Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Sutomore

For one person, living is cheaper in Sutomore: $1,095 a month against $1,525 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index
53

Cost of Living Index in Sutomore
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Sutomore Living Index

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Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,525

/mo nomad

Sutomore

🇲🇪 Montenegro

$1,095

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Sutomore

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

A single person spends $1,525 per month in Istanbul vs $1,095 in Sutomore, rent included.

Istanbul $1,525
Sutomore $1,095

A couple spends around $2,390 per month in Istanbul vs $1,682 in Sutomore, rent included.

Istanbul $2,390
Sutomore $1,682

A family of three spends $3,256 per month in Istanbul vs $2,269 in Sutomore, rent included.

Istanbul $3,256
Sutomore $2,269

Istanbul costs about 39% more than Sutomore, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Istanbul sits 13% above the global median, while Sutomore is 19% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.96 ₺592

$11.24 €10.00

6.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.2 ₺2,834

$35.96 €31.99

59.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.51 ₺471

$9.16 €8.14

3.82%

Cappuccino

$4.40 ₺218

$2.59 €2.30

69.88%

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

$1.75 ₺86.6

$2.20 €1.96

-20.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺27.57

$1.47 €1.31

-61.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.71 ₺233

$2.85 €2.53

65.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.14 ₺304

$3.44 €3.06

78.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.24 ₺61.6

$1.19 €1.06

4.20%

White Bread (500g)

$0.95 ₺47.25

$1.01 €0.90

-5.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.28 ₺113

$2.25 €2.00

1.33%

Eggs

$2.45 ₺121

$3.08 €2.74

-20.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.56 ₺523

$8.77 €7.80

20.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.50 ₺272

$7.55 €6.71

-27.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.65 ₺1,072

$12.24 €10.89

76.88%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 ₺90.6

$1.26 €1.12

45.24%

Banana (1kg)

$2.29 ₺113

$1.49 €1.32

53.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.28 ₺63.4

$1.47 €1.31

-12.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.82 ₺90.1

$2.87 €2.56

-36.59%

Potato (1kg)

$0.66 ₺32.74

$0.85 €0.75

-22.35%

Onion (1kg)

$0.63 ₺31.14

$1.09 €0.97

-42.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.27 ₺62.8

$1.46 €1.30

-13.01%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺27.62

$0.89 €0.79

-37.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.36 ₺117

$3.85 €3.42

-38.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.98 ₺642

$4.56 €4.05

184.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.48 ₺123

$1.24 €1.10

100.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.50 ₺174

$1.68 €1.50

108.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.82 ₺40.77

$1.65 €1.47

-50.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.2 ₺3,228

$38.44 €34.19

69.61%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.33 ₺65.7

$1.14 €1.01

16.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 ₺44.60

$1.14 €1.01

-21.05%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.91 ₺540

$16.91 €15.04

-35.48%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.43 ₺70.7

$1.77 €1.57

-19.21%

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

$49.6K ₺2.5M

$28.7K €25.5K

72.64%

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

$43.2K ₺2.1M

$21.3K €18.9K

102.90%

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

$88.8 ₺4,395

$133 €118

-33.03%

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

$11.69 ₺579

$13.19 €11.73

-11.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.09 ₺797

$33.34 €29.65

-51.74%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$76.3 ₺3,776

$45.68 €40.63

66.94%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.72 ₺1,125

$14.42 €12.83

57.56%

Cinema Ticket

$8.26 ₺409

$5.97 €5.31

38.36%

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

$1,015 ₺50.2K

$395 €352

156.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.8K ₺1.3M

$6,959 €6,190

271.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.3 ₺2,636

$84.5 €75.2

-36.99%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.55 ₺2,008

$33.24 €29.56

21.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100 ₺4,956

$72.2 €64.2

38.64%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.5 ₺4,630

$93.0 €82.8

0.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$977 ₺48.4K

$370 €329

164.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$627 ₺31.0K

$275 €245

127.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,980 ₺98.0K

$559 €497

254.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,147 ₺56.8K

$494 €439

132.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,095 ₺153.2K

$3,356 €2,985

-7.75%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,787 ₺88.5K

$2,300 €2,046

-22.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,213 ₺60.1K

$669 €595

81.27%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.69

713.80%

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

Last update for Istanbul: October 19, 2026

Last update for Sutomore: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$627 41.1%

Sutomore

$275 25.1% 56.1% $352

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$263 17.2%

Sutomore

$219 20% 16.4% $43

Eating Out

Istanbul

$222 14.6%

Sutomore

$184 16.8% 17% $38

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$129 8.5%

Sutomore

$127 11.6% 1.5% $2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$117 7.6%

Sutomore

$179 16.4% 53.6% $63

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$93 6.1%

Sutomore

$58 5.3% 37.9% $35

Getting Around

Istanbul

$74 4.9%

Sutomore

$52 4.7% 30.2% $22

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $977 in Istanbul versus $370 in Sutomore. 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 81% 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 $57.0 in Istanbul versus $36.00 in Sutomore. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $263 vs $219 – making Sutomore the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇲🇪 Sutomore

🕒 Local time

00:47 12:47 AM

23:47 11:47 PM

1 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

2,000

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to TRY – Turkish Lira Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇷 Turkish Lira (₺)

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 49.51 TRY (100 TRY = 2.02 USD). 1 EUR = 55.66 TRY (100 TRY = 1.8 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Istanbul Sutomore 840 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Sutomore

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 Sutomore: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Istanbul is pricier by about 39%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,287 per month in Istanbul and $1,642 in Sutomore. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Sutomore, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $1,015 per month in Istanbul and $395 in Sutomore. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 20% 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 Sutomore, where all-in costs run around $1,095, than in Istanbul at $1,525. In Sutomore it covers expenses comfortably, while in Istanbul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Sutomore – 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 Sutomore. 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.