Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Thiva

For one person, living is cheaper in Thiva: $1,154 a month against $1,519 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $4,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

73

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Thiva
Learn more

Thiva Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

Thiva

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,154

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Istanbul and in Thiva

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

A single person spends $1,519 per month in Istanbul vs $1,154 in Thiva, rent included.

Istanbul $1,519
Thiva $1,154

A couple spends around $2,365 per month in Istanbul vs $1,582 in Thiva, rent included.

Istanbul $2,365
Thiva $1,582

A family of three spends $3,212 per month in Istanbul vs $2,010 in Thiva, rent included.

Istanbul $3,212
Thiva $2,010

Istanbul costs about 32% more than Thiva, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Istanbul sits 12% above the global median, while Thiva is 15% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.81 ₺592

$11.15 €9.93

5.92%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.9 ₺2,754

$59.7 €53.1

-7.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.26 ₺465

$6.73 €5.99

37.59%

Cappuccino

$4.30 ₺216

$2.46 €2.19

74.80%

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

$1.77 ₺89.0

$2.39 €2.13

-25.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₺28.32

$0.51 €0.46

9.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.69 ₺235

$4.51 €4.02

3.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.12 ₺357

$2.74 €2.44

159.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 ₺62.7

$1.67 €1.48

-25.15%

White Bread (500g)

$0.88 ₺44.17

$1.43 €1.27

-38.46%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 ₺111

$2.48 €2.21

-11.29%

Eggs

$2.43 ₺122

$5.04 €4.48

-51.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.48 ₺526

$12.20 €10.86

-14.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.31 ₺267

$10.06 €8.96

-47.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.10 ₺1,058

$14.28 €12.72

47.76%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 ₺93.1

$1.64 €1.46

13.41%

Banana (1kg)

$2.30 ₺115

$1.85 €1.65

24.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.22 ₺61.0

$1.03 €0.92

18.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 ₺90.2

$1.87 €1.67

-3.74%

Potato (1kg)

$0.69 ₺34.83

$0.94 €0.83

-26.60%

Onion (1kg)

$0.64 ₺32.16

$1.16 €1.03

-44.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.36 ₺68.0

$0.85 €0.75

60.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 ₺28.94

$0.63 €0.56

-7.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.34 ₺117

$4.57 €4.07

-48.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 ₺653

$7.35 €6.55

77.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.36 ₺118

$1.73 €1.54

36.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.32 ₺166

$1.88 €1.67

76.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 ₺44.07

$1.32 €1.18

-33.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.1 ₺3,316

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 ₺64.4

$3.60 €3.21

-64.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 ₺42.80

$0.99 €0.88

-14.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.09 ₺556

$22.49 €20.02

-50.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 ₺74.0

$2.09 €1.86

-29.19%

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

$48.6K ₺2.4M

$27.7K €24.6K

75.91%

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

$42.0K ₺2.1M

$24.4K €21.8K

71.73%

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

$92.7 ₺4,650

$168 €150

-44.97%

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

$11.20 ₺562

$25.29 €22.52

-55.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.89 ₺797

$27.78 €24.73

-42.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.7 ₺3,745

$51.4 €45.72

45.43%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.95 ₺1,151

$24.96 €22.22

-8.05%

Cinema Ticket

$8.05 ₺404

$8.30 €7.39

-3.01%

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

$948 ₺47.6K

$336 €299

182.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.9K ₺1.9M

$4,218 €3,756

775.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₺2,702

$57.8 €51.4

-6.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.49 ₺2,081

$39.75 €35.40

4.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 ₺5,060

$82.0 €73.0

23.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.3 ₺4,580

$106 €94.6

-14.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,014 ₺50.8K

$340 €303

198.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$625 ₺31.3K

$277 €247

125.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,005 ₺100.6K

$620 €552

223.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,126 ₺56.5K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,988 ₺149.8K

$1,743 €1,552

71.41%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,730 ₺86.8K

$1,404 €1,250

23.26%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,136 ₺57.0K

$1,133 €1,009

0.32%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.42

4.38

822.83%

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

Last update for Istanbul: November 2, 2026

Last update for Thiva: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$625 41.1%

Thiva

$277 24% 55.6% $347

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$258 17%

Thiva

$267 23.1% 3.3% $8.5

Eating Out

Istanbul

$221 14.6%

Thiva

$179 15.5% 19.2% $42

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$129 8.5%

Thiva

$129 11.1% 0.6% $0.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$120 7.9%

Thiva

$222 19.2% 84.9% $102

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$91 6%

Thiva

$68 5.9% 25.1% $23

Getting Around

Istanbul

$75 5%

Thiva

$14 * 1.2% 81.6% $61

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,014 in Istanbul versus $340 in Thiva. 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 $60 in Thiva. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $267 – making Istanbul the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇬🇷 Thiva

🕒 Local time

05:00 5:00 AM

04:00 4:00 AM

1 h behind Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

22,883

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 1.99 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 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 November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 50.15 TRY (100 TRY = 1.99 USD). 1 EUR = 56.3 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.89 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Istanbul Thiva 570 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
Thiva

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 Thiva: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Istanbul is pricier by about 32%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,278 per month in Istanbul and $1,732 in Thiva. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Thiva, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $340 there versus $1,014 in Istanbul.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $55 in Istanbul and $60 in Thiva. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 3% cheaper in Istanbul – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,519 in Istanbul and $1,154 in Thiva. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

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

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.