Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sharjah and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,526 a month against $1,841 in Sharjah, rent and utilities included – about $3,800 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Sharjah outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

89

Cost of Living Index in Sharjah
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Sharjah Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index

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Sharjah

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$1,841

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,526

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,841 per month in Sharjah vs $1,526 in Istanbul, rent included.

Sharjah $1,841
Istanbul $1,526

A couple spends around $2,576 per month in Sharjah vs $2,399 in Istanbul, rent included.

Sharjah $2,576
Istanbul $2,399

A family of three spends $3,312 per month in Sharjah vs $3,272 in Istanbul, rent included.

Sharjah $3,312
Istanbul $3,272

Sharjah costs about 21% more than Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both Sharjah and Istanbul sit above the global median – Sharjah by 37%, Istanbul by 14%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.97 AED 21.92

$11.88 ₺585

-49.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.91 AED 121

$55.1 ₺2,714

-40.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.29 AED 30.45

$9.14 ₺450

-9.30%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.54 AED 35.05

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.35 AED 34.35

Cappuccino

$3.82 AED 14.02

$4.24 ₺209

-9.91%

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

$0.80 AED 2.93

$1.75 ₺86.0

-54.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.29 AED 1.05

$0.54 ₺26.83

-46.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.69 ₺231

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.97 ₺294

Milk (1 liter)

$1.54 AED 5.64

$1.26 ₺62.1

22.22%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 AED 4.38

$0.95 ₺46.81

25.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 AED 6.71

$2.31 ₺114

-20.78%

Eggs

$3.21 AED 11.80

$2.47 ₺122

29.96%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.64 AED 31.73

$10.55 ₺520

-18.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.63 AED 24.36

$5.60 ₺276

18.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.46 AED 42.09

$21.21 ₺1,045

-45.97%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 AED 8.33

$1.93 ₺95.1

17.62%

Banana (1kg)

$1.67 AED 6.12

$2.29 ₺113

-27.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.30 AED 4.78

$1.28 ₺63.1

1.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.28 AED 4.72

$1.84 ₺90.8

-30.43%

Potato (1kg)

$1.03 AED 3.79

$0.67 ₺32.86

53.73%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 AED 4.12

$0.59 ₺29.31

89.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.43 AED 5.26

$1.33 ₺65.4

7.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.61 AED 2.23

$0.59 ₺29.10

3.39%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$15.53 AED 57.0

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.42 AED 8.88

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.59 AED 9.50

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.31 AED 23.19

$2.36 ₺116

167.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.47 ₺664

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.42 ₺119

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.54 ₺174

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.16 AED 7.92

$0.83 ₺40.64

160.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.07 AED 99.4

$66.5 ₺3,273

-59.26%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.65 AED 13.42

$1.35 ₺66.6

170.37%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.52 AED 1.91

$0.85 ₺42.05

-38.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.07 AED 44.33

$10.86 ₺535

11.14%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.94 AED 3.46

$1.47 ₺72.3

-36.05%

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

$45.2K AED 166.0K

$51.6K ₺2.5M

-12.45%

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

$22.0K AED 80.9K

$44.4K ₺2.2M

-50.45%

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

$208 AED 766

$89.2 ₺4,395

133.68%

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

$49.40 AED 181

$11.60 ₺572

325.86%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$96.1 AED 353

$16.10 ₺793

497.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.5 AED 196

$77.3 ₺3,805

-30.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.29 AED 81.9

$22.66 ₺1,116

-1.63%

Cinema Ticket

$13.54 AED 49.72

$8.34 ₺411

62.35%

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

$325 AED 1,194

$974 ₺48.0K

-66.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,433 AED 31.0K

$25.8K ₺1.3M

-67.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.6 AED 212

$52.7 ₺2,597

9.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$78.0 AED 286

$39.16 ₺1,929

99.13%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 AED 401

$103 ₺5,083

5.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.1 AED 353

$96.6 ₺4,759

-0.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$823 AED 3,024

$994 ₺49.0K

-17.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$906 AED 3,329

$629 ₺31.0K

44.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,797 AED 6,598

$2,024 ₺99.7K

-11.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,402 AED 5,148

$1,155 ₺56.9K

21.38%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,241 AED 30.3K

$3,160 ₺155.7K

160.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,748 AED 10.1K

$1,838 ₺90.5K

49.51%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,191 AED 8,045

$1,203 ₺59.3K

82.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.5

41.09

-89.05%

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

Last update for Sharjah: October 5, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sharjah

$906 49%

Istanbul

$629 41.2% 30.6% $277

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sharjah

$354 19.1%

Istanbul

$117 7.7% 67% $237

Groceries & Markets

Sharjah

$192 10.4%

Istanbul

$264 17.3% 37.3% $72

Clothing & Footwear

Sharjah

$153 8.3%

Istanbul

$131 8.6% 14.4% $22

Eating Out

Sharjah

$123 6.6%

Istanbul

$218 14.3% 77.5% $95

Sport & Entertainment

Sharjah

$81 4.4%

Istanbul

$94 6.1% 16.6% $13

Getting Around

Sharjah

$42 2.3%

Istanbul

$75 4.9% 79.7% $33

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $823 in Sharjah versus $994 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 82% higher in Sharjah, 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 $33.00 in Sharjah versus $55.0 in Istanbul. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $192 vs $264 – making Sharjah the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇪 Sharjah

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

09:53 9:53 AM

08:53 8:53 AM

1 h behind Sharjah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,400,000

15,701,602

💱 Currency

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.243 EUR

100 TRY = 2.03 USD

100 TRY = 1.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to AED – UAE Dirham Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇪 UAE Dirham (د.إ)

UAE Dirham exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.67 AED (1 AED = 0.272 USD). 1 EUR = 4.12 AED (1 AED = 0.243 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 49.26 TRY (100 TRY = 2.03 USD). 1 EUR = 55.25 TRY (100 TRY = 1.81 EUR).

USD to AED in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Sharjah Istanbul 3,000 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Sharjah
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

Sharjah vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Sharjah is pricier by about 21%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in utilities.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,761 per month in Sharjah and $2,289 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 $325 per month in Sharjah and $974 in Istanbul. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 37% cheaper in Sharjah – 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 $1,526, than in Sharjah at $1,841. In Istanbul it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sharjah 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, Sharjah makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.