Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Kimberley

For one person, living is cheaper in Kimberley: $1,138 a month against $1,525 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Kimberley
Learn more

Kimberley Living Index

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Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,525

/mo nomad

Kimberley

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,138

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Kimberley

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

A single person spends $1,550 per month in Istanbul vs $1,128 in Kimberley, rent included.

Istanbul $1,550
Kimberley $1,128

A couple spends around $2,415 per month in Istanbul vs $1,905 in Kimberley, rent included.

Istanbul $2,415
Kimberley $1,905

A family of three spends $3,281 per month in Istanbul vs $2,683 in Kimberley, rent included.

Istanbul $3,281
Kimberley $2,683

Istanbul costs about 37% more than Kimberley, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Istanbul sits 15% above the global median, while Kimberley is 16% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.96 ₺592

$12.12 R 200

-1.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.2 ₺2,834

$36.35 R 599

57.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.51 ₺471

$6.22 R 103

52.89%

Cappuccino

$4.40 ₺218

$2.99 R 49.32

47.16%

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

$1.75 ₺86.6

$1.29 R 21.17

35.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺27.57

$1.30 R 21.49

-56.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.71 ₺233

$2.79 R 45.92

68.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.14 ₺304

$2.67 R 44.00

129.96%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.24 ₺61.6

$1.55 R 25.50

-20.00%

White Bread (500g)

$0.95 ₺47.25

$1.16 R 19.03

-18.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.28 ₺113

$2.94 R 48.49

-22.45%

Eggs

$2.45 ₺121

$2.91 R 48.01

-15.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.56 ₺523

$6.52 R 107

61.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.50 ₺272

$5.89 R 97.0

-6.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.65 ₺1,072

$8.33 R 137

159.90%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 ₺90.6

$2.35 R 38.64

-22.13%

Banana (1kg)

$2.29 ₺113

$2.44 R 40.25

-6.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.28 ₺63.4

$1.78 R 29.25

-28.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.82 ₺90.1

$3.34 R 55.0

-45.51%

Potato (1kg)

$0.66 ₺32.74

$1.52 R 24.99

-56.58%

Onion (1kg)

$0.63 ₺31.14

$1.41 R 23.18

-55.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.27 ₺62.8

$1.39 R 22.85

-8.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺27.62

$0.90 R 14.76

-37.78%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.36 ₺117

$3.28 R 54.0

-28.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.98 ₺642

$6.56 R 108

97.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.48 ₺123

$2.30 R 37.83

7.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.50 ₺174

$2.87 R 47.29

21.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.82 ₺40.77

$1.53 R 25.15

-46.41%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.2 ₺3,228

$33.18 R 547

96.50%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.33 ₺65.7

$0.58 R 9.55

129.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 ₺44.60

$0.82 R 13.51

9.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.91 ₺540

$13.15 R 217

-17.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.43 ₺70.7

$1.45 R 23.81

-1.38%

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

$49.6K ₺2.5M

$37.5K R 617.3K

32.29%

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

$43.2K ₺2.1M

$38.3K R 630.5K

12.86%

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

$88.8 ₺4,395

$108 R 1,772

-17.47%

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

$11.69 ₺579

$35.15 R 579

-66.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.09 ₺797

$42.40 R 699

-62.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$76.3 ₺3,776

$22.40 R 369

240.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.72 ₺1,125

$10.56 R 174

115.15%

Cinema Ticket

$8.26 ₺409

$7.16 R 118

15.36%

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

$1,015 ₺50.2K

$242 R 3,981

319.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.8K ₺1.3M

$6,107 R 100.6K

323.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.3 ₺2,636

$54.5 R 897

-2.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.55 ₺2,008

$30.14 R 497

34.54%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100 ₺4,956

$101 R 1,669

-1.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.5 ₺4,630

$90.8 R 1,495

3.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$977 ₺48.4K

$263 R 4,329

271.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$627 ₺31.0K

$338 R 5,574

85.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,980 ₺98.0K

$645 R 10.6K

207.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,147 ₺56.8K

$928 R 15.3K

23.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,095 ₺153.2K

$806 R 13.3K

283.83%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,787 ₺88.5K

$619 R 10.2K

188.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,213 ₺60.1K

$949 R 15.6K

27.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.69

10.94

271.94%

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

Last update for Istanbul: October 19, 2026

Last update for Kimberley: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$627 41.1%

Kimberley

$338 29.7% 46% $289

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$263 17.2%

Kimberley

$229 20.1% 12.9% $34

Eating Out

Istanbul

$222 14.6%

Kimberley

$181 15.9% 18.4% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$129 8.5%

Kimberley

$124 10.9% 3.8% $4.9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$117 7.6%

Kimberley

$185 16.3% 58.8% $69

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$93 6.1%

Kimberley

$37 3.2% 60.4% $56

Getting Around

Istanbul

$74 4.9%

Kimberley

$44 3.9% 40.9% $30

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $985 in Istanbul versus $266 in Kimberley. 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 29% 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 $36.00 in Kimberley. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $260 vs $228 – making Kimberley the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇿🇦 Kimberley

🕒 Local time

12:56 12:56 PM

11:56 11:56 AM

1 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

225,160

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, 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).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Istanbul Kimberley 7,770 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Kimberley

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 Kimberley: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Istanbul is pricier by about 37%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in leisure.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,325 per month in Istanbul and $1,692 in Kimberley. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Kindergarten costs $1,008 per month in Istanbul and $242 in Kimberley. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 14% 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 Kimberley, where all-in costs run around $1,128, than in Istanbul at $1,550. In Kimberley it covers expenses comfortably, while in Istanbul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Kimberley – 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 Kimberley. 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.