Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Msaken

For one person, living is cheaper in Msaken: $646 a month against $1,550 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $10,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

75

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index
31

Cost of Living Index in Msaken
Learn more

Msaken Living Index

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Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,550

/mo nomad

Msaken

🇹🇳 Tunisia

$646

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Msaken

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

A single person spends $1,550 per month in Istanbul vs $646 in Msaken, rent included.

Istanbul $1,550
Msaken $646

A couple spends around $2,415 per month in Istanbul vs $1,020 in Msaken, rent included.

Istanbul $2,415
Msaken $1,020

A family of three spends $3,281 per month in Istanbul vs $1,394 in Msaken, rent included.

Istanbul $3,281
Msaken $1,394

Istanbul costs about 140% more than Msaken, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Istanbul sits 15% above the global median, while Msaken is 52% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.30 ₺609

$4.93 TND 14.76

149.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.7 ₺2,708

$21.88 TND 65.5

150.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.22 ₺456

$5.86 TND 17.55

57.34%

Cappuccino

$4.40 ₺218

$1.03 TND 3.08

327.18%

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

$1.68 ₺83.1

$0.80 TND 2.39

110.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.59 ₺29.40

$0.37 TND 1.11

59.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.70 ₺233

$1.71 TND 5.11

174.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.91 ₺292

$2.13 TND 6.38

177.46%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.21 ₺60.0

$0.48 TND 1.45

152.08%

White Bread (500g)

$0.89 ₺44.10

$0.30 TND 0.90

196.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.19 ₺108

$1.71 TND 5.12

28.07%

Eggs

$2.35 ₺116

$1.76 TND 5.26

33.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.42 ₺516

$13.69 TND 41.00

-23.89%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.65 ₺280

$5.65 TND 16.93

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.94 ₺1,037

$14.36 TND 43.00

45.82%

Apples (1kg)

$1.90 ₺94.1

$2.04 TND 6.10

-6.86%

Banana (1kg)

$2.31 ₺114

$3.60 TND 10.78

-35.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.28 ₺63.1

$1.11 TND 3.33

15.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺89.0

$0.81 TND 2.43

122.22%

Potato (1kg)

$0.65 ₺32.16

$0.86 TND 2.59

-24.42%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺31.91

$0.63 TND 1.88

1.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 ₺62.1

$0.40 TND 1.20

212.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺27.58

$0.32 TND 0.95

75.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.37 ₺118

$3.76 TND 11.26

-36.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.42 ₺664

$5.94 TND 17.78

125.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.40 ₺119

$1.07 TND 3.20

124.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 ₺172

$1.31 TND 3.92

165.65%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.89 ₺43.84

$0.34 TND 1.02

161.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$67.4 ₺3,338

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.29 ₺64.1

$0.32 TND 0.96

303.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 ₺45.70

$0.32 TND 0.96

187.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.96 ₺542

$3.91 TND 11.71

180.31%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ₺72.9

$0.86 TND 2.58

70.93%

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

$50.8K ₺2.5M

$38.9K TND 116.4K

30.64%

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

$44.5K ₺2.2M

$35.6K TND 106.8K

24.92%

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

$88.6 ₺4,387

$59.7 TND 179

48.45%

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

$11.59 ₺574

$9.20 TND 27.56

25.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.81 ₺783

$20.21 TND 60.5

-21.77%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$77.2 ₺3,820

$21.29 TND 63.8

262.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.74 ₺1,126

Cinema Ticket

$8.14 ₺403

$5.92 TND 17.73

37.50%

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

$1,008 ₺49.9K

$91.9 TND 275

997.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.6K ₺1.3M

$3,156 TND 9,452

709.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.0 ₺2,671

$43.28 TND 130

24.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.83 ₺2,021

$58.7 TND 176

-30.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.9 ₺4,895

$117 TND 351

-15.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.6 ₺4,783

$86.0 TND 258

12.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$985 ₺48.7K

$108 TND 325

807.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$650 ₺32.2K

$93.1 TND 279

598.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,983 ₺98.2K

$203 TND 607

878.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,180 ₺58.4K

$150 TND 450

685.50%

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

$244 TND 731

393.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.92

10.67

283.51%

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

Last update for Istanbul: October 13, 2026

Last update for Msaken: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$650 41.9%

Msaken

$93 14.4% 85.7% $557

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$260 16.8%

Msaken

$203 31.5% 21.7% $56

Eating Out

Istanbul

$223 14.4%

Msaken

$87 13.4% 61.1% $136

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$131 8.4%

Msaken

$137 21.3% 5.2% $6.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$116 7.5%

Msaken

$89 13.8% 23.2% $27

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$93 6%

Msaken

$33 5.1% 64.5% $60

Getting Around

Istanbul

$77 5%

Msaken

$3.3 * 0.5% 95.7% $74

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $985 in Istanbul versus $108 in Msaken. 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 394% 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 $22.00 in Msaken. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $260 vs $203 – making Msaken the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇹🇳 Msaken

🕒 Local time

02:23 2:23 AM

00:23 12:23 AM

2 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

56,000

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Tunisian Dinar TND د.ت

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

1 TND = 0.334 USD

1 TND = 0.297 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TND, USD, EUR to TRY – Turkish Lira Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇷 Turkish Lira (₺)

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 49.51 TRY (100 TRY = 2.02 USD). 1 EUR = 55.66 TRY (100 TRY = 1.8 EUR).

Tunisian Dinar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 2.99 TND (1 TND = 0.334 USD). 1 EUR = 3.37 TND (1 TND = 0.297 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Istanbul Msaken 1,700 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Msaken

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 Msaken: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Istanbul is pricier by about 140%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,325 per month in Istanbul and $969 in Msaken. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Msaken, 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 $22.00 in Msaken. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 28% 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 Msaken, where all-in costs run around $646, than in Istanbul at $1,550. In Msaken it covers expenses comfortably, while in Istanbul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Msaken – 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 Msaken. 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.