Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sohag and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Sohag: $388 a month against $1,519 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $13,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

19

Cost of Living Index in Sohag
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Sohag Living Index
73

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index

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Sohag

🇪🇬 Egypt

$388

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $388 per month in Sohag vs $1,519 in Istanbul, rent included.

Sohag $388
Istanbul $1,519

A couple spends around $620 per month in Sohag vs $2,365 in Istanbul, rent included.

Sohag $620
Istanbul $2,365

A family of three spends $851 per month in Sohag vs $3,212 in Istanbul, rent included.

Sohag $851
Istanbul $3,212

Sohag is about 74% cheaper than Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sohag sits 71% below the global median, while Istanbul is 12% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.11 E£167

$11.81 ₺592

-73.67%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$13.51 E£727

$54.9 ₺2,754

-75.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.33 E£233

$9.26 ₺465

-53.24%

Cappuccino

$1.24 E£66.6

$4.30 ₺216

-71.16%

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

$0.31 E£16.80

$1.77 ₺89.0

-82.49%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.12 E£6.28

$0.56 ₺28.32

-78.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.30 E£69.8

$4.69 ₺235

-72.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.66 E£143

$7.12 ₺357

-62.64%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.73 E£39.47

$1.25 ₺62.7

-41.60%

White Bread (500g)

$0.64 E£34.20

$0.88 ₺44.17

-27.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.60 E£32.18

$2.20 ₺111

-72.73%

Eggs

$1.05 E£56.7

$2.43 ₺122

-56.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.33 E£179

$10.48 ₺526

-68.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.75 E£202

$5.31 ₺267

-29.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.39 E£452

$21.10 ₺1,058

-60.24%

Apples (1kg)

$1.22 E£65.9

$1.86 ₺93.1

-34.41%

Banana (1kg)

$0.68 E£36.70

$2.30 ₺115

-70.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.48 E£25.61

$1.22 ₺61.0

-60.66%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.27 E£14.75

$1.80 ₺90.2

-85.00%

Potato (1kg)

$0.31 E£16.63

$0.69 ₺34.83

-55.07%

Onion (1kg)

$0.38 E£20.22

$0.64 ₺32.16

-40.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.26 E£13.91

$1.36 ₺68.0

-80.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.19 E£10.08

$0.58 ₺28.94

-67.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.55 E£83.6

$2.34 ₺117

-33.76%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.58 E£354

$13.03 ₺653

-49.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 E£58.3

$2.36 ₺118

-54.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.79 E£96.4

$3.32 ₺166

-46.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.11 E£6.19

$0.88 ₺44.07

-87.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$66.1 ₺3,316

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.33 E£17.96

$1.28 ₺64.4

-74.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.28 E£15.06

$0.85 ₺42.80

-67.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 E£50.1

$11.09 ₺556

-91.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.40 E£21.52

$1.48 ₺74.0

-72.97%

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

$34.0K E£1.8M

$48.6K ₺2.4M

-30.04%

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

$24.0K E£1.3M

$42.0K ₺2.1M

-42.80%

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

$15.92 E£858

$92.7 ₺4,650

-82.83%

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

$7.06 E£380

$11.20 ₺562

-36.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$14.31 E£770

$15.89 ₺797

-9.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$14.67 E£790

$74.7 ₺3,745

-80.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.95 ₺1,151

Cinema Ticket

$2.36 E£127

$8.05 ₺404

-70.68%

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

$82.7 E£4,452

$948 ₺47.6K

-91.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,617 E£87.1K

$36.9K ₺1.9M

-95.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$15.01 E£808

$53.9 ₺2,702

-72.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.29 E£1,470

$41.49 ₺2,081

-34.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.5 E£5,356

$101 ₺5,060

-1.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$44.85 E£2,415

$91.3 ₺4,580

-50.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$118 E£6,358

$1,014 ₺50.8K

-88.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$64.6 E£3,477

$625 ₺31.3K

-89.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$206 E£11.1K

$2,005 ₺100.6K

-89.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$115 E£6,199

$1,126 ₺56.5K

-89.78%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$725 E£39.0K

$2,988 ₺149.8K

-75.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$338 E£18.2K

$1,730 ₺86.8K

-80.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$163 E£8,751

$1,136 ₺57.0K

-85.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

16.48

40.42

-59.23%

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

Last update for Sohag: November 1, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Sohag

$115 29.6%

Istanbul

$258 17% 125% $143

Clothing & Footwear

Sohag

$84 21.6%

Istanbul

$129 8.5% 54.1% $45

Eating Out

Sohag

$66 17.1%

Istanbul

$221 14.6% 234% $155

Accommodation & Living

Sohag

$65 16.6%

Istanbul

$625 41.1% 867% $560

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sohag

$37 9.6%

Istanbul

$120 7.9% 221% $83

Sport & Entertainment

Sohag

$19 5%

Istanbul

$91 6% 368% $71

Getting Around

Sohag

$2.2 * 0.6%

Istanbul

$75 5% 3333% $73

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $118 in Sohag versus $1,014 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 in Istanbul are about 7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $14 in Sohag versus $55 in Istanbul. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $115 vs $258 – making Sohag the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇬 Sohag

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

09:02 9:02 AM

10:02 10:02 AM

1 h ahead of Sohag

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

189,695

15,701,602

💱 Currency

Egyptian Pound EGP £

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

100 EGP = 1.86 USD

100 EGP = 1.65 EUR

100 TRY = 1.99 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to EGP – Egyptian Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇬 Egyptian Pound (£)

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 53.85 EGP (100 EGP = 1.86 USD). 1 EUR = 60.45 EGP (100 EGP = 1.65 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 EGP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Sohag Istanbul 1,630 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Sohag
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

Sohag vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Istanbul is pricier by about 291%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $583 per month in Sohag and $2,278 in Istanbul. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Sohag, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $118 there versus $1,014 in Istanbul.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $14 in Sohag and $55 in Istanbul. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 125% more in Istanbul, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Sohag, where all-in costs run around $388, than in Istanbul at $1,519. In Sohag it covers expenses comfortably, while in Istanbul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

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