Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Romania and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Romania: $1,151 a month against $1,519 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $4,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

55

Cost of Living Index in Romania
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Romania Living Index
73

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index

Jump to prices

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,151

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

🙂 Solo nomad: Romania is 24.5% cheaper than Istanbul without rent, and 24.2% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Romania is 23.4% cheaper than Istanbul without rent, and 29% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.62 RON 50.5

$11.81 ₺592

-10.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$41.31 RON 196

$54.9 ₺2,754

-24.77%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.49 RON 35.58

$9.26 ₺465

-19.11%

Cappuccino

$2.85 RON 13.56

$4.30 ₺216

-33.72%

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

$2.03 RON 9.62

$1.77 ₺89.0

14.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 RON 8.29

$0.56 ₺28.32

210.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.36 RON 11.19

$4.69 ₺235

-49.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.18 RON 15.12

$7.12 ₺357

-55.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 RON 7.19

$1.25 ₺62.7

20.80%

White Bread (500g)

$1.16 RON 5.52

$0.88 ₺44.17

31.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 RON 7.29

$2.20 ₺111

-30.45%

Eggs

$3.28 RON 15.57

$2.43 ₺122

34.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.42 RON 40.03

$10.48 ₺526

-19.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.23 RON 29.60

$5.31 ₺267

17.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.24 RON 48.67

$21.10 ₺1,058

-51.47%

Apples (1kg)

$1.16 RON 5.53

$1.86 ₺93.1

-37.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.51 RON 7.16

$2.30 ₺115

-34.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.52 RON 7.23

$1.22 ₺61.0

24.59%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 RON 10.05

$1.80 ₺90.2

17.78%

Potato (1kg)

$0.78 RON 3.72

$0.69 ₺34.83

13.04%

Onion (1kg)

$0.81 RON 3.84

$0.64 ₺32.16

26.56%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.90 RON 4.27

$1.36 ₺68.0

-33.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.83 RON 3.97

$0.58 ₺28.94

43.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.25 RON 29.71

$2.34 ₺117

167.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.38 RON 30.33

$13.03 ₺653

-51.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.09 RON 5.19

$2.36 ₺118

-53.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.61 RON 7.63

$3.32 ₺166

-51.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.70 RON 3.31

$0.88 ₺44.07

-20.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$23.20 RON 110

$66.1 ₺3,316

-64.91%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.87 RON 4.14

$1.28 ₺64.4

-32.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 RON 4.04

$0.85 ₺42.80

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.25 RON 34.46

$11.09 ₺556

-34.63%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.81 RON 8.62

$1.48 ₺74.0

22.30%

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

$28.9K RON 137.5K

$48.6K ₺2.4M

-40.52%

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

$25.0K RON 118.9K

$42.0K ₺2.1M

-40.39%

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

$161 RON 767

$92.7 ₺4,650

74.10%

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

$8.04 RON 38.19

$11.20 ₺562

-28.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.80 RON 41.79

$15.89 ₺797

-44.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.08 RON 195

$74.7 ₺3,745

-44.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.76 RON 89.1

$22.95 ₺1,151

-18.26%

Cinema Ticket

$7.22 RON 34.29

$8.05 ₺404

-10.31%

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

$481 RON 2,285

$948 ₺47.6K

-49.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K RON 55.2K

$36.9K ₺1.9M

-68.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.2 RON 338

$53.9 ₺2,702

32.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.45 RON 178

$41.49 ₺2,081

-9.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.2 RON 376

$101 ₺5,060

-21.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.0 RON 409

$91.3 ₺4,580

-5.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$491 RON 2,331

$1,014 ₺50.8K

-51.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$384 RON 1,824

$625 ₺31.3K

-38.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$782 RON 3,716

$2,005 ₺100.6K

-61.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$592 RON 2,811

$1,126 ₺56.5K

-47.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,516 RON 12.0K

$2,988 ₺149.8K

-15.80%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,798 RON 8,543

$1,730 ₺86.8K

3.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$995 RON 4,729

$1,136 ₺57.0K

-12.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.97

40.42

-82.76%

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

Last update for Romania: October 31, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Romania

$384 33.4%

Istanbul

$625 41.1% 62.6% $241

Groceries & Markets

Romania

$204 17.7%

Istanbul

$258 17% 26.8% $55

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Romania

$178 15.5%

Istanbul

$120 7.9% 32.8% $58

Eating Out

Romania

$175 15.2%

Istanbul

$221 14.6% 26.3% $46

Clothing & Footwear

Romania

$123 10.7%

Istanbul

$129 8.5% 5% $6.2

Sport & Entertainment

Romania

$56 4.8%

Istanbul

$91 6% 63.5% $35

Getting Around

Romania

$31 2.7%

Istanbul

$75 5% 142% $44

Good to know

🇷🇴 Romania

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

09:11 9:11 AM

10:11 10:11 AM

1 h ahead of Romania

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

19,053,815

15,701,602

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.21 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

100 TRY = 1.99 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 4.75 RON (1 RON = 0.21 USD). 1 EUR = 5.33 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 50.15 TRY (100 TRY = 1.99 USD). 1 EUR = 56.3 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

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Romania
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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

Romania vs other spots: cost of living compared

Cost of Living Comparison Between Romania and Istanbul

TRY, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

Romania

Istanbul

Romania

Istanbul

Romania vs other spots: cost of living compared

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