Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Nis

For one person, living is cheaper in Nis: $1,033 a month against $1,526 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Nis
Learn more

Nis Living Index

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Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,526

/mo nomad

Nis

🇷🇸 Serbia

$1,033

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Nis

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

A single person spends $1,526 per month in Istanbul vs $1,033 in Nis, rent included.

Istanbul $1,526
Nis $1,033

A couple spends around $2,399 per month in Istanbul vs $1,512 in Nis, rent included.

Istanbul $2,399
Nis $1,512

A family of three spends $3,272 per month in Istanbul vs $1,991 in Nis, rent included.

Istanbul $3,272
Nis $1,991

Istanbul costs about 48% more than Nis, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Istanbul sits 14% above the global median, while Nis is 23% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.88 ₺585

$8.78 RSD 915

35.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.1 ₺2,714

$33.92 RSD 3,533

62.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.14 ₺450

$9.57 RSD 997

-4.49%

Cappuccino

$4.24 ₺209

$1.97 RSD 206

115.23%

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

$1.75 ₺86.0

$2.31 RSD 241

-24.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 ₺26.83

$1.74 RSD 181

-68.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.69 ₺231

$3.61 RSD 377

29.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.97 ₺294

$4.49 RSD 468

32.96%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.26 ₺62.1

$1.14 RSD 119

10.53%

White Bread (500g)

$0.95 ₺46.81

$0.70 RSD 73.0

35.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 ₺114

$1.76 RSD 183

31.25%

Eggs

$2.47 ₺122

$2.35 RSD 245

5.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.55 ₺520

$7.65 RSD 797

37.91%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.60 ₺276

$5.72 RSD 596

-2.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.21 ₺1,045

$10.59 RSD 1,103

100.28%

Apples (1kg)

$1.93 ₺95.1

$1.11 RSD 116

73.87%

Banana (1kg)

$2.29 ₺113

$1.68 RSD 175

36.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.28 ₺63.1

$1.50 RSD 157

-14.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.84 ₺90.8

$2.17 RSD 226

-15.21%

Potato (1kg)

$0.67 ₺32.86

$0.78 RSD 81.6

-14.10%

Onion (1kg)

$0.59 ₺29.31

$0.72 RSD 74.5

-18.06%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.33 ₺65.4

$0.64 RSD 66.4

107.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 ₺29.10

$0.58 RSD 60.4

1.72%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.36 ₺116

$4.42 RSD 460

-46.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.47 ₺664

$5.78 RSD 602

133.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.42 ₺119

$0.72 RSD 75.1

236.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.54 ₺174

$1.29 RSD 134

174.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.83 ₺40.64

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.5 ₺3,273

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.35 ₺66.6

$1.84 RSD 192

-26.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 ₺42.05

$0.66 RSD 68.6

28.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.86 ₺535

$8.29 RSD 864

31.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ₺72.3

$1.89 RSD 197

-22.22%

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

$51.6K ₺2.5M

$30.7K RSD 3.2M

67.90%

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

$44.4K ₺2.2M

$24.0K RSD 2.5M

85.36%

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

$89.2 ₺4,395

$160 RSD 16.7K

-44.40%

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

$11.60 ₺572

$19.03 RSD 1,982

-39.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.10 ₺793

$22.20 RSD 2,312

-27.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$77.3 ₺3,805

$30.54 RSD 3,181

152.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.66 ₺1,116

$15.65 RSD 1,630

44.79%

Cinema Ticket

$8.34 ₺411

$4.68 RSD 488

78.21%

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

$974 ₺48.0K

$252 RSD 26.3K

285.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.8K ₺1.3M

$4,989 RSD 519.7K

416.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.7 ₺2,597

$88.4 RSD 9,213

-40.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.16 ₺1,929

$37.42 RSD 3,898

4.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 ₺5,083

$99.3 RSD 10.3K

3.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.6 ₺4,759

$112 RSD 11.6K

-13.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$994 ₺49.0K

$398 RSD 41.4K

149.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$629 ₺31.0K

$277 RSD 28.9K

127.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,024 ₺99.7K

$591 RSD 61.6K

242.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,155 ₺56.9K

$397 RSD 41.4K

190.72%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,160 ₺155.7K

$2,531 RSD 263.6K

24.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,838 ₺90.5K

$1,884 RSD 196.3K

-2.47%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,203 ₺59.3K

$901 RSD 93.8K

33.61%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

41.09

5.12

702.54%

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

Last update for Istanbul: October 3, 2026

Last update for Nis: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$629 41.2%

Nis

$277 27.1% 56% $352

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$264 17.3%

Nis

$182 17.8% 31.2% $82

Eating Out

Istanbul

$218 14.3%

Nis

$166 16.2% 23.8% $52

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$131 8.6%

Nis

$152 14.8% 15.5% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$117 7.7%

Nis

$202 19.7% 72.5% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$94 6.1%

Nis

$40 3.9% 57.5% $54

Getting Around

Istanbul

$75 4.9%

Nis

$5.1 * 0.5% 93.2% $70

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 $398 in Nis. 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 34% 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 $34.00 in Nis. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $264 vs $182 – making Nis the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇷🇸 Nis

🕒 Local time

06:24 6:24 AM

05:24 5:24 AM

1 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

78,470

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Serbian Dinar RSD din

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2.03 USD

100 TRY = 1.81 EUR

1,000 RSD = 9.6 USD

1,000 RSD = 8.56 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RSD, 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 = 55.25 TRY (100 TRY = 1.81 EUR).

Serbian Dinar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 104 RSD (1,000 RSD = 9.6 USD). 1 EUR = 117 RSD (1,000 RSD = 8.56 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Istanbul Nis 640 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Nis

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 Nis: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Istanbul is pricier by about 48%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,289 per month in Istanbul and $1,549 in Nis. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Nis, 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 $34.00 in Nis. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 45% 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 $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Nis, where all-in costs run around $1,033, than in Istanbul at $1,526. In Nis it covers expenses comfortably, while in Istanbul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Nis – 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 Nis. 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.