Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Karmøy

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,516 a month against $2,641 in Karmøy, rent and utilities included – about $13,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

73

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index
132

Cost of Living Index in Karmøy
Learn more

Karmøy Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,516

/mo nomad

Karmøy

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,641

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Karmøy

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

A single person spends $1,516 per month in Istanbul vs $2,641 in Karmøy, rent included.

Istanbul $1,516
Karmøy $2,641

A couple spends around $2,356 per month in Istanbul vs $4,032 in Karmøy, rent included.

Istanbul $2,356
Karmøy $4,032

A family of three spends $3,197 per month in Istanbul vs $5,423 in Karmøy, rent included.

Istanbul $3,197
Karmøy $5,423

Istanbul is about 43% cheaper than Karmøy, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Istanbul and Karmøy sit above the global median – Istanbul by 11%, Karmøy by 94%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.59 ₺577

$21.23 NOK 197

-45.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.7 ₺2,725

$122 NOK 1,135

-55.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.39 ₺468

$16.23 NOK 151

-42.14%

Cappuccino

$4.23 ₺211

$6.16 NOK 57.3

-31.33%

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

$1.72 ₺85.6

$3.80 NOK 35.34

-54.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.57 ₺28.26

$2.91 NOK 27.02

-80.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.65 ₺232

$11.67 NOK 108

-60.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.84 ₺341

$11.22 NOK 104

-39.04%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.20 ₺60.0

$2.32 NOK 21.55

-48.28%

White Bread (500g)

$0.94 ₺46.97

$3.87 NOK 35.94

-75.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.24 ₺112

$3.37 NOK 31.29

-33.53%

Eggs

$2.42 ₺121

$4.39 NOK 40.75

-44.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.24 ₺510

$12.31 NOK 114

-16.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.38 ₺268

$15.45 NOK 144

-65.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.19 ₺1,056

$29.85 NOK 277

-29.01%

Apples (1kg)

$1.89 ₺94.3

$3.29 NOK 30.53

-42.55%

Banana (1kg)

$2.22 ₺111

$2.37 NOK 22.03

-6.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.26 ₺62.7

$3.05 NOK 28.29

-58.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.81 ₺90.0

$4.55 NOK 42.32

-60.22%

Potato (1kg)

$0.70 ₺34.84

$2.51 NOK 23.35

-72.11%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺32.13

$3.00 NOK 27.91

-78.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.22 ₺60.9

$3.44 NOK 31.92

-64.53%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ₺27.35

$2.49 NOK 23.13

-77.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.32 ₺116

$20.07 NOK 186

-88.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.31 ₺663

$17.00 NOK 158

-21.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.33 ₺116

$3.89 NOK 36.11

-40.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.46 ₺172

$4.95 NOK 45.99

-30.10%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.91 ₺45.18

$4.66 NOK 43.32

-80.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.3 ₺3,306

$84.3 NOK 783

-21.27%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.29 ₺64.2

$13.42 NOK 125

-90.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.86 ₺42.66

$1.84 NOK 17.09

-53.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.09 ₺553

$63.7 NOK 592

-82.59%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 ₺70.8

$2.52 NOK 23.41

-43.65%

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

$49.2K ₺2.5M

$50.9K NOK 472.5K

-3.29%

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

$42.8K ₺2.1M

$41.1K NOK 381.6K

4.21%

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

$87.7 ₺4,373

$243 NOK 2,259

-63.92%

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

$11.28 ₺562

$30.54 NOK 284

-63.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.89 ₺792

$46.76 NOK 434

-66.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$75.9 ₺3,783

$49.24 NOK 457

54.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.04 ₺1,148

$41.02 NOK 381

-43.83%

Cinema Ticket

$8.20 ₺409

$16.70 NOK 155

-50.90%

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

$1,028 ₺51.2K

$259 NOK 2,405

297.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$26.0K ₺1.3M

$12.2K NOK 113.3K

112.90%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.3 ₺2,658

$96.0 NOK 892

-44.44%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.69 ₺1,978

$49.63 NOK 461

-20.03%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.8 ₺4,972

$111 NOK 1,031

-10.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.5 ₺4,661

$154 NOK 1,429

-39.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,003 ₺50.0K

$1,262 NOK 11.7K

-20.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$628 ₺31.3K

$1,044 NOK 9,703

-39.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,963 ₺97.8K

$2,068 NOK 19.2K

-5.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,122 ₺55.9K

$1,688 NOK 15.7K

-33.53%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,075 ₺153.2K

$6,242 NOK 58.0K

-50.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,753 ₺87.3K

$4,136 NOK 38.4K

-57.62%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,180 ₺58.8K

$4,114 NOK 38.2K

-71.33%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.69

4.94

723.68%

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

Last update for Istanbul: October 27, 2026

Last update for Karmøy: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$628 41.5%

Karmøy

$1K 39.6% 66.3% $416

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$258 17%

Karmøy

$483 18.3% 87% $225

Eating Out

Istanbul

$218 14.4%

Karmøy

$400 15.2% 83.8% $182

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$129 8.5%

Karmøy

$185 7% 43.3% $56

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$115 7.6%

Karmøy

$321 12.1% 179% $206

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$92 6.1%

Karmøy

$83 3.1% 10.5% $9.7

Getting Around

Istanbul

$76 5%

Karmøy

$126 4.8% 66.2% $50

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,003 in Istanbul versus $1,262 in Karmøy. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Karmøy are about 3.5 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $55 in Istanbul versus $122 in Karmøy. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $483 – making Istanbul the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇳🇴 Karmøy

🕒 Local time

22:18 10:18 PM

20:18 8:18 PM

2 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

43,404

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2.01 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

100 NOK = 10.76 USD

100 NOK = 9.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NOK, USD, EUR to TRY – Turkish Lira Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇷 Turkish Lira (₺)

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 49.83 TRY (100 TRY = 2.01 USD). 1 EUR = 55.48 TRY (100 TRY = 1.8 EUR).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 9.29 NOK (1 NOK = 0.108 USD). 1 EUR = 10.34 NOK (100 NOK = 9.67 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Istanbul Karmøy 2,610 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Karmøy

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 Karmøy: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Karmøy is pricier by about 74%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,274 per month in Istanbul and $3,961 in Karmøy. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Istanbul, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,003 there versus $1,262 in Karmøy.

Kindergarten costs $1,028 per month in Istanbul and $259 in Karmøy. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 87% more in Karmøy, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

$1,500 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,516 in Istanbul and $2,641 in Karmøy. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. Istanbul has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,516 in Istanbul to $2,641 in Karmøy. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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