Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Karak

For one person, living is cheaper in Karak: $446 a month against $1,519 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $12,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

73

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index
21

Cost of Living Index in Karak
Learn more

Karak Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

Karak

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$446

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Karak

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

A single person spends $1,519 per month in Istanbul vs $446 in Karak, rent included.

Istanbul $1,519
Karak $446

A couple spends around $2,365 per month in Istanbul vs $661 in Karak, rent included.

Istanbul $2,365
Karak $661

A family of three spends $3,212 per month in Istanbul vs $876 in Karak, rent included.

Istanbul $3,212
Karak $876

Istanbul costs about 240% more than Karak, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Istanbul sits 12% above the global median, while Karak is 67% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.81 ₺591

$0.74 PKR 206

1495.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.9 ₺2,748

$7.27 PKR 2,012

655.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.26 ₺463

$5.38 PKR 1,489

72.12%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.75 PKR 209

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.84 PKR 1,891

Cappuccino

$4.30 ₺215

$0.52 PKR 143

726.92%

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

$1.77 ₺88.8

$0.32 PKR 87.2

453.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺28.26

$0.21 PKR 58.1

166.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.69 ₺234

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.12 ₺356

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 ₺62.6

$1.01 PKR 278

23.76%

White Bread (500g)

$0.88 ₺44.07

$0.53 PKR 146

66.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 ₺110

$1.07 PKR 295

105.61%

Eggs

$2.43 ₺122

$1.11 PKR 308

118.92%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.48 ₺524

$1.78 PKR 493

488.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.31 ₺266

$2.90 PKR 803

83.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.10 ₺1,056

$4.40 PKR 1,218

379.55%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 ₺92.9

$0.71 PKR 196

161.97%

Banana (1kg)

$2.30 ₺115

$0.56 PKR 156

310.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.22 ₺60.8

$0.69 PKR 190

76.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺90.0

$0.55 PKR 152

227.27%

Potato (1kg)

$0.69 ₺34.75

$0.29 PKR 81.3

137.93%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺32.09

$0.38 PKR 105

68.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.36 ₺67.8

$0.17 PKR 46.93

700.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 ₺28.88

$0.26 PKR 72.5

123.08%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.80 PKR 499

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 PKR 342

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 PKR 656

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.34 ₺117

$2.25 PKR 622

4.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 ₺652

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.36 ₺118

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.32 ₺166

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 ₺43.97

$0.20 PKR 55.6

340.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.1 ₺3,309

$10.10 PKR 2,793

554.65%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 ₺64.3

$1.29 PKR 358

-0.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 ₺42.70

$0.75 PKR 208

13.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.09 ₺555

$1.60 PKR 442

593.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 ₺73.9

$1.36 PKR 377

8.82%

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

$48.6K ₺2.4M

$22.0K PKR 6.1M

120.89%

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

$42.0K ₺2.1M

$23.0K PKR 6.4M

82.37%

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

$92.7 ₺4,639

$103 PKR 28.4K

-9.55%

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

$11.20 ₺560

$6.05 PKR 1,673

85.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.89 ₺795

$17.01 PKR 4,706

-6.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.7 ₺3,737

$14.76 PKR 4,082

405.96%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.95 ₺1,149

$8.19 PKR 2,265

180.22%

Cinema Ticket

$8.05 ₺403

$4.74 PKR 1,311

69.83%

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

$948 ₺47.5K

$42.84 PKR 11.9K

2113.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.9K ₺1.8M

$1,047 PKR 289.5K

3427.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₺2,696

$26.28 PKR 7,269

105.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.49 ₺2,076

$34.20 PKR 9,461

21.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 ₺5,049

$97.8 PKR 27.0K

3.21%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.3 ₺4,570

$40.84 PKR 11.3K

123.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,014 ₺50.7K

$138 PKR 38.1K

635.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$625 ₺31.3K

$85.6 PKR 23.7K

629.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,005 ₺100.4K

$264 PKR 72.9K

660.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,126 ₺56.3K

$181 PKR 50.0K

522.82%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,988 ₺149.5K

$815 PKR 225.5K

266.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,730 ₺86.6K

$496 PKR 137.2K

248.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,136 ₺56.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.42

13.08

209.02%

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

Last update for Istanbul: November 2, 2026

Last update for Karak: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$625 41.1%

Karak

$86 19.2% 86.3% $539

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$258 17%

Karak

$75 16.8% 71% $183

Eating Out

Istanbul

$221 14.6%

Karak

$30 6.8% 86.2% $191

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$129 8.5%

Karak

$90 20.1% 30.8% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$120 7.9%

Karak

$126 28.1% 4.8% $5.8

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$91 6%

Karak

$24 5.4% 73.3% $67

Getting Around

Istanbul

$75 5%

Karak

$16 3.6% 78.8% $59

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,014 in Istanbul versus $138 in Karak. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $55 in Istanbul versus $7 in Karak. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $75 – making Karak the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇵🇰 Karak

🕒 Local time

02:46 2:46 AM

04:46 4:46 AM

2 h ahead of Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

51,149

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

1,000 PKR = 3.62 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PKR, USD, EUR to TRY – Turkish Lira Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇷 Turkish Lira (₺)

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 50.04 TRY (100 TRY = 2 USD). 1 EUR = 56.18 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.62 USD). 1 EUR = 311 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Istanbul Karak 3,800 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Karak

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 Karak: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Istanbul is pricier by about 240%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,278 per month in Istanbul and $670 in Karak. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Karak, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $138 there versus $1,014 in Istanbul.

Kindergarten costs $948 per month in Istanbul and $43 in Karak. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 244% more in Istanbul, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Karak, where all-in costs run around $446, than in Istanbul at $1,519. In Karak it covers expenses comfortably, while in Istanbul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

For expats, Karak is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 71% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.