Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Surgut

For one person, living is cheaper in Surgut: $1,136 a month against $1,519 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

73

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index
54

Cost of Living Index in Surgut
Learn more

Surgut Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

Surgut

🇷🇺 Russia

$1,136

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Surgut

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

A single person spends $1,519 per month in Istanbul vs $1,136 in Surgut, rent included.

Istanbul $1,519
Surgut $1,136

A couple spends around $2,365 per month in Istanbul vs $1,720 in Surgut, rent included.

Istanbul $2,365
Surgut $1,720

A family of three spends $3,212 per month in Istanbul vs $2,305 in Surgut, rent included.

Istanbul $3,212
Surgut $2,305

Istanbul costs about 34% more than Surgut, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Istanbul sits 12% above the global median, while Surgut is 16% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.81 ₺592

$12.02 ₽980

-1.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.9 ₺2,754

$37.39 ₽3,049

46.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.26 ₺465

$7.08 ₽578

30.79%

Cappuccino

$4.30 ₺216

$2.62 ₽214

64.12%

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

$1.77 ₺89.0

$1.10 ₽90.1

60.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺28.32

$0.64 ₽51.8

-12.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.69 ₺235

$1.93 ₽157

143.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.12 ₺357

$2.70 ₽220

163.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 ₺62.7

$1.26 ₽102

-0.79%

White Bread (500g)

$0.88 ₺44.17

$0.69 ₽56.1

27.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 ₺111

$1.30 ₽106

69.23%

Eggs

$2.43 ₺122

$1.54 ₽125

57.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.48 ₺526

$10.93 ₽892

-4.12%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.31 ₺267

$5.04 ₽411

5.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.10 ₺1,058

$11.47 ₽936

83.96%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 ₺93.1

$1.99 ₽162

-6.53%

Banana (1kg)

$2.30 ₺115

$1.77 ₽145

29.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.22 ₺61.0

$1.91 ₽156

-36.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺90.2

$3.48 ₽284

-48.28%

Potato (1kg)

$0.69 ₺34.83

$0.91 ₽74.3

-24.18%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺32.16

$0.55 ₽44.66

16.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.36 ₺68.0

$1.56 ₽127

-12.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 ₺28.94

$0.61 ₽50.1

-4.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.34 ₺117

$2.63 ₽215

-11.03%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 ₺653

$8.23 ₽671

58.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.36 ₺118

$1.22 ₽99.7

93.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.32 ₺166

$2.05 ₽168

61.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 ₺44.07

$0.53 ₽43.61

66.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.1 ₺3,316

$30.61 ₽2,497

116.01%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 ₺64.4

$2.60 ₽212

-50.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 ₺42.80

$0.34 ₽28.02

150.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.09 ₺556

$6.27 ₽511

76.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 ₺74.0

$0.89 ₽72.3

66.29%

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

$48.6K ₺2.4M

$60.3K ₽4.9M

-19.36%

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

$42.0K ₺2.1M

$43.1K ₽3.5M

-2.50%

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

$92.7 ₺4,650

$133 ₽10.9K

-30.46%

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

$11.20 ₺562

$6.15 ₽502

82.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.89 ₺797

$9.23 ₽753

72.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.7 ₺3,745

$39.81 ₽3,247

87.59%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.95 ₺1,151

$26.16 ₽2,133

-12.27%

Cinema Ticket

$8.05 ₺404

$6.04 ₽492

33.28%

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

$948 ₺47.6K

$343 ₽28.0K

176.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.9K ₺1.9M

$6,248 ₽509.6K

490.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₺2,702

$89.5 ₽7,297

-39.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.49 ₺2,081

$55.0 ₽4,482

-24.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 ₺5,060

$139 ₽11.3K

-27.20%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.3 ₺4,580

$117 ₽9,516

-21.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,014 ₺50.8K

$556 ₽45.3K

82.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$625 ₺31.3K

$335 ₽27.3K

86.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,005 ₺100.6K

$905 ₽73.8K

121.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,126 ₺56.5K

$514 ₽41.9K

119.13%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,988 ₺149.8K

$2,368 ₽193.1K

26.19%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,730 ₺86.8K

$1,304 ₽106.4K

32.64%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,136 ₺57.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.42

21.33

89.50%

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

Last update for Istanbul: November 2, 2026

Last update for Surgut: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$625 41.1%

Surgut

$335 29.5% 46.4% $290

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$258 17%

Surgut

$213 18.7% 17.6% $45

Eating Out

Istanbul

$221 14.6%

Surgut

$171 15% 22.6% $50

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$129 8.5%

Surgut

$180 15.8% 39% $50

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$120 7.9%

Surgut

$149 13.1% 24.1% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$91 6%

Surgut

$52 4.6% 42.9% $39

Getting Around

Istanbul

$75 5%

Surgut

$37 3.3% 50.7% $38

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,014 in Istanbul versus $556 in Surgut. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $55 in Istanbul versus $37 in Surgut. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $213 – making Surgut the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇷🇺 Surgut

🕒 Local time

14:07 2:07 PM

16:07 4:07 PM

2 h ahead of Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

406,938

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Russian Ruble RUB ₽

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 1.99 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

100 RUB = 1.23 USD

100 RUB = 1.09 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RUB, 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 = 56.33 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 81.56 RUB (100 RUB = 1.23 USD). 1 EUR = 91.6 RUB (100 RUB = 1.09 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Istanbul Surgut 3,720 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Surgut

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 Surgut: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Istanbul is pricier by about 34%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,278 per month in Istanbul and $1,704 in Surgut. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Surgut, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $556 there versus $1,014 in Istanbul.

Kindergarten costs $948 per month in Istanbul and $343 in Surgut. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 21% more in Istanbul, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,519 in Istanbul and $1,136 in Surgut. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward Surgut – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

For expats, Surgut is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 25% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.