Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Oldham and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,550 a month against $1,986 in Oldham, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

96

Cost of Living Index in Oldham
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Oldham Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index

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Oldham

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$1,986

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,550

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Oldham 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 Oldham and in Istanbul actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,986 per month in Oldham vs $1,550 in Istanbul, rent included.

Oldham $1,986
Istanbul $1,550

A couple spends around $2,900 per month in Oldham vs $2,415 in Istanbul, rent included.

Oldham $2,900
Istanbul $2,415

A family of three spends $3,813 per month in Oldham vs $3,281 in Istanbul, rent included.

Oldham $3,813
Istanbul $3,281

Oldham costs about 28% more than Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Oldham and Istanbul sit above the global median – Oldham by 47%, Istanbul by 15%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.72 £14.79

$12.30 ₺609

60.33%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.4 £63.3

$54.7 ₺2,708

54.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.10 £6.83

$9.22 ₺456

-1.30%

Cappuccino

$4.66 £3.50

$4.40 ₺218

5.91%

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

$2.89 £2.17

$1.68 ₺83.1

72.02%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 £1.51

$0.59 ₺29.40

242.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.38 £5.54

$4.70 ₺233

57.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.67 £5.00

$5.91 ₺292

12.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.49 £1.12

$1.21 ₺60.0

23.14%

White Bread (500g)

$1.67 £1.25

$0.89 ₺44.10

87.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 £2.10

$2.19 ₺108

27.85%

Eggs

$4.01 £3.01

$2.35 ₺116

70.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.43 £7.07

$10.42 ₺516

-9.50%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.69 £6.52

$5.65 ₺280

53.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.25 £11.44

$20.94 ₺1,037

-27.17%

Apples (1kg)

$3.00 £2.25

$1.90 ₺94.1

57.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.89 £1.42

$2.31 ₺114

-18.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.81 £2.11

$1.28 ₺63.1

119.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.34 £2.50

$1.80 ₺89.0

85.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.56 £1.17

$0.65 ₺32.16

140.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.65 £1.24

$0.64 ₺31.91

157.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.20 £0.90

$1.25 ₺62.1

-4.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 £0.95

$0.56 ₺27.58

125.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.79 £17.85

$2.37 ₺118

903.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.40 £7.80

$13.42 ₺664

-22.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.80 £2.10

$2.40 ₺119

16.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.18 £2.39

$3.48 ₺172

-8.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.71 £2.03

$0.89 ₺43.84

204.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$97.4 £73.1

$67.4 ₺3,338

44.49%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.21 £2.41

$1.29 ₺64.1

148.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.01 £1.51

$0.92 ₺45.70

118.48%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.29 £22.72

$10.96 ₺542

176.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.03 £1.52

$1.47 ₺72.9

38.10%

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

$38.1K £28.6K

$50.8K ₺2.5M

-25.07%

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

$40.7K £30.5K

$44.5K ₺2.2M

-8.65%

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

$252 £189

$88.6 ₺4,387

184.03%

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

$16.60 £12.45

$11.59 ₺574

43.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.12 £30.10

$15.81 ₺783

153.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.39 £32.55

$77.2 ₺3,820

-43.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.74 ₺1,126

Cinema Ticket

$13.37 £10.03

$8.14 ₺403

64.25%

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

$1,254 £941

$1,008 ₺49.9K

24.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.8K £14.8K

$25.6K ₺1.3M

-22.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.1 £66.8

$54.0 ₺2,671

65.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.61 £31.96

$40.83 ₺2,021

4.36%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.2 £69.9

$98.9 ₺4,895

-5.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$87.0 £65.3

$96.6 ₺4,783

-9.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,239 £930

$985 ₺48.7K

25.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$735 £552

$650 ₺32.2K

13.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,401 £1,051

$1,983 ₺98.2K

-29.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 £786

$1,180 ₺58.4K

-11.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,990 £3,743

$3,138 ₺155.4K

59.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,924 £2,944

$1,780 ₺88.1K

120.46%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,389 £1,793

$1,205 ₺59.7K

98.22%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.82

40.92

-88.22%

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

Last update for Oldham: October 13, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Oldham

$735 37%

Istanbul

$650 41.9% 11.6% $85

Eating Out

Oldham

$311 15.7%

Istanbul

$223 14.4% 28.2% $88

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Oldham

$308 15.5%

Istanbul

$116 7.5% 62.4% $192

Groceries & Markets

Oldham

$300 15.1%

Istanbul

$260 16.8% 13.4% $40

Clothing & Footwear

Oldham

$140 7.1%

Istanbul

$131 8.4% 6.9% $9.7

Getting Around

Oldham

$122 6.1%

Istanbul

$77 5% 36.7% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Oldham

$70 3.5%

Istanbul

$93 6% 33.3% $23

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,239 in Oldham versus $985 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 98% higher in Oldham, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $84.0 in Oldham versus $55.0 in Istanbul. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $300 vs $260 – making Istanbul the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Oldham

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

04:16 4:16 AM

06:16 6:16 AM

2 h ahead of Oldham

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

110,718

15,701,602

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 49.51 TRY (100 TRY = 2.02 USD). 1 EUR = 55.66 TRY (100 TRY = 1.8 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Oldham Istanbul 2,700 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Oldham
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

Oldham vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Oldham is pricier by about 28%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,979 per month in Oldham and $2,325 in Istanbul. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Istanbul, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $1,254 per month in Oldham and $1,008 in Istanbul. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 15% more in Oldham, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Istanbul, where all-in costs run around $1,550, than in Oldham at $1,986. In Istanbul it covers expenses comfortably, while in Oldham it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Istanbul. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Oldham makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.