Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Khartoum

For one person, living is cheaper in Khartoum: $505 a month against $1,526 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $12,300 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index
24

Cost of Living Index in Khartoum
Learn more

Khartoum Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,526

/mo nomad

Khartoum

🇸🇩 Sudan

$505

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Khartoum

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

A single person spends $1,526 per month in Istanbul vs $505 in Khartoum, rent included.

Istanbul $1,526
Khartoum $505

A couple spends around $2,399 per month in Istanbul vs $681 in Khartoum, rent included.

Istanbul $2,399
Khartoum $681

A family of three spends $3,272 per month in Istanbul vs $856 in Khartoum, rent included.

Istanbul $3,272
Khartoum $856

Istanbul costs about 202% more than Khartoum, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Istanbul sits 14% above the global median, while Khartoum is 62% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.88 ₺585

$2.34 SDG 1,401

407.69%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.1 ₺2,714

$14.08 SDG 8,425

291.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.14 ₺450

$2.64 SDG 1,579

246.21%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.40 SDG 1,434

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 SDG 1,289

Cappuccino

$4.24 ₺209

$2.73 SDG 1,633

55.31%

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

$1.75 ₺86.0

$0.52 SDG 314

236.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 ₺26.83

$0.35 SDG 212

54.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.69 ₺231

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.97 ₺294

Milk (1 liter)

$1.26 ₺62.1

$1.38 SDG 826

-8.70%

White Bread (500g)

$0.95 ₺46.81

$1.39 SDG 829

-31.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 ₺114

$1.42 SDG 853

62.68%

Eggs

$2.47 ₺122

$3.64 SDG 2,179

-32.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.55 ₺520

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.60 ₺276

$4.32 SDG 2,584

29.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.21 ₺1,045

Apples (1kg)

$1.93 ₺95.1

$4.27 SDG 2,555

-54.80%

Banana (1kg)

$2.29 ₺113

$1.02 SDG 611

124.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.28 ₺63.1

$1.57 SDG 941

-18.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.84 ₺90.8

$1.61 SDG 964

14.29%

Potato (1kg)

$0.67 ₺32.86

$1.04 SDG 625

-35.58%

Onion (1kg)

$0.59 ₺29.31

$0.74 SDG 444

-20.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.33 ₺65.4

$0.57 SDG 340

133.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 ₺29.10

$0.56 SDG 336

5.36%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$3.97 SDG 2,374

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 SDG 463

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 SDG 1,010

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.36 ₺116

$1.86 SDG 1,114

26.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.47 ₺664

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.42 ₺119

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.54 ₺174

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.83 ₺40.64

$0.67 SDG 404

23.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.5 ₺3,273

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.35 ₺66.6

$3.80 SDG 2,274

-64.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 ₺42.05

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.86 ₺535

$4.88 SDG 2,923

122.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ₺72.3

$1.16 SDG 693

26.72%

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

$51.6K ₺2.5M

$4,970 SDG 3.0M

938.77%

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

$44.4K ₺2.2M

$10.1K SDG 6.0M

340.16%

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

$89.2 ₺4,395

$71.1 SDG 42.6K

25.41%

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

$11.60 ₺572

$9.87 SDG 5,906

17.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.10 ₺793

$32.81 SDG 19.6K

-50.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$77.3 ₺3,805

$8.18 SDG 4,897

844.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.66 ₺1,116

Cinema Ticket

$8.34 ₺411

$3.89 SDG 2,329

114.40%

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

$974 ₺48.0K

$111 SDG 66.7K

773.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.8K ₺1.3M

$2,732 SDG 1.6M

843.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.7 ₺2,597

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.16 ₺1,929

$8.72 SDG 5,218

349.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 ₺5,083

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.6 ₺4,759

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$994 ₺49.0K

$538 SDG 322.2K

84.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$629 ₺31.0K

$170 SDG 101.9K

269.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,024 ₺99.7K

$1,243 SDG 743.7K

62.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,155 ₺56.9K

$164 SDG 98.4K

602.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,160 ₺155.7K

$1,029 SDG 615.8K

207.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,838 ₺90.5K

$1,019 SDG 609.7K

80.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,203 ₺59.3K

$241 SDG 144.2K

399.45%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

41.09

36.97%

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

Last update for Istanbul: October 3, 2026

Last update for Khartoum: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$629 41.2%

Khartoum

$170 34.2% 73% $459

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$264 17.3%

Khartoum

$125 * 25.1% 52.7% $139

Eating Out

Istanbul

$218 14.3%

Khartoum

$63 12.6% 71.1% $155

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$131 8.6%

Khartoum

$3.9 * 0.8% 97% $127

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$117 7.7%

Khartoum

$114 22.8% 2.7% $3.1

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$94 6.1%

Khartoum

$16 3.2% 83% $78

Getting Around

Istanbul

$75 4.9%

Khartoum

$6.5 * 1.3% 91.4% $69

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $994 in Istanbul versus $538 in Khartoum. 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 399% 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 $55.0 in Istanbul versus $14.00 in Khartoum. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $264 vs $125 – making Khartoum the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇸🇩 Khartoum

🕒 Local time

15:17 3:17 PM

14:17 2:17 PM

1 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

2,682,431 Capital

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Sudanese Pound SDG £

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2.03 USD

100 TRY = 1.81 EUR

1,000 SDG = 1.67 USD

1,000 SDG = 1.49 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SDG, USD, EUR to TRY – Turkish Lira Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇷 Turkish Lira (₺)

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 49.26 TRY (100 TRY = 2.03 USD). 1 EUR = 55.2 TRY (100 TRY = 1.81 EUR).

Sudanese Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 599 SDG (1,000 SDG = 1.67 USD). 1 EUR = 671 SDG (1,000 SDG = 1.49 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Istanbul Khartoum 2,850 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Khartoum

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 Khartoum: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Istanbul is pricier by about 202%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,289 per month in Istanbul and $758 in Khartoum. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Khartoum, 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 $55.0 in Istanbul and $14.00 in Khartoum. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 111% 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 $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Khartoum, where all-in costs run around $505, than in Istanbul at $1,526. In Khartoum it covers expenses comfortably, while in Istanbul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Khartoum – 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 Khartoum. 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.