Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Romania

Name: Romania
Address: RO

For one person, living is cheaper in Romania: $1,151 a month against $1,519 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $4,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

73

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Romania
Learn more

Romania Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,151

/mo nomad

😐 Solo nomad: Istanbul is 32.4% more expensive than Romania without rent, and 32% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Istanbul is 30.5% more expensive than Romania without rent, and 40.9% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.81 ₺592

$10.62 RON 50.5

11.21%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.9 ₺2,754

$41.31 RON 196

32.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.26 ₺465

$7.49 RON 35.58

23.63%

Cappuccino

$4.30 ₺216

$2.85 RON 13.56

50.88%

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

$1.77 ₺89.0

$2.03 RON 9.62

-12.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺28.32

$1.74 RON 8.29

-67.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.69 ₺235

$2.36 RON 11.19

98.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.12 ₺357

$3.18 RON 15.12

123.90%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 ₺62.7

$1.51 RON 7.19

-17.22%

White Bread (500g)

$0.88 ₺44.17

$1.16 RON 5.52

-24.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 ₺111

$1.53 RON 7.29

43.79%

Eggs

$2.43 ₺122

$3.28 RON 15.57

-25.91%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.48 ₺526

$8.42 RON 40.03

24.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.31 ₺267

$6.23 RON 29.60

-14.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.10 ₺1,058

$10.24 RON 48.67

106.05%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 ₺93.1

$1.16 RON 5.53

60.34%

Banana (1kg)

$2.30 ₺115

$1.51 RON 7.16

52.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.22 ₺61.0

$1.52 RON 7.23

-19.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺90.2

$2.12 RON 10.05

-15.09%

Potato (1kg)

$0.69 ₺34.83

$0.78 RON 3.72

-11.54%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺32.16

$0.81 RON 3.84

-20.99%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.36 ₺68.0

$0.90 RON 4.27

51.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 ₺28.94

$0.83 RON 3.97

-30.12%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.34 ₺117

$6.25 RON 29.71

-62.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 ₺653

$6.38 RON 30.33

104.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.36 ₺118

$1.09 RON 5.19

116.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.32 ₺166

$1.61 RON 7.63

106.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 ₺44.07

$0.70 RON 3.31

25.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.1 ₺3,316

$23.20 RON 110

185.00%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 ₺64.4

$0.87 RON 4.14

47.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 ₺42.80

$0.85 RON 4.04

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.09 ₺556

$7.25 RON 34.46

52.97%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 ₺74.0

$1.81 RON 8.62

-18.23%

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

$48.6K ₺2.4M

$28.9K RON 137.5K

68.11%

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

$42.0K ₺2.1M

$25.0K RON 118.9K

67.76%

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

$92.7 ₺4,650

$161 RON 767

-42.56%

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

$11.20 ₺562

$8.04 RON 38.19

39.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.89 ₺797

$8.80 RON 41.79

80.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.7 ₺3,745

$41.08 RON 195

81.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.95 ₺1,151

$18.76 RON 89.1

22.33%

Cinema Ticket

$8.05 ₺404

$7.22 RON 34.29

11.50%

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

$948 ₺47.6K

$481 RON 2,285

97.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.9K ₺1.9M

$11.6K RON 55.2K

217.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₺2,702

$71.2 RON 338

-24.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.49 ₺2,081

$37.45 RON 178

10.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 ₺5,060

$79.2 RON 376

27.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.3 ₺4,580

$86.0 RON 409

6.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,014 ₺50.8K

$491 RON 2,331

106.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$625 ₺31.3K

$384 RON 1,824

62.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,005 ₺100.6K

$782 RON 3,716

156.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,126 ₺56.5K

$592 RON 2,811

90.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,988 ₺149.8K

$2,516 RON 12.0K

18.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,730 ₺86.8K

$1,798 RON 8,543

-3.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,136 ₺57.0K

$995 RON 4,729

14.17%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.42

6.97

479.91%

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

Last update for Istanbul: November 2, 2026

Last update for Romania: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$625 41.1%

Romania

$384 33.4% 38.5% $241

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$258 17%

Romania

$204 17.7% 21.1% $55

Eating Out

Istanbul

$221 14.6%

Romania

$175 15.2% 20.8% $46

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$129 8.5%

Romania

$123 10.7% 4.8% $6.2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$120 7.9%

Romania

$178 15.5% 48.8% $58

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$91 6%

Romania

$56 4.8% 38.9% $35

Getting Around

Istanbul

$75 5%

Romania

$31 2.7% 58.6% $44

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇷🇴 Romania

🕒 Local time

04:28 4:28 AM

03:28 3:28 AM

1 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

19,053,815

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 1.99 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

1 RON = 0.21 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to TRY – Turkish Lira Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇷 Turkish Lira (₺)

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 50.15 TRY (100 TRY = 1.99 USD). 1 EUR = 56.3 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 4.75 RON (1 RON = 0.21 USD). 1 EUR = 5.33 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Istanbul Romania 450 km

From you

Istanbul
Romania

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 other spots: cost of living compared

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