Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Long Mountain

For one person, living is cheaper in Long Mountain: $611 a month against $1,525 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $11,000 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
30

Cost of Living Index in Long Mountain
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Long Mountain Living Index

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Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,525

/mo nomad

Long Mountain

🇲🇺 Mauritius

$611

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Long Mountain

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

A single person spends $1,525 per month in Istanbul vs $611 in Long Mountain, rent included.

Istanbul $1,525
Long Mountain $611

A couple spends around $2,390 per month in Istanbul vs $964 in Long Mountain, rent included.

Istanbul $2,390
Long Mountain $964

A family of three spends $3,256 per month in Istanbul vs $1,317 in Long Mountain, rent included.

Istanbul $3,256
Long Mountain $1,317

Istanbul costs about 150% more than Long Mountain, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Istanbul sits 13% above the global median, while Long Mountain is 55% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.96 ₺592

$5.69 MUR 268

110.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.2 ₺2,834

$31.88 MUR 1,501

79.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.51 ₺471

$7.51 MUR 353

26.63%

Cappuccino

$4.40 ₺218

$1.28 MUR 60.3

243.75%

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

$1.75 ₺86.6

$1.07 MUR 50.3

63.55%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺27.57

$0.62 MUR 29.26

-9.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.71 ₺233

$2.05 MUR 96.7

129.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.14 ₺304

$2.57 MUR 121

138.91%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.24 ₺61.6

$1.38 MUR 65.2

-10.14%

White Bread (500g)

$0.95 ₺47.25

$0.22 MUR 10.37

331.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.28 ₺113

$1.09 MUR 51.2

109.17%

Eggs

$2.45 ₺121

$2.52 MUR 119

-2.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.56 ₺523

$5.22 MUR 246

102.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.50 ₺272

$3.76 MUR 177

46.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.65 ₺1,072

$7.35 MUR 346

194.56%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 ₺90.6

$2.08 MUR 98.0

-12.02%

Banana (1kg)

$2.29 ₺113

$1.78 MUR 83.7

28.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.28 ₺63.4

$1.39 MUR 65.5

-7.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.82 ₺90.1

$1.59 MUR 74.9

14.47%

Potato (1kg)

$0.66 ₺32.74

$1.01 MUR 47.45

-34.65%

Onion (1kg)

$0.63 ₺31.14

$0.94 MUR 44.25

-32.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.27 ₺62.8

$0.70 MUR 32.85

81.43%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺27.62

$0.60 MUR 28.24

-6.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.36 ₺117

$6.47 MUR 305

-63.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.98 ₺642

$6.27 MUR 295

107.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.48 ₺123

$1.61 MUR 75.7

54.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.50 ₺174

$2.13 MUR 100

64.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.82 ₺40.77

$0.88 MUR 41.22

-6.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.2 ₺3,228

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.33 ₺65.7

$4.15 MUR 195

-67.95%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 ₺44.60

$3.11 MUR 147

-71.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.91 ₺540

$20.85 MUR 981

-47.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.43 ₺70.7

$1.34 MUR 63.2

6.72%

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

$49.6K ₺2.5M

$36.0K MUR 1.7M

37.82%

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

$43.2K ₺2.1M

$31.3K MUR 1.5M

37.97%

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

$88.8 ₺4,395

$44.85 MUR 2,111

97.93%

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

$11.69 ₺579

$10.73 MUR 505

8.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.09 ₺797

$28.98 MUR 1,364

-44.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$76.3 ₺3,776

$6.37 MUR 300

1097.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.72 ₺1,125

$16.93 MUR 797

34.20%

Cinema Ticket

$8.26 ₺409

$6.33 MUR 298

30.49%

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

$1,015 ₺50.2K

$125 MUR 5,894

710.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.8K ₺1.3M

$852 MUR 40.1K

2933.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.3 ₺2,636

$31.15 MUR 1,467

70.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.55 ₺2,008

$42.56 MUR 2,004

-4.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100 ₺4,956

$63.1 MUR 2,969

58.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.5 ₺4,630

$62.5 MUR 2,945

49.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$977 ₺48.4K

$155 MUR 7,314

528.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$627 ₺31.0K

$128 MUR 6,003

391.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,980 ₺98.0K

$211 MUR 9,912

840.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,147 ₺56.8K

$177 MUR 8,341

547.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,095 ₺153.2K

$3,656 MUR 172.1K

-15.35%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,787 ₺88.5K

$3,189 MUR 150.1K

-43.96%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,213 ₺60.1K

$1,047 MUR 49.3K

15.91%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.69

6.67

510.04%

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

Last update for Istanbul: October 19, 2026

Last update for Long Mountain: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$627 41.1%

Long Mountain

$128 20.9% 79.7% $499

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$263 17.2%

Long Mountain

$161 26.4% 38.6% $101

Eating Out

Istanbul

$222 14.6%

Long Mountain

$106 17.3% 52.5% $117

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$129 8.5%

Long Mountain

$90 14.7% 30.7% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$117 7.6%

Long Mountain

$85 13.8% 27.5% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$93 6.1%

Long Mountain

$19 3.1% 79.5% $74

Getting Around

Istanbul

$74 4.9%

Long Mountain

$23 * 3.8% 68.8% $51

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 $155 in Long Mountain. 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 16% 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 $32.00 in Long Mountain. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $263 vs $161 – making Long Mountain the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇲🇺 Long Mountain

🕒 Local time

21:30 9:30 PM

22:30 10:30 PM

1 h ahead of Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

7,775

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Mauritian Rupee MUR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

100 MUR = 2.12 USD

100 MUR = 1.89 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MUR, 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).

Mauritian Rupee exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 47.08 MUR (100 MUR = 2.12 USD). 1 EUR = 52.93 MUR (100 MUR = 1.89 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Istanbul Long Mountain 7,410 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Long Mountain

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 Long Mountain: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Istanbul is pricier by about 150%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,287 per month in Istanbul and $916 in Long Mountain. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Long Mountain, 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 $32.00 in Long Mountain. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 63% 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 Long Mountain, where all-in costs run around $611, than in Istanbul at $1,525. In Long Mountain it covers expenses comfortably, while in Istanbul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Long Mountain – 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 Long Mountain. 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.