Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tarhuna and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Tarhuna: $367 a month against $1,550 in Istanbul, rent and utilities included – about $14,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

19

Cost of Living Index in Tarhuna
Learn more

Tarhuna Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index

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Tarhuna

🇱🇾 Libya

$367

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,550

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $367 per month in Tarhuna vs $1,550 in Istanbul, rent included.

Tarhuna $367
Istanbul $1,550

A couple spends around $569 per month in Tarhuna vs $2,415 in Istanbul, rent included.

Tarhuna $569
Istanbul $2,415

A family of three spends $771 per month in Tarhuna vs $3,281 in Istanbul, rent included.

Tarhuna $771
Istanbul $3,281

Tarhuna is about 76% cheaper than Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Tarhuna sits 73% below the global median, while Istanbul is 15% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.98 LYD 25.51

$12.30 ₺609

-67.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$15.36 LYD 98.5

$54.7 ₺2,708

-71.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.66 LYD 17.06

$9.22 ₺456

-71.15%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.65 LYD 4.16

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.72 LYD 4.63

Cappuccino

$0.47 LYD 3.01

$4.40 ₺218

-89.32%

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

$0.46 LYD 2.95

$1.68 ₺83.1

-72.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.12 LYD 0.78

$0.59 ₺29.40

-79.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.70 ₺233

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.91 ₺292

Milk (1 liter)

$0.93 LYD 5.93

$1.21 ₺60.0

-23.14%

White Bread (500g)

$0.20 LYD 1.28

$0.89 ₺44.10

-77.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.21 LYD 7.77

$2.19 ₺108

-44.75%

Eggs

$1.42 LYD 9.08

$2.35 ₺116

-39.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.26 LYD 33.70

$10.42 ₺516

-49.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.43 LYD 22.00

$5.65 ₺280

-39.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.37 LYD 60.1

$20.94 ₺1,037

-55.25%

Apples (1kg)

$2.32 LYD 14.90

$1.90 ₺94.1

22.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.47 LYD 9.43

$2.31 ₺114

-36.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.67 LYD 4.32

$1.28 ₺63.1

-47.66%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.56 LYD 3.62

$1.80 ₺89.0

-68.89%

Potato (1kg)

$0.71 LYD 4.52

$0.65 ₺32.16

9.23%

Onion (1kg)

$0.47 LYD 3.00

$0.64 ₺31.91

-26.56%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.39 LYD 2.52

$1.25 ₺62.1

-68.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.19 LYD 1.23

$0.56 ₺27.58

-66.07%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.82 LYD 11.65

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 LYD 6.00

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.82 LYD 5.26

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.93 LYD 12.36

$2.37 ₺118

-18.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.42 ₺664

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.40 ₺119

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 ₺172

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.89 ₺43.84

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$67.4 ₺3,338

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.80 LYD 5.12

$1.29 ₺64.1

-37.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.45 LYD 2.86

$0.92 ₺45.70

-51.09%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.96 ₺542

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.02 LYD 0.15

$1.47 ₺72.9

-98.64%

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

$23.4K LYD 150.2K

$50.8K ₺2.5M

-53.84%

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

$21.3K LYD 136.3K

$44.5K ₺2.2M

-52.23%

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

$91.9 LYD 589

$88.6 ₺4,387

3.72%

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

$5.91 LYD 37.88

$11.59 ₺574

-49.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.67 LYD 171

$15.81 ₺783

68.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$77.2 ₺3,820

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.74 ₺1,126

Cinema Ticket

$8.14 ₺403

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

$52.4 LYD 336

$1,008 ₺49.9K

-94.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,536 LYD 9,845

$25.6K ₺1.3M

-93.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$22.69 LYD 145

$54.0 ₺2,671

-57.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$17.62 LYD 113

$40.83 ₺2,021

-56.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$63.4 LYD 406

$98.9 ₺4,895

-35.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$66.0 LYD 423

$96.6 ₺4,783

-31.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$985 ₺48.7K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$650 ₺32.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,983 ₺98.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,180 ₺58.4K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,138 ₺155.4K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,780 ₺88.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,205 ₺59.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

40.92

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

Last update for Tarhuna: October 12, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tarhuna

$125 33.9%

Istanbul

$116 7.5% 6.8% $8.5

Groceries & Markets

Tarhuna

$116 31.5%

Istanbul

$260 16.8% 124% $144

Clothing & Footwear

Tarhuna

$76 20.8%

Istanbul

$131 8.4% 71.1% $54

Eating Out

Tarhuna

$48 13%

Istanbul

$223 14.4% 367% $175

Getting Around

Tarhuna

$3 * 0.8%

Istanbul

$77 5% 2437% $74

Sport & Entertainment

Tarhuna

- * 0%

Istanbul

$93 6%

Accommodation & Living

Tarhuna

- * 0%

Istanbul

$650 41.9%

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $15.00 in Tarhuna versus $55.0 in Istanbul. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $116 vs $260 – making Tarhuna the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇱🇾 Tarhuna

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

20:42 8:42 PM

21:42 9:42 PM

1 h ahead of Tarhuna

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

120,000

15,701,602

💱 Currency

Libyan Dinar LYD ل.د

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 LYD = 0.156 USD

1 LYD = 0.139 EUR

100 TRY = 2.02 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to LYD – Libyan Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇱🇾 Libyan Dinar (ل.د)

Libyan Dinar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 6.41 LYD (1 LYD = 0.156 USD). 1 EUR = 7.2 LYD (1 LYD = 0.139 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 LYD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Tarhuna Istanbul 1,660 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Tarhuna
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

Tarhuna vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Istanbul is pricier by about 322%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $551 per month in Tarhuna and $2,325 in Istanbul. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $15.00 in Tarhuna 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 124% more in Istanbul, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Tarhuna, where all-in costs run around $367, than in Istanbul at $1,550. In Tarhuna it covers expenses comfortably, while in Istanbul it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Tarhuna – 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 Tarhuna. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Istanbul makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.