Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Welwyn Garden City and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,550 a month against $2,222 in Welwyn Garden City, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Welwyn Garden City
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
$2,222
/mo nomad
Istanbul
🇹🇷 Turkey
$1,550
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,222 per month in Welwyn Garden City vs $1,550 in Istanbul, rent included.

  • Welwyn Garden City $2,222
  • Istanbul $1,550

A couple spends around $4,264 per month in Welwyn Garden City vs $2,415 in Istanbul, rent included.

  • Welwyn Garden City $4,264
  • Istanbul $2,415

A family of three spends $6,307 per month in Welwyn Garden City vs $3,281 in Istanbul, rent included.

  • Welwyn Garden City $6,307
  • Istanbul $3,281

Welwyn Garden City costs about 43% more than Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Welwyn Garden City and Istanbul sit above the global median – Welwyn Garden City by 65%, Istanbul by 15%.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Welwyn Garden City
Istanbul
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$20.80 £15.60
$12.30 ₺609
69.11%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$84.9 £63.7
$54.7 ₺2,708
55.25%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.46 £8.60
$9.22 ₺456
24.30%
Cappuccino
$4.82 £3.62
$4.40 ₺218
9.55%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.00 £1.50
$1.68 ₺83.1
19.05%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.68 £1.26
$0.59 ₺29.40
184.75%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$6.50 £4.87
$4.70 ₺233
38.30%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.85 £4.39
$5.91 ₺292
-1.02%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Welwyn Garden City
Istanbul
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.70 £1.27
$1.21 ₺60.0
40.50%
White Bread (500g)
$1.60 £1.20
$0.89 ₺44.10
79.78%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.40 £1.80
$2.19 ₺108
9.59%
Eggs
$4.08 £3.06
$2.35 ₺116
73.62%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.65 £6.49
$10.42 ₺516
-16.99%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.58 £6.44
$5.65 ₺280
51.86%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$16.39 £12.29
$20.94 ₺1,037
-21.73%
Apples (1kg)
$3.03 £2.28
$1.90 ₺94.1
59.47%
Banana (1kg)
$1.47 £1.10
$2.31 ₺114
-36.36%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.50 £1.87
$1.28 ₺63.1
95.31%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.77 £2.08
$1.80 ₺89.0
53.89%
Potato (1kg)
$1.55 £1.17
$0.65 ₺32.16
138.46%
Onion (1kg)
$1.55 £1.16
$0.64 ₺31.91
142.19%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.19 £0.89
$1.25 ₺62.1
-4.80%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.38 £1.04
$0.56 ₺27.58
146.43%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$23.10 £17.33
$2.37 ₺118
874.68%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.73 £8.05
$13.42 ₺664
-20.04%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.69 £2.02
$2.40 ₺119
12.08%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.42 £1.82
$3.48 ₺172
-30.46%
🚌 Getting Around
Welwyn Garden City
Istanbul
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$3.32 £2.49
$0.89 ₺43.84
273.03%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$67.4 ₺3,338
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.83 £3.62
$1.29 ₺64.1
274.42%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.41 £1.06
$0.92 ₺45.70
53.26%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$24.19 £18.15
$10.96 ₺542
120.71%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.98 £1.49
$1.47 ₺72.9
34.69%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$38.1K £28.6K
$50.8K ₺2.5M
-25.01%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$39.8K £29.8K
$44.5K ₺2.2M
-10.73%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Welwyn Garden City
Istanbul
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$288 £216
$88.6 ₺4,387
224.69%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$14.52 £10.89
$11.59 ₺574
25.28%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$34.93 £26.20
$15.81 ₺783
120.94%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Welwyn Garden City
Istanbul
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$53.6 £40.23
$77.2 ₺3,820
-30.50%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$22.74 ₺1,126
-
Cinema Ticket
$23.48 £17.61
$8.14 ₺403
188.45%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Welwyn Garden City
Istanbul
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$1,858 £1,394
$1,008 ₺49.9K
84.33%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$22.6K £16.9K
$25.6K ₺1.3M
-11.78%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Welwyn Garden City
Istanbul
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$113 £85.1
$54.0 ₺2,671
110.36%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$40.26 £30.20
$40.83 ₺2,021
-1.40%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$88.8 £66.6
$98.9 ₺4,895
-10.21%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$93.0 £69.7
$96.6 ₺4,783
-3.78%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Welwyn Garden City
Istanbul
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,451 £1,089
$985 ₺48.7K
47.40%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$997 £748
$650 ₺32.2K
53.48%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$3,798 £2,850
$1,983 ₺98.2K
91.52%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$3,614 £2,711
$1,180 ₺58.4K
206.27%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$7,445 £5,585
$3,138 ₺155.4K
137.25%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$4,290 £3,219
$1,780 ₺88.1K
141.04%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Welwyn Garden City
Istanbul
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$3,831 £2,874
$1,205 ₺59.7K
217.81%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.05
40.92
-87.66%

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

Last update for Welwyn Garden City: October 12, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Welwyn Garden City
$997
Istanbul
$650 34.8% $347
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Welwyn Garden City
$337
Istanbul
$116 65.6% $221
Eating Out
Welwyn Garden City
$318
Istanbul
$223 29.7% $94
Groceries & Markets
Welwyn Garden City
$294
Istanbul
$260 11.6% $34
Clothing & Footwear
Welwyn Garden City
$151
Istanbul
$131 13.5% $20
Sport & Entertainment
Welwyn Garden City
$101
Istanbul
$93 7.1% $7.2
Getting Around
Welwyn Garden City
$25 *
Istanbul
$77 206% $52

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,451 in Welwyn Garden City 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 218% higher in Welwyn Garden City, 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 $85.0 in Welwyn Garden City versus $55.0 in Istanbul. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $294 vs $260 – making Istanbul the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇬🇧 Welwyn Garden City
🇹🇷 Istanbul
🕒 Local time
01:16 1:16 AM
03:16 3:16 AM
2 h ahead of Welwyn Garden City
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
48,380
15,701,602
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

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).

On the map
Between locations
  • Welwyn Garden City Istanbul 2,520 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Welwyn Garden City
  • 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
Welwyn Garden City vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Istanbul cheaper than Welwyn Garden City?
Yes – Welwyn Garden City is pricier by about 43%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,333 per month in Welwyn Garden City and $2,325 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.
Is eating out cheaper in Welwyn Garden City or in Istanbul?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $85.0 in Welwyn Garden City and $55.0 in Istanbul. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
How do food prices compare in Welwyn Garden City and in Istanbul?
Groceries cost about 13% more in Welwyn Garden City, 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 Welwyn Garden City or in Istanbul?
A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Istanbul, where all-in costs run around $1,550, than in Welwyn Garden City at $2,222. In Istanbul it covers expenses comfortably, while in Welwyn Garden City it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is Welwyn Garden City 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, Welwyn Garden City 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, Welwyn Garden City makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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