Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Taby and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,525 a month against $2,122 in Taby, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Taby
🇸🇪 Sweden
$2,122
/mo nomad
Istanbul
🇹🇷 Turkey
$1,525
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,122 per month in Taby vs $1,525 in Istanbul, rent included.

  • Taby $2,122
  • Istanbul $1,525

A couple spends around $3,043 per month in Taby vs $2,390 in Istanbul, rent included.

  • Taby $3,043
  • Istanbul $2,390

A family of three spends $3,964 per month in Taby vs $3,256 in Istanbul, rent included.

  • Taby $3,964
  • Istanbul $3,256

Taby costs about 39% more than Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Taby and Istanbul sit above the global median – Taby by 57%, Istanbul by 13%.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Taby
Istanbul
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$13.66 SEK 135
$11.96 ₺592
14.21%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$65.8 SEK 652
$57.2 ₺2,834
15.04%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.09 SEK 100.0
$9.51 ₺471
6.10%
Cappuccino
$4.28 SEK 42.41
$4.40 ₺218
-2.73%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.58 SEK 35.48
$1.75 ₺86.6
104.57%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.34 SEK 23.19
$0.56 ₺27.57
317.86%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$6.95 SEK 68.9
$4.71 ₺233
47.56%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$8.79 SEK 87.1
$6.14 ₺304
43.16%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Taby
Istanbul
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.70 SEK 16.83
$1.24 ₺61.6
37.10%
White Bread (500g)
$3.02 SEK 29.90
$0.95 ₺47.25
217.89%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$3.91 SEK 38.75
$2.28 ₺113
71.49%
Eggs
$5.20 SEK 51.5
$2.45 ₺121
112.24%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$12.81 SEK 127
$10.56 ₺523
21.31%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$12.82 SEK 127
$5.50 ₺272
133.09%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$17.59 SEK 174
$21.65 ₺1,072
-18.75%
Apples (1kg)
$3.13 SEK 31.05
$1.83 ₺90.6
71.04%
Banana (1kg)
$2.62 SEK 25.97
$2.29 ₺113
14.41%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.97 SEK 19.52
$1.28 ₺63.4
53.91%
Tomato (1kg)
$4.50 SEK 44.60
$1.82 ₺90.1
147.25%
Potato (1kg)
$1.70 SEK 16.88
$0.66 ₺32.74
157.58%
Onion (1kg)
$1.80 SEK 17.80
$0.63 ₺31.14
185.71%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.33 SEK 23.13
$1.27 ₺62.8
83.46%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.90 SEK 18.87
$0.56 ₺27.62
239.29%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$7.00 SEK 69.4
$2.36 ₺117
196.61%
Wine (Bottle)
$12.21 SEK 121
$12.98 ₺642
-5.93%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.90 SEK 18.84
$2.48 ₺123
-23.39%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.21 SEK 21.90
$3.50 ₺174
-36.86%
🚌 Getting Around
Taby
Istanbul
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$4.17 SEK 41.32
$0.82 ₺40.77
408.54%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$101 SEK 1,002
$65.2 ₺3,228
55.11%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$5.87 SEK 58.1
$1.33 ₺65.7
341.35%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.55 SEK 15.38
$0.90 ₺44.60
72.22%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$57.4 SEK 569
$10.91 ₺540
426.12%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.84 SEK 18.22
$1.43 ₺70.7
28.67%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$33.3K SEK 330.3K
$49.6K ₺2.5M
-32.74%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$32.7K SEK 324.2K
$43.2K ₺2.1M
-24.24%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Taby
Istanbul
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$177 SEK 1,758
$88.8 ₺4,395
99.92%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$27.61 SEK 274
$11.69 ₺579
136.18%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$40.66 SEK 403
$16.09 ₺797
152.70%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Taby
Istanbul
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
-
$76.3 ₺3,776
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$22.72 ₺1,125
-
Cinema Ticket
$17.11 SEK 170
$8.26 ₺409
107.14%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Taby
Istanbul
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$156 SEK 1,543
$1,015 ₺50.2K
-84.65%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$16.3K SEK 161.4K
$25.8K ₺1.3M
-36.95%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Taby
Istanbul
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$98.0 SEK 971
$53.3 ₺2,636
84.04%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$53.0 SEK 526
$40.55 ₺2,008
30.80%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$94.4 SEK 935
$100 ₺4,956
-5.69%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$183 SEK 1,813
$93.5 ₺4,630
95.59%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Taby
Istanbul
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,023 SEK 10.1K
$977 ₺48.4K
4.73%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$870 SEK 8,625
$627 ₺31.0K
38.83%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,411 SEK 14.0K
$1,980 ₺98.0K
-28.73%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,189 SEK 11.8K
$1,147 ₺56.8K
3.70%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$5,994 SEK 59.4K
$3,095 ₺153.2K
93.63%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,951 SEK 68.9K
$1,787 ₺88.5K
288.97%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Taby
Istanbul
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$3,306 SEK 32.8K
$1,213 ₺60.1K
172.51%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
2.8
40.69
-93.12%

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

Last update for Taby: October 19, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Taby
$870
Istanbul
$627 28% $243
Groceries & Markets
Taby
$380
Istanbul
$263 30.9% $117
Eating Out
Taby
$267
Istanbul
$222 16.8% $45
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Taby
$246
Istanbul
$117 52.6% $129
Clothing & Footwear
Taby
$193
Istanbul
$129 32.9% $63
Getting Around
Taby
$131
Istanbul
$74 43.4% $57
Sport & Entertainment
Taby
$34 *
Istanbul
$93 171% $59

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,023 in Taby versus $977 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 173% higher in Taby, 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 $66.0 in Taby versus $57.0 in Istanbul. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $380 vs $263 – making Istanbul the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇸🇪 Taby
🇹🇷 Istanbul
🕒 Local time
22:28 10:28 PM
23:28 11:28 PM
1 h ahead of Taby
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
58,123
15,701,602
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to SEK – Swedish Krona Converter

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 9.91 SEK (1 SEK = 0.101 USD). 1 EUR = 11.14 SEK (100 SEK = 8.98 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 49.51 TRY (100 TRY = 2.02 USD). 1 EUR = 55.66 TRY (100 TRY = 1.8 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Taby Istanbul 2,190 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Taby
  • 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
Taby vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Istanbul cheaper than Taby?
Yes – Taby is pricier by about 39%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,182 per month in Taby and $2,287 in Istanbul. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
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.
Which city has cheaper kindergarten?
Kindergarten costs $156 per month in Taby and $1,015 in Istanbul. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.
How do food prices compare in Taby and in Istanbul?
Groceries cost about 45% more in Taby, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Taby or in Istanbul?
A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Istanbul, where all-in costs run around $1,525, than in Taby at $2,122. In Istanbul it covers expenses comfortably, while in Taby it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is Taby or Istanbul more family-friendly?
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.
Which city is safer, Taby or Istanbul?
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.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with Istanbul. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Taby makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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