Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Swat

For one person, living is cheaper in Swat: $480 a month against $1,519 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $12,500 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
23

Cost of Living Index in Swat
Learn more

Swat Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

Swat

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$480

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Swat

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

A single person spends $1,519 per month in Istanbul vs $480 in Swat, rent included.

Istanbul $1,519
Swat $480

A couple spends around $2,365 per month in Istanbul vs $767 in Swat, rent included.

Istanbul $2,365
Swat $767

A family of three spends $3,212 per month in Istanbul vs $1,054 in Swat, rent included.

Istanbul $3,212
Swat $1,054

Istanbul costs about 216% more than Swat, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Istanbul sits 12% above the global median, while Swat is 64% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.81 ₺592

$3.53 PKR 976

234.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.9 ₺2,754

$24.75 PKR 6,841

121.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.26 ₺465

$3.56 PKR 983

160.11%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.66 PKR 1,011

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.82 PKR 1,884

Cappuccino

$4.30 ₺216

$2.60 PKR 720

65.38%

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

$1.77 ₺89.0

$0.34 PKR 95.2

420.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺28.32

$0.22 PKR 60.7

154.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.69 ₺235

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.12 ₺357

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 ₺62.7

$0.99 PKR 275

26.26%

White Bread (500g)

$0.88 ₺44.17

$0.45 PKR 124

95.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 ₺111

$1.26 PKR 349

74.60%

Eggs

$2.43 ₺122

$1.27 PKR 350

91.34%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.48 ₺526

$6.17 PKR 1,705

69.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.31 ₺267

$2.92 PKR 807

81.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.10 ₺1,058

$5.50 PKR 1,521

283.64%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 ₺93.1

$1.25 PKR 346

48.80%

Banana (1kg)

$2.30 ₺115

$0.91 PKR 252

152.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.22 ₺61.0

$1.06 PKR 294

15.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺90.2

$0.60 PKR 166

200.00%

Potato (1kg)

$0.69 ₺34.83

$0.30 PKR 83.0

130.00%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺32.16

$0.38 PKR 104

68.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.36 ₺68.0

$0.30 PKR 82.2

353.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 ₺28.94

$0.39 PKR 108

48.72%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.80 PKR 497

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 PKR 346

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.46 PKR 679

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.34 ₺117

$2.35 PKR 650

-0.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 ₺653

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.36 ₺118

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.32 ₺166

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 ₺44.07

$0.20 PKR 56.2

340.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.1 ₺3,316

$9.55 PKR 2,639

592.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 ₺64.4

$1.24 PKR 342

3.23%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 ₺42.80

$0.74 PKR 205

14.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.09 ₺556

$1.65 PKR 456

572.12%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 ₺74.0

$1.34 PKR 371

10.45%

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

$48.6K ₺2.4M

$22.1K PKR 6.1M

120.07%

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

$42.0K ₺2.1M

$23.5K PKR 6.5M

78.74%

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

$92.7 ₺4,650

$103 PKR 28.4K

-9.88%

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

$11.20 ₺562

$5.27 PKR 1,456

112.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.89 ₺797

$16.83 PKR 4,652

-5.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.7 ₺3,745

$14.65 PKR 4,050

409.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.95 ₺1,151

$7.88 PKR 2,177

191.24%

Cinema Ticket

$8.05 ₺404

$4.89 PKR 1,352

64.62%

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

$948 ₺47.6K

$42.15 PKR 11.6K

2150.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.9K ₺1.9M

$515 PKR 142.3K

7071.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₺2,702

$27.81 PKR 7,685

93.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.49 ₺2,081

$35.94 PKR 9,933

15.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 ₺5,060

$25.25 PKR 6,977

299.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.3 ₺4,580

$41.37 PKR 11.4K

120.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,014 ₺50.8K

$138 PKR 38.1K

635.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$625 ₺31.3K

$83.8 PKR 23.2K

645.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,005 ₺100.6K

$246 PKR 68.0K

715.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,126 ₺56.5K

$190 PKR 52.4K

493.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,988 ₺149.8K

$941 PKR 260.0K

217.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,730 ₺86.8K

$514 PKR 142.2K

236.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,136 ₺57.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.42

13.08

209.02%

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

Last update for Istanbul: November 2, 2026

Last update for Swat: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$625 41.1%

Swat

$84 17.5% 86.6% $541

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$258 17%

Swat

$101 21% 61% $158

Eating Out

Istanbul

$221 14.6%

Swat

$72 15.1% 67.2% $149

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$129 8.5%

Swat

$59 12.2% 54.7% $71

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$120 7.9%

Swat

$125 26% 4.3% $5.2

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$91 6%

Swat

$24 5.1% 73.1% $66

Getting Around

Istanbul

$75 5%

Swat

$15 3.2% 79.6% $60

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,014 in Istanbul versus $138 in Swat. 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 $25 in Swat. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $101 – making Swat the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇵🇰 Swat

🕒 Local time

08:11 8:11 AM

10:11 10:11 AM

2 h ahead of Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 1.99 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

1,000 PKR = 3.62 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PKR, 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).

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 276 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.62 USD). 1 EUR = 310 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Istanbul Swat 3,810 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Swat

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 Swat: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Istanbul is pricier by about 216%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,278 per month in Istanbul and $720 in Swat. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Swat, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $138 there versus $1,014 in Istanbul.

Kindergarten costs $948 per month in Istanbul and $42 in Swat. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 157% more in Istanbul, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Swat, where all-in costs run around $480, than in Istanbul at $1,519. In Swat it covers expenses comfortably, while in Istanbul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

For expats, Swat is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 68% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.