Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Istanbul and Western Sahara

For one person, living is cheaper in Western Sahara: $118 a month against $1,526 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $16,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

Istanbul
🇹🇷 Turkey
$1,526
/mo nomad
🇪🇭 Western Sahara
$118
/mo nomad
😐 Solo nomad: Istanbul is 530.9% more expensive than Western Sahara without rent, and 1194.9% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Istanbul is 718.1% more expensive than Western Sahara without rent, and 1387% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Istanbul
Western Sahara
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$11.88 ₺585
$3.90 MAD 38.01
204.62%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$55.1 ₺2,714
-
-
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$9.14 ₺450
$3.27 MAD 31.88
179.51%
Cappuccino
$4.24 ₺209
$2.02 MAD 19.69
109.90%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.75 ₺86.0
$0.41 MAD 4.00
326.83%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.54 ₺26.83
$0.29 MAD 2.82
86.21%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$4.69 ₺231
-
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.97 ₺294
-
-
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Istanbul
Western Sahara
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.26 ₺62.1
-
-
White Bread (500g)
$0.95 ₺46.81
-
-
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.31 ₺114
-
-
Eggs
$2.47 ₺122
-
-
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.55 ₺520
-
-
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$5.60 ₺276
-
-
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$21.21 ₺1,045
-
-
Apples (1kg)
$1.93 ₺95.1
-
-
Banana (1kg)
$2.29 ₺113
-
-
Oranges (1kg)
$1.28 ₺63.1
-
-
Tomato (1kg)
$1.84 ₺90.8
-
-
Potato (1kg)
$0.67 ₺32.86
-
-
Onion (1kg)
$0.59 ₺29.31
-
-
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.33 ₺65.4
-
-
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.59 ₺29.10
-
-
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.36 ₺116
-
-
Wine (Bottle)
$13.47 ₺664
-
-
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.42 ₺119
-
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.54 ₺174
-
-
🚌 Getting Around
Istanbul
Western Sahara
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.83 ₺40.64
$0.68 MAD 6.58
22.06%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$66.5 ₺3,273
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.35 ₺66.6
$0.73 MAD 7.10
84.93%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.85 ₺42.05
$0.68 MAD 6.64
25.00%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$10.86 ₺535
-
-
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.47 ₺72.3
$1.28 MAD 12.47
14.84%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$51.6K ₺2.5M
-
-
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$44.4K ₺2.2M
-
-
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Istanbul
Western Sahara
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$89.2 ₺4,395
-
-
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$11.60 ₺572
-
-
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$16.10 ₺793
$19.68 MAD 192
-18.19%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Istanbul
Western Sahara
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$77.3 ₺3,805
-
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$22.66 ₺1,116
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$8.34 ₺411
-
-
🧸 Childcare & Education
Istanbul
Western Sahara
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$974 ₺48.0K
-
-
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$25.8K ₺1.3M
-
-
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Istanbul
Western Sahara
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$52.7 ₺2,597
$45.66 MAD 445
15.44%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.16 ₺1,929
-
-
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$103 ₺5,083
-
-
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$96.6 ₺4,759
-
-
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Istanbul
Western Sahara
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$994 ₺49.0K
-
-
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$629 ₺31.0K
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,024 ₺99.7K
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,155 ₺56.9K
-
-
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,160 ₺155.7K
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,838 ₺90.5K
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Istanbul
Western Sahara
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,203 ₺59.3K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
41.09
0
-

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

Last update for Istanbul: October 3, 2026

Last update for Western Sahara: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Istanbul
$629
Western Sahara
- * 100%
Groceries & Markets
Istanbul
$264
Western Sahara
- * 100%
Eating Out
Istanbul
$218
Western Sahara
$68 * 68.7% $150
Clothing & Footwear
Istanbul
$131
Western Sahara
$21 * 84.3% $111
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Istanbul
$117
Western Sahara
$20 * 83.2% $97
Sport & Entertainment
Istanbul
$94
Western Sahara
- * 100%
Getting Around
Istanbul
$75
Western Sahara
$6.9 * 90.9% $69

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

Good to know
🇹🇷 Istanbul
🇪🇭 Western Sahara
🕒 Local time
14:55 2:55 PM
12:55 12:55 PM
2 h behind Istanbul
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
15,701,602
612,000
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

MAD, USD, EUR to TRY – Turkish Lira Converter

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 49.26 TRY (100 TRY = 2.03 USD). 1 EUR = 55.2 TRY (100 TRY = 1.81 EUR).

Moroccan Dirham exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 9.74 MAD (1 MAD = 0.103 USD). 1 EUR = 10.91 MAD (100 MAD = 9.17 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Istanbul Western Sahara 4,130 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Istanbul
  • Western Sahara

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.
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