Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Surrey and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,550 a month against $3,046 in Surrey, rent and utilities included – about $18,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

148

Cost of Living Index in Surrey
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Surrey Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index

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Surrey

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,046

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,550

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,046 per month in Surrey vs $1,550 in Istanbul, rent included.

Surrey $3,046
Istanbul $1,550

A couple spends around $4,410 per month in Surrey vs $2,415 in Istanbul, rent included.

Surrey $4,410
Istanbul $2,415

A family of three spends $5,774 per month in Surrey vs $3,281 in Istanbul, rent included.

Surrey $5,774
Istanbul $3,281

Surrey costs about 97% more than Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Surrey and Istanbul sit above the global median – Surrey by 126%, Istanbul by 15%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$23.47 £17.61

$12.30 ₺609

90.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$59.1 £44.34

$54.7 ₺2,708

8.04%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.11 £6.83

$9.22 ₺456

-1.19%

Cappuccino

$4.77 £3.58

$4.40 ₺218

8.41%

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

$2.23 £1.67

$1.68 ₺83.1

32.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.44 £1.08

$0.59 ₺29.40

144.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.78 £5.09

$4.70 ₺233

44.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.00 £4.50

$5.91 ₺292

1.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 £0.94

$1.21 ₺60.0

3.31%

White Bread (500g)

$2.12 £1.59

$0.89 ₺44.10

138.20%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 £1.13

$2.19 ₺108

-31.05%

Eggs

$4.18 £3.14

$2.35 ₺116

77.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.19 £6.14

$10.42 ₺516

-21.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.90 £6.68

$5.65 ₺280

57.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.11 £12.09

$20.94 ₺1,037

-23.07%

Apples (1kg)

$3.13 £2.34

$1.90 ₺94.1

64.74%

Banana (1kg)

$1.47 £1.10

$2.31 ₺114

-36.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.96 £1.47

$1.28 ₺63.1

53.12%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.32 £2.49

$1.80 ₺89.0

84.44%

Potato (1kg)

$1.38 £1.04

$0.65 ₺32.16

112.31%

Onion (1kg)

$1.83 £1.37

$0.64 ₺31.91

185.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.37 £1.03

$1.25 ₺62.1

9.60%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 £0.90

$0.56 ₺27.58

114.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.12 £17.34

$2.37 ₺118

875.53%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.78 £8.09

$13.42 ₺664

-19.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.30 £1.73

$2.40 ₺119

-4.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.46 £1.84

$3.48 ₺172

-29.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.99 £2.99

$0.89 ₺43.84

348.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$67.4 ₺3,338

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.35 £4.02

$1.29 ₺64.1

314.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 ₺45.70

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.96 ₺542

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.88 £1.41

$1.47 ₺72.9

27.89%

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

$38.6K £29.0K

$50.8K ₺2.5M

-23.97%

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

$39.9K £29.9K

$44.5K ₺2.2M

-10.37%

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

$260 £195

$88.6 ₺4,387

193.09%

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

$13.15 £9.87

$11.59 ₺574

13.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.58 £25.94

$15.81 ₺783

118.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.6 £40.20

$77.2 ₺3,820

-30.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.26 £13.70

$22.74 ₺1,126

-19.70%

Cinema Ticket

$13.17 £9.88

$8.14 ₺403

61.79%

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

$2,125 £1,594

$1,008 ₺49.9K

110.84%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$29.3K £22.0K

$25.6K ₺1.3M

14.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.5 £39.41

$54.0 ₺2,671

-2.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.35 £29.52

$40.83 ₺2,021

-3.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$88.8 £66.6

$98.9 ₺4,895

-10.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.6 £69.5

$96.6 ₺4,783

-4.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,925 £1,444

$985 ₺48.7K

95.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,893 £1,420

$650 ₺32.2K

191.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,350 £2,513

$1,983 ₺98.2K

68.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,303 £2,478

$1,180 ₺58.4K

179.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,138 ₺155.4K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,198 £5,400

$1,780 ₺88.1K

304.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,519 £3,390

$1,205 ₺59.7K

274.87%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.4

40.92

-86.80%

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

Last update for Surrey: October 13, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Surrey

$1.9K 62.2%

Istanbul

$650 41.9% 65.7% $1.2K

Eating Out

Surrey

$333 10.9%

Istanbul

$223 14.4% 32.9% $110

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Surrey

$307 10.1%

Istanbul

$116 7.5% 62.3% $191

Groceries & Markets

Surrey

$289 9.5%

Istanbul

$260 16.8% 10% $29

Clothing & Footwear

Surrey

$123 4%

Istanbul

$131 8.4% 6.2% $7.6

Sport & Entertainment

Surrey

$80 2.6%

Istanbul

$93 6% 16.9% $14

Getting Around

Surrey

$21 * 0.7%

Istanbul

$77 5% 261% $56

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,925 in Surrey 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 275% higher in Surrey, 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 $59.0 in Surrey versus $55.0 in Istanbul. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $289 vs $260 – making Istanbul the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Surrey

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

10:59 10:59 AM

12:59 12:59 PM

2 h ahead of Surrey

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

585

15,701,602

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 49.51 TRY (100 TRY = 2.02 USD). 1 EUR = 55.66 TRY (100 TRY = 1.8 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Surrey Istanbul 2,510 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Surrey
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

Surrey vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Surrey is pricier by about 97%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,569 per month in Surrey 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 $59.0 in Surrey and $55.0 in Istanbul. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 11% more in Surrey, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Istanbul, where all-in costs run around $1,550, than in Surrey at $3,046. In Istanbul it covers expenses comfortably, while in Surrey 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, Surrey makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.