Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

For one person, living is cheaper in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos: $953 a month against $1,550 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

75

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos
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Madinat As Sultan Qaboos Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,550

/mo nomad

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

🇴🇲 Oman

$953

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

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 Madinat As Sultan Qaboos actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,550 per month in Istanbul vs $953 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos, rent included.

Istanbul $1,550
Madinat As Sultan Qaboos $953

A couple spends around $2,415 per month in Istanbul vs $1,433 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos, rent included.

Istanbul $2,415
Madinat As Sultan Qaboos $1,433

A family of three spends $3,281 per month in Istanbul vs $1,914 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos, rent included.

Istanbul $3,281
Madinat As Sultan Qaboos $1,914

Istanbul costs about 63% more than Madinat As Sultan Qaboos, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Istanbul sits 15% above the global median, while Madinat As Sultan Qaboos is 29% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.30 ₺609

$5.29 OMR 2.04

132.51%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.7 ₺2,708

$39.70 OMR 15.29

37.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.22 ₺456

$7.76 OMR 2.99

18.81%

Cappuccino

$4.40 ₺218

$4.94 OMR 1.90

-10.93%

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

$1.68 ₺83.1

$0.84 OMR 0.32

100.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.59 ₺29.40

$0.29 OMR 0.11

103.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.70 ₺233

$12.92 OMR 4.97

-63.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.91 ₺292

$12.93 OMR 4.98

-54.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.21 ₺60.0

$2.31 OMR 0.89

-47.62%

White Bread (500g)

$0.89 ₺44.10

$1.20 OMR 0.46

-25.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.19 ₺108

$1.82 OMR 0.70

20.33%

Eggs

$2.35 ₺116

$3.03 OMR 1.17

-22.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.42 ₺516

$7.11 OMR 2.74

46.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.65 ₺280

$7.00 OMR 2.70

-19.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.94 ₺1,037

$10.58 OMR 4.07

97.92%

Apples (1kg)

$1.90 ₺94.1

$3.59 OMR 1.38

-47.08%

Banana (1kg)

$2.31 ₺114

$2.03 OMR 0.78

13.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.28 ₺63.1

$2.34 OMR 0.90

-45.30%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺89.0

$1.31 OMR 0.50

37.40%

Potato (1kg)

$0.65 ₺32.16

$1.16 OMR 0.45

-43.97%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺31.91

$1.28 OMR 0.49

-50.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 ₺62.1

$1.85 OMR 0.71

-32.43%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺27.58

$0.71 OMR 0.27

-21.13%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.37 ₺118

$6.65 OMR 2.56

-64.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.42 ₺664

$15.76 OMR 6.07

-14.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.40 ₺119

$6.08 OMR 2.34

-60.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 ₺172

$10.22 OMR 3.93

-65.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.89 ₺43.84

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$67.4 ₺3,338

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.29 ₺64.1

$3.32 OMR 1.28

-61.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 ₺45.70

$2.56 OMR 0.98

-64.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.96 ₺542

$7.74 OMR 2.98

41.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ₺72.9

$0.64 OMR 0.25

129.69%

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

$50.8K ₺2.5M

$25.3K OMR 9,736

100.83%

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

$44.5K ₺2.2M

$22.3K OMR 8,570

100.05%

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

$88.6 ₺4,387

$176 OMR 67.9

-49.74%

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

$11.59 ₺574

$31.16 OMR 12.00

-62.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.81 ₺783

$71.5 OMR 27.51

-77.88%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$77.2 ₺3,820

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.74 ₺1,126

Cinema Ticket

$8.14 ₺403

$10.43 OMR 4.01

-21.96%

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

$1,008 ₺49.9K

$292 OMR 112

245.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.6K ₺1.3M

$10.5K OMR 4,033

144.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.0 ₺2,671

$55.4 OMR 21.33

-2.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.83 ₺2,021

$43.86 OMR 16.89

-6.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.9 ₺4,895

$88.6 OMR 34.12

11.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.6 ₺4,783

$88.4 OMR 34.02

9.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$985 ₺48.7K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$650 ₺32.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,983 ₺98.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,180 ₺58.4K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,138 ₺155.4K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,780 ₺88.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,205 ₺59.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.92

5.25

679.43%

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

Last update for Istanbul: October 13, 2026

Last update for Madinat As Sultan Qaboos: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$650 41.9%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$260 16.8%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

$293 30.7% 12.8% $33

Eating Out

Istanbul

$223 14.4%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

$220 23.1% 1.5% $3.4

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$131 8.4%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

$124 13% 4.8% $6.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$116 7.5%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

$279 29.3% 140% $163

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$93 6%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

$21 * 2.2% 77.7% $73

Getting Around

Istanbul

$77 5%

Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

$16 * 1.7% 79% $61

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $55.0 in Istanbul versus $40.00 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos. Groceries tell a different story – $260 in Istanbul vs $293 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos – so Istanbul wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇴🇲 Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

🕒 Local time

03:57 3:57 AM

04:57 4:57 AM

1 h ahead of Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Omani Rial OMR ر.ع.

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

1 OMR = 2.6 USD

1 OMR = 2.31 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

OMR, 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).

Omani Rial exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.385 OMR (1 OMR = 2.6 USD). 1 EUR = 0.433 OMR (1 OMR = 2.31 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Istanbul Madinat As Sultan Qaboos 3,350 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Madinat As Sultan Qaboos

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 Madinat As Sultan Qaboos: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Istanbul is pricier by about 63%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in utilities.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,325 per month in Istanbul and $1,430 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $55.0 in Istanbul and $40.00 in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 13% cheaper in Istanbul – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Madinat As Sultan Qaboos, where all-in costs run around $953, than in Istanbul at $1,550. In Madinat As Sultan Qaboos it covers expenses comfortably, while in Istanbul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Madinat As Sultan Qaboos – 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 Madinat As Sultan Qaboos. 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.