Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Targoviste and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Targoviste: $951 a month against $1,519 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $6,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

46

Cost of Living Index in Targoviste
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Targoviste Living Index
73

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index

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Targoviste

🇷🇴 Romania

$951

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,519

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $951 per month in Targoviste vs $1,519 in Istanbul, rent included.

Targoviste $951
Istanbul $1,519

A couple spends around $1,376 per month in Targoviste vs $2,365 in Istanbul, rent included.

Targoviste $1,376
Istanbul $2,365

A family of three spends $1,800 per month in Targoviste vs $3,212 in Istanbul, rent included.

Targoviste $1,800
Istanbul $3,212

Targoviste is about 37% cheaper than Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Targoviste sits 30% below the global median, while Istanbul is 12% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.50 RON 35.85

$11.81 ₺592

-36.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.75 RON 118

$54.9 ₺2,754

-54.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.44 RON 30.78

$9.26 ₺465

-30.45%

Cappuccino

$2.12 RON 10.13

$4.30 ₺216

-50.70%

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

$1.42 RON 6.77

$1.77 ₺89.0

-19.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.29 RON 6.17

$0.56 ₺28.32

130.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.15 RON 10.29

$4.69 ₺235

-54.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 RON 13.28

$7.12 ₺357

-60.96%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.26 RON 6.04

$1.25 ₺62.7

0.80%

White Bread (500g)

$0.81 RON 3.88

$0.88 ₺44.17

-7.95%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.36 RON 6.50

$2.20 ₺111

-38.18%

Eggs

$2.55 RON 12.20

$2.43 ₺122

4.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.11 RON 14.85

$10.48 ₺526

-70.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.47 RON 30.94

$5.31 ₺267

21.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.53 RON 55.1

$21.10 ₺1,058

-45.36%

Apples (1kg)

$1.01 RON 4.85

$1.86 ₺93.1

-45.70%

Banana (1kg)

$1.48 RON 7.08

$2.30 ₺115

-35.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.45 RON 6.94

$1.22 ₺61.0

18.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.83 RON 8.73

$1.80 ₺90.2

1.67%

Potato (1kg)

$0.79 RON 3.77

$0.69 ₺34.83

14.49%

Onion (1kg)

$0.89 RON 4.27

$0.64 ₺32.16

39.06%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.67 RON 3.22

$1.36 ₺68.0

-50.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 RON 3.66

$0.58 ₺28.94

32.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.88 RON 28.12

$2.34 ₺117

151.28%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.30 RON 25.34

$13.03 ₺653

-59.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 RON 5.65

$2.36 ₺118

-50.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.50 RON 7.19

$3.32 ₺166

-54.82%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.41 RON 1.95

$0.88 ₺44.07

-53.41%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.22 RON 106

$66.1 ₺3,316

-66.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.61 RON 2.90

$1.28 ₺64.4

-52.34%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.65 RON 3.11

$0.85 ₺42.80

-23.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.67 RON 31.86

$11.09 ₺556

-39.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 RON 7.40

$1.48 ₺74.0

4.73%

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

$28.6K RON 136.5K

$48.6K ₺2.4M

-41.29%

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

$26.0K RON 124.3K

$42.0K ₺2.1M

-38.07%

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

$211 RON 1,007

$92.7 ₺4,650

127.26%

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

$7.43 RON 35.51

$11.20 ₺562

-33.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.61 RON 41.17

$15.89 ₺797

-45.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$21.22 RON 101

$74.7 ₺3,745

-71.59%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.93 RON 95.3

$22.95 ₺1,151

-13.16%

Cinema Ticket

$3.07 RON 14.68

$8.05 ₺404

-61.86%

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

$310 RON 1,484

$948 ₺47.6K

-67.27%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,245 RON 39.4K

$36.9K ₺1.9M

-77.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.6 RON 299

$53.9 ₺2,702

16.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.22 RON 149

$41.49 ₺2,081

-24.75%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$52.5 RON 251

$101 ₺5,060

-47.97%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.9 RON 349

$91.3 ₺4,580

-20.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$359 RON 1,717

$1,014 ₺50.8K

-64.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$262 RON 1,250

$625 ₺31.3K

-58.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$454 RON 2,170

$2,005 ₺100.6K

-77.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$412 RON 1,971

$1,126 ₺56.5K

-63.37%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,943 RON 9,287

$2,988 ₺149.8K

-34.97%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,362 RON 6,512

$1,730 ₺86.8K

-21.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$869 RON 4,151

$1,136 ₺57.0K

-23.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.84

40.42

-83.08%

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

Last update for Targoviste: October 31, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Targoviste

$262 27.5%

Istanbul

$625 41.1% 139% $363

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Targoviste

$227 23.8%

Istanbul

$120 7.9% 47.2% $107

Groceries & Markets

Targoviste

$177 18.6%

Istanbul

$258 17% 45.8% $81

Eating Out

Targoviste

$132 13.9%

Istanbul

$221 14.6% 67.5% $89

Clothing & Footwear

Targoviste

$99 10.4%

Istanbul

$129 8.5% 31.2% $31

Getting Around

Targoviste

$28 2.9%

Istanbul

$75 5% 171% $47

Sport & Entertainment

Targoviste

$27 2.9%

Istanbul

$91 6% 232% $63

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $359 in Targoviste 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 31% higher in Istanbul, 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 $25 in Targoviste versus $55 in Istanbul. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $177 vs $258 – making Targoviste the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Targoviste

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

15:26 3:26 PM

16:26 4:26 PM

1 h ahead of Targoviste

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,610

15,701,602

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.209 USD

1 RON = 0.186 EUR

100 TRY = 1.99 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 4.78 RON (1 RON = 0.209 USD). 1 EUR = 5.37 RON (1 RON = 0.186 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 50.15 TRY (100 TRY = 1.99 USD). 1 EUR = 56.33 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Targoviste Istanbul 520 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Targoviste
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

Targoviste vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Istanbul is pricier by about 60%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,427 per month in Targoviste 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 Targoviste, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $359 there versus $1,014 in Istanbul.

Kindergarten costs $310 per month in Targoviste 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 46% more in Istanbul, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Targoviste, where all-in costs run around $951, than in Istanbul at $1,519. In Targoviste it covers expenses comfortably, while in Istanbul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Targoviste – 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.

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