Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Oued Zem and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Oued Zem: $744 a month against $1,550 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $9,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

36

Cost of Living Index in Oued Zem
Learn more

Oued Zem Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index

Jump to prices

Oued Zem

🇲🇦 Morocco

$744

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,550

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $744 per month in Oued Zem vs $1,550 in Istanbul, rent included.

Oued Zem $744
Istanbul $1,550

A couple spends around $1,188 per month in Oued Zem vs $2,415 in Istanbul, rent included.

Oued Zem $1,188
Istanbul $2,415

A family of three spends $1,633 per month in Oued Zem vs $3,281 in Istanbul, rent included.

Oued Zem $1,633
Istanbul $3,281

Oued Zem is about 52% cheaper than Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Oued Zem sits 45% below the global median, while Istanbul is 15% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.23 MAD 41.20

$12.30 ₺609

-65.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$41.45 MAD 404

$54.7 ₺2,708

-24.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.16 MAD 69.8

$9.22 ₺456

-22.34%

Cappuccino

$1.97 MAD 19.23

$4.40 ₺218

-55.23%

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

$0.54 MAD 5.25

$1.68 ₺83.1

-67.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.37 MAD 3.56

$0.59 ₺29.40

-37.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.08 MAD 49.57

$4.70 ₺233

8.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.28 MAD 31.95

$5.91 ₺292

-44.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.84 MAD 8.16

$1.21 ₺60.0

-30.58%

White Bread (500g)

$0.63 MAD 6.09

$0.89 ₺44.10

-29.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.89 MAD 18.40

$2.19 ₺108

-13.70%

Eggs

$1.89 MAD 18.42

$2.35 ₺116

-19.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.57 MAD 113

$10.42 ₺516

11.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.72 MAD 65.6

$5.65 ₺280

18.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.01 MAD 117

$20.94 ₺1,037

-42.65%

Apples (1kg)

$1.62 MAD 15.82

$1.90 ₺94.1

-14.74%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 MAD 13.50

$2.31 ₺114

-40.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.82 MAD 8.00

$1.28 ₺63.1

-35.94%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.83 MAD 8.13

$1.80 ₺89.0

-53.89%

Potato (1kg)

$0.69 MAD 6.71

$0.65 ₺32.16

6.15%

Onion (1kg)

$0.76 MAD 7.36

$0.64 ₺31.91

18.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.40 MAD 3.93

$1.25 ₺62.1

-68.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.65 MAD 6.34

$0.56 ₺27.58

16.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.15 MAD 40.43

$2.37 ₺118

75.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.61 MAD 74.2

$13.42 ₺664

-43.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.62 MAD 25.51

$2.40 ₺119

9.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.73 MAD 26.60

$3.48 ₺172

-21.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.52 MAD 5.10

$0.89 ₺43.84

-41.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.72 MAD 183

$67.4 ₺3,338

-72.24%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.70 MAD 6.86

$1.29 ₺64.1

-45.74%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.75 MAD 7.30

$0.92 ₺45.70

-18.48%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.02 MAD 39.19

$10.96 ₺542

-63.32%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 MAD 14.72

$1.47 ₺72.9

2.72%

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

$30.9K MAD 301.7K

$50.8K ₺2.5M

-39.06%

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

$30.9K MAD 301.7K

$44.5K ₺2.2M

-30.51%

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

$36.62 MAD 357

$88.6 ₺4,387

-58.67%

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

$10.06 MAD 98.0

$11.59 ₺574

-13.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.17 MAD 333

$15.81 ₺783

116.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.12 MAD 284

$77.2 ₺3,820

-62.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.76 MAD 202

$22.74 ₺1,126

-8.71%

Cinema Ticket

$6.16 MAD 60.0

$8.14 ₺403

-24.32%

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

$185 MAD 1,807

$1,008 ₺49.9K

-81.61%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,495 MAD 92.6K

$25.6K ₺1.3M

-62.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.33 MAD 481

$54.0 ₺2,671

-8.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.51 MAD 395

$40.83 ₺2,021

-0.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.8 MAD 915

$98.9 ₺4,895

-5.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$65.2 MAD 636

$96.6 ₺4,783

-32.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$278 MAD 2,712

$985 ₺48.7K

-71.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$165 MAD 1,607

$650 ₺32.2K

-74.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$478 MAD 4,664

$1,983 ₺98.2K

-75.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$246 MAD 2,398

$1,180 ₺58.4K

-79.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,115 MAD 10.9K

$3,138 ₺155.4K

-64.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$767 MAD 7,480

$1,780 ₺88.1K

-56.90%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$239 MAD 2,333

$1,205 ₺59.7K

-80.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.55

40.92

-88.88%

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

Last update for Oued Zem: October 12, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Oued Zem

$205 27.5%

Istanbul

$260 16.8% 26.8% $55

Accommodation & Living

Oued Zem

$165 22.2%

Istanbul

$650 41.9% 294% $485

Eating Out

Oued Zem

$115 15.4%

Istanbul

$223 14.4% 95% $109

Clothing & Footwear

Oued Zem

$112 15.1%

Istanbul

$131 8.4% 16.6% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Oued Zem

$81 10.9%

Istanbul

$116 7.5% 43.5% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Oued Zem

$41 5.6%

Istanbul

$93 6% 126% $52

Getting Around

Oued Zem

$25 3.4%

Istanbul

$77 5% 204% $52

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $278 in Oued Zem 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 404% higher in Istanbul, 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 $41.00 in Oued Zem versus $55.0 in Istanbul. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $205 vs $260 – making Oued Zem the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇦 Oued Zem

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

09:01 9:01 AM

11:01 11:01 AM

2 h ahead of Oued Zem

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

95,267

15,701,602

💱 Currency

Moroccan Dirham MAD د.م.

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

100 MAD = 10.26 USD

100 MAD = 9.12 EUR

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to MAD – Moroccan Dirham Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇦 Moroccan Dirham (د.م.)

Moroccan Dirham exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 9.75 MAD (1 MAD = 0.103 USD). 1 EUR = 10.96 MAD (100 MAD = 9.12 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 MAD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Oued Zem Istanbul 3,260 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Oued Zem
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

Oued Zem vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Istanbul is pricier by about 108%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,116 per month in Oued Zem 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 Oued Zem, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $185 per month in Oued Zem 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 27% more in Istanbul, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Oued Zem, where all-in costs run around $744, than in Istanbul at $1,550. In Oued Zem it covers expenses comfortably, while in Istanbul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Oued Zem – 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 Oued Zem. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Istanbul makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.