Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Pawl Il-bahar and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,550 a month against $1,697 in San Pawl Il-bahar, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in San Pawl Il-bahar outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

83

Cost of Living Index in San Pawl Il-bahar
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San Pawl Il-bahar Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index

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San Pawl Il-bahar

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,697

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,550

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in San Pawl Il-bahar 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 San Pawl Il-bahar and in Istanbul actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,697 per month in San Pawl Il-bahar vs $1,550 in Istanbul, rent included.

San Pawl Il-bahar $1,697
Istanbul $1,550

A couple spends around $2,593 per month in San Pawl Il-bahar vs $2,415 in Istanbul, rent included.

San Pawl Il-bahar $2,593
Istanbul $2,415

A family of three spends $3,489 per month in San Pawl Il-bahar vs $3,281 in Istanbul, rent included.

San Pawl Il-bahar $3,489
Istanbul $3,281

San Pawl Il-bahar costs about 9% more than Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both San Pawl Il-bahar and Istanbul sit above the global median – San Pawl Il-bahar by 26%, Istanbul by 15%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.75 €17.57

$12.30 ₺609

60.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$82.2 €73.1

$54.7 ₺2,708

50.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.28 €10.03

$9.22 ₺456

22.34%

Cappuccino

$2.58 €2.30

$4.40 ₺218

-41.36%

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

$2.47 €2.20

$1.68 ₺83.1

47.02%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.95 €1.74

$0.59 ₺29.40

230.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.50 €4.00

$4.70 ₺233

-4.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.18 €4.60

$5.91 ₺292

-12.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.21 ₺60.0

8.26%

White Bread (500g)

$1.16 €1.03

$0.89 ₺44.10

30.34%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.82 €3.40

$2.19 ₺108

74.43%

Eggs

$3.62 €3.22

$2.35 ₺116

54.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.44 €7.50

$10.42 ₺516

-19.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.75 €6.89

$5.65 ₺280

37.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.41 €8.37

$20.94 ₺1,037

-55.06%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.65

$1.90 ₺94.1

56.84%

Banana (1kg)

$2.05 €1.82

$2.31 ₺114

-11.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.93 €2.60

$1.28 ₺63.1

128.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.86 €2.54

$1.80 ₺89.0

58.89%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 €1.40

$0.65 ₺32.16

141.54%

Onion (1kg)

$1.84 €1.64

$0.64 ₺31.91

187.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 €1.06

$1.25 ₺62.1

-4.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 €1.07

$0.56 ₺27.58

114.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.33 €5.63

$2.37 ₺118

167.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.30 €7.38

$13.42 ₺664

-38.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.49 €1.32

$2.40 ₺119

-37.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.00 €1.78

$3.48 ₺172

-42.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.76 €2.46

$0.89 ₺43.84

210.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$67.4 ₺3,338

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.72 €5.09

$1.29 ₺64.1

343.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.17 €1.93

$0.92 ₺45.70

135.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.51 €23.58

$10.96 ₺542

141.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 €1.30

$1.47 ₺72.9

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

$38.3K €34.1K

$50.8K ₺2.5M

-24.58%

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

$39.6K €35.2K

$44.5K ₺2.2M

-11.13%

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

$58.9 €52.4

$88.6 ₺4,387

-33.57%

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

$20.63 €18.35

$11.59 ₺574

78.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.96 €35.54

$15.81 ₺783

152.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.65 €44.17

$77.2 ₺3,820

-35.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.51 €12.02

$22.74 ₺1,126

-40.59%

Cinema Ticket

$9.96 €8.86

$8.14 ₺403

22.36%

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

$371 €330

$1,008 ₺49.9K

-63.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.1K €9,915

$25.6K ₺1.3M

-56.39%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$22.55 €20.06

$54.0 ₺2,671

-58.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.53 €29.83

$40.83 ₺2,021

-17.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.5 €85.8

$98.9 ₺4,895

-2.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$75.4 €67.1

$96.6 ₺4,783

-21.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$981 €872

$985 ₺48.7K

-0.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$848 €755

$650 ₺32.2K

30.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,640 €1,459

$1,983 ₺98.2K

-17.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,348 €1,199

$1,180 ₺58.4K

14.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,441 €3,061

$3,138 ₺155.4K

9.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,867 €2,550

$1,780 ₺88.1K

61.08%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,670 €1,485

$1,205 ₺59.7K

38.53%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.9

40.92

-92.91%

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

Last update for San Pawl Il-bahar: October 12, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

San Pawl Il-bahar

$848 50%

Istanbul

$650 41.9% 23.4% $199

Eating Out

San Pawl Il-bahar

$273 16.1%

Istanbul

$223 14.4% 18.3% $50

Groceries & Markets

San Pawl Il-bahar

$256 15.1%

Istanbul

$260 16.8% 1.6% $4

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Pawl Il-bahar

$119 7%

Istanbul

$116 7.5% 2.9% $3.4

Clothing & Footwear

San Pawl Il-bahar

$103 6.1%

Istanbul

$131 8.4% 27.3% $28

Sport & Entertainment

San Pawl Il-bahar

$70 4.1%

Istanbul

$93 6% 34.3% $24

Getting Around

San Pawl Il-bahar

$28 * 1.6%

Istanbul

$77 5% 178% $49

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $981 in San Pawl Il-bahar 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 39% higher in San Pawl Il-bahar, 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 $82.0 in San Pawl Il-bahar versus $55.0 in Istanbul. Groceries tell a different story – $256 in San Pawl Il-bahar vs $260 in Istanbul – so San Pawl Il-bahar wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇲🇹 San Pawl Il-bahar

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

17:50 5:50 PM

18:50 6:50 PM

1 h ahead of San Pawl Il-bahar

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

21,046

15,701,602

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

San Pawl Il-bahar Istanbul 1,390 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

San Pawl Il-bahar
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

San Pawl Il-bahar vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – San Pawl Il-bahar is pricier by about 9%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,545 per month in San Pawl Il-bahar 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $82.0 in San Pawl Il-bahar and $55.0 in Istanbul. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 2% cheaper in San Pawl Il-bahar – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Istanbul, where all-in costs run around $1,550, than in San Pawl Il-bahar at $1,697. In Istanbul it covers expenses comfortably, while in San Pawl Il-bahar 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, San Pawl Il-bahar makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.