Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Sao Tome and Principe

Name: Sao Tome and Principe
Address: ST

For one person, living is cheaper in Sao Tome and Principe: $1,214 a month against $1,526 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Sao Tome and Principe
Learn more

Sao Tome and Principe Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,526

/mo nomad

🇸🇹 Sao Tome and Principe

$1,214

/mo nomad

😐 Solo nomad: Istanbul is 4.2% more expensive than Sao Tome and Principe without rent, and 25.7% more expensive with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Istanbul is 4.3% cheaper than Sao Tome and Principe without rent, and 24% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.88 ₺585

$8.81 STN 192

34.85%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.1 ₺2,714

$45.70 STN 999

20.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.14 ₺450

$8.62 STN 188

6.03%

Cappuccino

$4.24 ₺209

$2.42 STN 52.8

75.21%

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

$1.75 ₺86.0

$1.74 STN 38.06

0.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 ₺26.83

$1.12 STN 24.57

-51.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.69 ₺231

$1.76 STN 38.46

166.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.97 ₺294

$1.80 STN 39.44

231.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.26 ₺62.1

$1.58 STN 34.44

-20.25%

White Bread (500g)

$0.95 ₺46.81

$1.53 STN 33.42

-37.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 ₺114

$1.95 STN 42.63

18.46%

Eggs

$2.47 ₺122

$4.50 STN 98.3

-45.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.55 ₺520

$19.41 STN 424

-45.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.60 ₺276

$19.55 STN 427

-71.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.21 ₺1,045

$20.90 STN 457

1.48%

Apples (1kg)

$1.93 ₺95.1

$3.72 STN 81.2

-48.12%

Banana (1kg)

$2.29 ₺113

$1.76 STN 38.50

30.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.28 ₺63.1

$3.58 STN 78.3

-64.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.84 ₺90.8

$3.37 STN 73.7

-45.40%

Potato (1kg)

$0.67 ₺32.86

$2.92 STN 63.9

-77.05%

Onion (1kg)

$0.59 ₺29.31

$2.37 STN 51.7

-75.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.33 ₺65.4

$0.51 STN 11.06

160.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 ₺29.10

$1.98 STN 43.32

-70.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.36 ₺116

$2.25 STN 49.25

4.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.47 ₺664

$8.12 STN 177

65.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.42 ₺119

$1.41 STN 30.74

71.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.54 ₺174

$1.70 STN 37.22

108.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.83 ₺40.64

$1.41 STN 30.77

-41.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.5 ₺3,273

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.35 ₺66.6

$1.73 STN 37.81

-21.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 ₺42.05

$2.64 STN 57.8

-67.80%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.86 ₺535

$13.90 STN 304

-21.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ₺72.3

$1.69 STN 37.00

-13.02%

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

$51.6K ₺2.5M

$24.3K STN 531.2K

112.35%

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

$44.4K ₺2.2M

$31.1K STN 678.7K

43.10%

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

$89.2 ₺4,395

$225 STN 4,918

-60.36%

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

$11.60 ₺572

$31.43 STN 687

-63.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.10 ₺793

$67.6 STN 1,477

-76.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$77.3 ₺3,805

$33.47 STN 731

130.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.66 ₺1,116

$25.52 STN 558

-11.21%

Cinema Ticket

$8.34 ₺411

$20.45 STN 447

-59.22%

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

$974 ₺48.0K

$228 STN 4,976

327.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.8K ₺1.3M

$2,161 STN 47.2K

1092.66%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.7 ₺2,597

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.16 ₺1,929

$75.8 STN 1,656

-48.34%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 ₺5,083

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.6 ₺4,759

$18.52 STN 405

421.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$994 ₺49.0K

$283 STN 6,178

251.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$629 ₺31.0K

$195 STN 4,256

223.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,024 ₺99.7K

$946 STN 20.7K

113.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,155 ₺56.9K

$441 STN 9,627

162.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,160 ₺155.7K

$1,860 STN 40.6K

69.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,838 ₺90.5K

$1,129 STN 24.7K

62.81%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,203 ₺59.3K

$431 STN 9,428

178.92%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

41.09

7.38

456.78%

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

Last update for Istanbul: October 3, 2026

Last update for Sao Tome and Principe: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$629 41.2%

Sao Tome and Principe

$195 16.1% 69% $435

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$264 17.3%

Sao Tome and Principe

$402 33.3% 52.3% $138

Eating Out

Istanbul

$218 14.3%

Sao Tome and Principe

$149 12.4% 31.5% $69

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$131 8.6%

Sao Tome and Principe

$42 * 3.5% 67.7% $89

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$117 7.7%

Sao Tome and Principe

$324 26.9% 177% $207

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$94 6.1%

Sao Tome and Principe

$74 6.2% 20.8% $20

Getting Around

Istanbul

$75 4.9%

Sao Tome and Principe

$21 * 1.7% 72.7% $55

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

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇸🇹 Sao Tome and Principe

🕒 Local time

11:04 11:04 AM

08:04 8:04 AM

3 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

204,327

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Sao Tome and Principe Dobra STN Db

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2.03 USD

100 TRY = 1.81 EUR

100 STN = 4.58 USD

100 STN = 4.08 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

STN, 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).

Sao Tome and Principe Dobra exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 21.85 STN (100 STN = 4.58 USD). 1 EUR = 24.51 STN (100 STN = 4.08 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

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