Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and the United Arab Emirates

Name: United Arab Emirates
Address: AE

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,526 a month against $2,227 in the United Arab Emirates, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index
110

Cost of Living Index in the United Arab Emirates
Learn more

United Arab Emirates Living Index

Jump to prices

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,526

/mo nomad

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,227

/mo nomad

🙂 Solo nomad: Istanbul is 15.3% cheaper than the United Arab Emirates without rent, and 31.5% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Istanbul is 13.6% cheaper than the United Arab Emirates without rent, and 27.4% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.88 ₺585

$9.40 AED 34.51

26.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.1 ₺2,714

$60.5 AED 222

-8.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.14 ₺450

$9.69 AED 35.60

-5.68%

Cappuccino

$4.24 ₺209

$5.34 AED 19.63

-20.60%

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

$1.75 ₺86.0

$1.05 AED 3.86

66.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 ₺26.83

$0.46 AED 1.70

17.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.69 ₺231

$11.80 AED 43.33

-60.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.97 ₺294

$12.35 AED 45.35

-51.66%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.26 ₺62.1

$1.72 AED 6.33

-26.74%

White Bread (500g)

$0.95 ₺46.81

$1.46 AED 5.38

-34.93%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 ₺114

$2.14 AED 7.85

7.94%

Eggs

$2.47 ₺122

$3.22 AED 11.82

-23.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.55 ₺520

$10.60 AED 38.92

-0.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.60 ₺276

$8.82 AED 32.38

-36.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.21 ₺1,045

$11.55 AED 42.44

83.64%

Apples (1kg)

$1.93 ₺95.1

$2.46 AED 9.04

-21.54%

Banana (1kg)

$2.29 ₺113

$1.77 AED 6.51

29.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.28 ₺63.1

$1.68 AED 6.18

-23.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.84 ₺90.8

$1.36 AED 4.99

35.29%

Potato (1kg)

$0.67 ₺32.86

$1.07 AED 3.92

-37.38%

Onion (1kg)

$0.59 ₺29.31

$1.06 AED 3.88

-44.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.33 ₺65.4

$1.49 AED 5.46

-10.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 ₺29.10

$0.56 AED 2.06

5.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.36 ₺116

$6.09 AED 22.38

-61.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.47 ₺664

$13.52 AED 49.66

-0.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.42 ₺119

$2.43 AED 8.94

-0.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.54 ₺174

$2.76 AED 10.14

28.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.83 ₺40.64

$1.62 AED 5.94

-48.77%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.5 ₺3,273

$47.10 AED 173

41.08%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.35 ₺66.6

$3.25 AED 11.93

-58.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 ₺42.05

$0.60 AED 2.22

41.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.86 ₺535

$8.32 AED 30.57

30.53%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ₺72.3

$0.95 AED 3.48

54.74%

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

$51.6K ₺2.5M

$44.9K AED 165.0K

14.92%

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

$44.4K ₺2.2M

$22.4K AED 82.2K

98.49%

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

$89.2 ₺4,395

$198 AED 726

-54.85%

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

$11.60 ₺572

$53.4 AED 196

-78.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.10 ₺793

$91.3 AED 335

-82.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$77.3 ₺3,805

$73.8 AED 271

4.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.66 ₺1,116

$33.45 AED 123

-32.26%

Cinema Ticket

$8.34 ₺411

$13.77 AED 50.6

-39.43%

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

$974 ₺48.0K

$570 AED 2,094

70.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.8K ₺1.3M

$12.2K AED 44.8K

111.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.7 ₺2,597

$61.2 AED 225

-13.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.16 ₺1,929

$58.0 AED 213

-32.51%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 ₺5,083

$99.5 AED 365

3.71%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.6 ₺4,759

$100 AED 368

-3.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$994 ₺49.0K

$1,553 AED 5,704

-35.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$629 ₺31.0K

$1,092 AED 4,011

-42.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,024 ₺99.7K

$2,731 AED 10.0K

-25.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,155 ₺56.9K

$2,022 AED 7,427

-42.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,160 ₺155.7K

$5,628 AED 20.7K

-43.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,838 ₺90.5K

$2,849 AED 10.5K

-35.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,203 ₺59.3K

$2,827 AED 10.4K

-57.43%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

41.09

4.63

787.47%

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

Last update for Istanbul: October 3, 2026

Last update for the United Arab Emirates: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Istanbul

$629 41.2%

United Arab Emirates

$1.1K 48.3% 73.5% $463

Groceries & Markets

Istanbul

$264 17.3%

United Arab Emirates

$263 11.6% 0.4% $1

Eating Out

Istanbul

$218 14.3%

United Arab Emirates

$258 11.4% 18.5% $40

Clothing & Footwear

Istanbul

$131 8.6%

United Arab Emirates

$143 6.4% 9.3% $12

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Istanbul

$117 7.7%

United Arab Emirates

$342 15.2% 193% $225

Sport & Entertainment

Istanbul

$94 6.1%

United Arab Emirates

$101 4.5% 7.9% $7.4

Getting Around

Istanbul

$75 4.9%

United Arab Emirates

$60 2.7% 20.6% $16

Good to know

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

🕒 Local time

11:52 11:52 AM

12:52 12:52 PM

1 h ahead of Istanbul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,701,602

9,890,400

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 2.03 USD

100 TRY = 1.81 EUR

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.243 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AED, 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).

UAE Dirham exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.12 AED (1 AED = 0.243 EUR).

USD to TRY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Istanbul United Arab Emirates 2,990 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Istanbul
United Arab Emirates

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 other spots: cost of living compared

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