Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Svishtov and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Svishtov: $928 a month against $1,519 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $7,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

44

Cost of Living Index in Svishtov
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Svishtov Living Index
73

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index

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Svishtov

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$928

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $928 per month in Svishtov vs $1,519 in Istanbul, rent included.

Svishtov $928
Istanbul $1,519

A couple spends around $1,445 per month in Svishtov vs $2,365 in Istanbul, rent included.

Svishtov $1,445
Istanbul $2,365

A family of three spends $1,961 per month in Svishtov vs $3,212 in Istanbul, rent included.

Svishtov $1,961
Istanbul $3,212

Svishtov is about 39% cheaper than Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Svishtov sits 31% below the global median, while Istanbul is 12% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.26 BGN 23.07

$11.81 ₺592

12.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.92 BGN 76.4

$54.9 ₺2,754

-20.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.35 BGN 14.53

$9.26 ₺465

-9.83%

Cappuccino

$2.32 BGN 4.04

$4.30 ₺216

-46.05%

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

$1.06 BGN 1.84

$1.77 ₺89.0

-40.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 BGN 0.97

$0.56 ₺28.32

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.74 BGN 3.03

$4.69 ₺235

-62.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.79 BGN 4.85

$7.12 ₺357

-60.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 BGN 2.52

$1.25 ₺62.7

16.00%

White Bread (500g)

$0.88 BGN 1.53

$0.88 ₺44.17

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.67 BGN 2.91

$2.20 ₺111

-24.09%

Eggs

$2.67 BGN 4.65

$2.43 ₺122

9.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.66 BGN 16.81

$10.48 ₺526

-7.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.23 BGN 9.09

$5.31 ₺267

-1.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.81 BGN 15.33

$21.10 ₺1,058

-58.25%

Apples (1kg)

$1.46 BGN 2.54

$1.86 ₺93.1

-21.51%

Banana (1kg)

$1.12 BGN 1.94

$2.30 ₺115

-51.30%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.11 BGN 1.94

$1.22 ₺61.0

-9.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.26 BGN 3.93

$1.80 ₺90.2

25.56%

Potato (1kg)

$0.71 BGN 1.24

$0.69 ₺34.83

2.90%

Onion (1kg)

$0.48 BGN 0.84

$0.64 ₺32.16

-25.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.55 BGN 0.95

$1.36 ₺68.0

-59.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.60 BGN 1.04

$0.58 ₺28.94

3.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.52 BGN 6.12

$2.34 ₺117

50.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.82 BGN 11.87

$13.03 ₺653

-47.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.04 BGN 1.80

$2.36 ₺118

-55.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.11 BGN 1.93

$3.32 ₺166

-66.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 BGN 1.52

$0.88 ₺44.07

-1.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.60 BGN 44.54

$66.1 ₺3,316

-61.28%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.41 BGN 2.45

$1.28 ₺64.4

10.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.66 BGN 1.15

$0.85 ₺42.80

-22.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.89 BGN 20.70

$11.09 ₺556

7.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.43 BGN 2.49

$1.48 ₺74.0

-3.38%

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

$29.6K BGN 51.6K

$48.6K ₺2.4M

-39.08%

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

$23.3K BGN 40.5K

$42.0K ₺2.1M

-44.50%

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

$103 BGN 179

$92.7 ₺4,650

10.97%

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

$14.16 BGN 24.64

$11.20 ₺562

26.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.59 BGN 14.95

$15.89 ₺797

-45.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.36 BGN 54.6

$74.7 ₺3,745

-58.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.61 BGN 28.91

$22.95 ₺1,151

-27.63%

Cinema Ticket

$8.37 BGN 14.56

$8.05 ₺404

3.98%

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

$228 BGN 397

$948 ₺47.6K

-75.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,922 BGN 10.3K

$36.9K ₺1.9M

-83.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.9 BGN 88.6

$53.9 ₺2,702

-5.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.39 BGN 44.18

$41.49 ₺2,081

-38.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.2 BGN 122

$101 ₺5,060

-30.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$69.2 BGN 120

$91.3 ₺4,580

-24.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$333 BGN 580

$1,014 ₺50.8K

-67.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$258 BGN 449

$625 ₺31.3K

-58.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$541 BGN 941

$2,005 ₺100.6K

-73.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$401 BGN 698

$1,126 ₺56.5K

-64.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,308 BGN 2,276

$2,988 ₺149.8K

-56.22%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,079 BGN 1,877

$1,730 ₺86.8K

-37.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,261 BGN 2,195

$1,136 ₺57.0K

10.99%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.25

40.42

-91.96%

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

Last update for Svishtov: November 2, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Svishtov

$258 27.8%

Istanbul

$625 41.1% 142% $367

Groceries & Markets

Svishtov

$186 20%

Istanbul

$258 17% 39.2% $73

Eating Out

Svishtov

$180 19.4%

Istanbul

$221 14.6% 22.9% $41

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Svishtov

$126 13.5%

Istanbul

$120 7.9% 4.6% $5.8

Clothing & Footwear

Svishtov

$97 10.5%

Istanbul

$129 8.5% 33.3% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Svishtov

$48 5.2%

Istanbul

$91 6% 88.7% $43

Getting Around

Svishtov

$34 3.6%

Istanbul

$75 5% 122% $41

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $333 in Svishtov 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 run about 11% higher in Svishtov, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44 in Svishtov versus $55 in Istanbul. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $186 vs $258 – making Svishtov the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Svishtov

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

23:40 11:40 PM

00:40 12:40 AM

1 h ahead of Svishtov

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

33,000

15,701,602

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.514 EUR

100 TRY = 1.99 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to BGN – Bulgarian Lev Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇬 Bulgarian Lev (лв.)

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BGN (1 BGN = 0.575 USD). 1 EUR = 1.94 BGN (1 BGN = 0.514 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 50.15 TRY (100 TRY = 1.99 USD). 1 EUR = 56.05 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

USD to BGN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Svishtov Istanbul 420 km

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Svishtov
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

Svishtov vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Istanbul is pricier by about 64%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,391 per month in Svishtov 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 Svishtov, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $333 there versus $1,014 in Istanbul.

Kindergarten costs $228 per month in Svishtov and $948 in Istanbul. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 39% more in Istanbul, though the gap depends on what you buy.

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

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

For expats, Svishtov is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 39% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.