Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kuressaare and Istanbul

For one person, living costs are similar in Kuressaare and in Istanbul: $1,492 and $1,519 a month, rent and utilities included.

Kuressaare, Estonia
Istanbul, Turkey
Kuressaare
🇪🇪 Estonia
$1,492
/mo nomad
Istanbul
🇹🇷 Turkey
$1,519
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Kuressaare and in Istanbul

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Kuressaare and in Istanbul actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,492 per month in Kuressaare vs $1,519 in Istanbul, rent included.

  • Kuressaare $1,492
  • Istanbul $1,519

A couple spends around $2,208 per month in Kuressaare vs $2,365 in Istanbul, rent included.

  • Kuressaare $2,208
  • Istanbul $2,365

A family of three spends $2,925 per month in Kuressaare vs $3,212 in Istanbul, rent included.

  • Kuressaare $2,925
  • Istanbul $3,212

Kuressaare and Istanbul have comparable living costs – the differences are in the details.

Both Kuressaare and Istanbul sit above the global median – Kuressaare by 10%, Istanbul by 12%.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Kuressaare
Istanbul
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$13.51 €12.09
$11.81 ₺592
14.39%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$66.4 €59.4
$54.9 ₺2,754
20.93%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.72 €7.80
$9.26 ₺465
-5.83%
Cappuccino
$4.00 €3.58
$4.30 ₺216
-6.98%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.46 €3.10
$1.77 ₺89.0
95.48%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.80 €2.51
$0.56 ₺28.32
400.00%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$6.40 €5.73
$4.69 ₺235
36.46%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.61 €5.02
$7.12 ₺357
-21.21%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Kuressaare
Istanbul
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.24 €1.11
$1.25 ₺62.7
-0.80%
White Bread (500g)
$1.90 €1.70
$0.88 ₺44.17
115.91%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.30 €2.06
$2.20 ₺111
4.55%
Eggs
$2.98 €2.66
$2.43 ₺122
22.63%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$12.49 €11.18
$10.48 ₺526
19.18%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.59 €7.68
$5.31 ₺267
61.77%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$15.04 €13.46
$21.10 ₺1,058
-28.72%
Apples (1kg)
$1.76 €1.57
$1.86 ₺93.1
-5.38%
Banana (1kg)
$1.44 €1.29
$2.30 ₺115
-37.39%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.52 €2.26
$1.22 ₺61.0
106.56%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.97 €2.66
$1.80 ₺90.2
65.00%
Potato (1kg)
$1.04 €0.93
$0.69 ₺34.83
50.72%
Onion (1kg)
$0.89 €0.80
$0.64 ₺32.16
39.06%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.87 €1.67
$1.36 ₺68.0
37.50%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.20 €1.07
$0.58 ₺28.94
106.90%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$6.62 €5.92
$2.34 ₺117
182.91%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.14 €9.08
$13.03 ₺653
-22.18%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.87 €1.67
$2.36 ₺118
-20.76%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.16 €1.93
$3.32 ₺166
-34.94%
🚌 Getting Around
Kuressaare
Istanbul
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.28 €2.04
$0.88 ₺44.07
159.09%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$28.06 €25.11
$66.1 ₺3,316
-57.56%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.66 €3.27
$1.28 ₺64.4
185.94%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.99 €0.89
$0.85 ₺42.80
16.47%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$27.01 €24.17
$11.09 ₺556
143.55%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$2.00 €1.79
$1.48 ₺74.0
35.14%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$27.5K €24.6K
$48.6K ₺2.4M
-43.56%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$29.3K €26.2K
$42.0K ₺2.1M
-30.19%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Kuressaare
Istanbul
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$310 €277
$92.7 ₺4,650
234.29%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$11.33 €10.14
$11.20 ₺562
1.16%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$36.43 €32.60
$15.89 ₺797
129.26%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Kuressaare
Istanbul
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$33.12 €29.64
$74.7 ₺3,745
-55.65%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$22.95 ₺1,151
-
Cinema Ticket
$11.54 €10.32
$8.05 ₺404
43.35%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Kuressaare
Istanbul
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$475 €425
$948 ₺47.6K
-49.93%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$11.9K €10.7K
$36.9K ₺1.9M
-67.64%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Kuressaare
Istanbul
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$109 €97.3
$53.9 ₺2,702
101.82%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$48.38 €43.29
$41.49 ₺2,081
16.61%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$104 €93.4
$101 ₺5,060
3.42%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$120 €107
$91.3 ₺4,580
30.88%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Kuressaare
Istanbul
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$511 €457
$1,014 ₺50.8K
-49.63%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$329 €294
$625 ₺31.3K
-47.32%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$657 €588
$2,005 ₺100.6K
-67.22%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$495 €443
$1,126 ₺56.5K
-56.06%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,044 €3,619
$2,988 ₺149.8K
35.35%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,476 €2,215
$1,730 ₺86.8K
43.09%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Kuressaare
Istanbul
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,280 €1,145
$1,136 ₺57.0K
12.60%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
3.93
40.42
-90.28%

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

Last update for Kuressaare: November 2, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Kuressaare
$358
Istanbul
$120 66.5% $238
Accommodation & Living
Kuressaare
$329
Istanbul
$625 89.8% $296
Groceries & Markets
Kuressaare
$281
Istanbul
$258 8.1% $23
Eating Out
Kuressaare
$251
Istanbul
$221 11.8% $30
Clothing & Footwear
Kuressaare
$171
Istanbul
$129 24.5% $42
Sport & Entertainment
Kuressaare
$56
Istanbul
$91 61.5% $35
Getting Around
Kuressaare
$46
Istanbul
$75 64% $29

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $511 in Kuressaare versus $1,014 in Istanbul. 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 13% higher in Kuressaare. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $66 in Kuressaare versus $55 in Istanbul. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $281 vs $258 – making Istanbul the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇪🇪 Kuressaare
🇹🇷 Istanbul
🕒 Local time
23:31 11:31 PM
00:31 12:31 AM
1 h ahead of Kuressaare
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
15,170
15,701,602
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

Euro exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.895 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 50.15 TRY (100 TRY = 1.99 USD). 1 EUR = 56.05 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Kuressaare Istanbul 1,970 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Kuressaare
  • Istanbul

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
Kuressaare vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,238 per month in Kuressaare and $2,278 in Istanbul. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Kuressaare, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $511 there versus $1,014 in Istanbul.
Is eating out cheaper in Kuressaare or in Istanbul?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $66 in Kuressaare and $55 in Istanbul. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
Which city has cheaper public transport?
Public transport costs about 58% less in Kuressaare. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.
Is Kuressaare or Istanbul more family-friendly?
Families tend to lean toward Kuressaare – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.
Which city is safer, Kuressaare or Istanbul?
Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

Kuressaare vs other spots: cost of living compared

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