺4,395

$13.19 NPR 2,004

573.01%

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

$11.69 ₺579

$3.45 NPR 525

238.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.09 ₺797

$3.88 NPR 590

314.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$76.3 ₺3,776

$13.24 NPR 2,012

475.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.72 ₺1,125

$6.55 NPR 996

246.87%

Cinema Ticket

$8.26 ₺409

$2.97 NPR 451

178.11%

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

$1,015 ₺50.2K

$32.91 NPR 5,001

2983.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.8K ₺1.3M

$5,440 NPR 826.6K

374.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.3 ₺2,636

$25.07 NPR 3,809

112.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.55 ₺2,008

$16.16 NPR 2,456

150.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100 ₺4,956

$38.50 NPR 5,849

160.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.5 ₺4,630

$22.40 NPR 3,404

317.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$977 ₺48.4K

$51.4 NPR 7,810

1800.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$627 ₺31.0K

$22.49 NPR 3,418

2687.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,980 ₺98.0K

$133 NPR 20.2K

1389.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,147 ₺56.8K

$98.6 NPR 15.0K

1063.38%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,095 ₺153.2K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,787 ₺88.5K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,213 ₺60.1K

$322 NPR 48.9K

277.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.69

9.72

318.62%

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

Last update for Istanbul: October 19, 2026

Last update for Janakpur: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$627 41.1%

Janakpur

$22 7.6% 96.4% $604

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$263 17.2%

Janakpur

$109 37.2% 58.3% $153

Eating Out

Istanbul

$222 14.6%

Janakpur

$70 23.8% 68.5% $152

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$129 8.5%

Janakpur

$46 15.6% 64.5% $83

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$117 7.6%

Janakpur

$21 7% 82.4% $96

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$93 6.1%

Janakpur

$19 6.5% 79.3% $74

Getting Around

Istanbul

$74 4.9%

Janakpur

$6.7 * 2.3% 91.1% $68

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $977 in Istanbul versus $51.4 in Janakpur. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 277% higher in Istanbul, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $57.0 in Istanbul versus $11.00 in Janakpur. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $263 vs $109 – making Janakpur the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇳🇵 Janakpur

🕒 Local time

18:19 6:19 PM

21:04 9:04 PM

2 h 45 min ahead of Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

195,438

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Nepalese Rupee NPR रु

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

1,000 NPR = 6.58 USD

1,000 NPR = 5.85 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NPR, USD, EUR to TRY – Turkish Lira Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇷 Turkish Lira (₺)

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 49.51 TRY (100 TRY = 2.02 USD). 1 EUR = 55.66 TRY (100 TRY = 1.8 EUR).

Nepalese Rupee exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 152 NPR (1,000 NPR = 6.58 USD). 1 EUR = 171 NPR (1,000 NPR = 5.85 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Istanbul Janakpur 5,390 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Janakpur

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 Janakpur: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Istanbul is pricier by about 418%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,287 per month in Istanbul and $441 in Janakpur. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Janakpur, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $57.0 in Istanbul and $11.00 in Janakpur. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 140% more in Istanbul, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Janakpur, where all-in costs run around $294, than in Istanbul at $1,525. In Janakpur it covers expenses comfortably, while in Istanbul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Janakpur – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Janakpur. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Istanbul makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.