Cost of living comparison

Kazakhstan

compared to

Turkey

Istanbul vs. Almaty Cost of Living Summary

Istanbul is 17.7% more expensive than Almaty.

Restaurants: pay 4.7% less in Istanbul
Groceries: pay 18.0% less in Istanbul
Transportation: pay 2.2 times more in Istanbul
Housing: pay 18.8% more in Istanbul
Childcare: pay 2.2 times more in Istanbul
Entertainment and Sports: pay 20.5% more in Istanbul
Clothing: pay 31.0% less in Istanbul

The cost of transportation, childcare, entertainment and sports, and housing in Istanbul are more expensive than in Almaty. Expenses including clothing, groceries, and restaurants are lower in Istanbul. Notably, transportation and childcare are significantly more expensive in Istanbul.

Planning a move to Turkey? Get up to 5 free, no-obligation quotes from vetted international movers. Get free quotes →

Istanbul vs. Almaty Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Istanbul instead of Almaty, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 4.7% less for restaurants

	Almaty	Istanbul
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$13.42 KZT6,078.37	$12.19 TRY608.91	-9.1%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$8.95 KZT4,052.25	$9.35 TRY466.83	+4.5%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.36 KZT614.98	$1.73 TRY86.44	+27.5%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.91 KZT410.59	$0.58 TRY28.89	-36.2%
Average			-4.7%

Almaty vs. Istanbul - Cost of restaurants

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 18.0% less for groceries

	Almaty	Istanbul
Bread 1 loaf	$0.94 KZT424.89	$0.92 TRY45.97	-1.9%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$6.46 KZT2,923.33	$5.28 TRY263.50	-18.3%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.48 KZT2,936.59	$4.69 TRY233.94	-27.8%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.45 KZT1,109.14	$2.41 TRY120.40	-1.6%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$3.09 KZT1,400.54	$2.54 TRY126.78	-17.9%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.86 KZT387.44	$0.85 TRY42.52	-0.5%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.06 KZT481.32	$1.03 TRY51.29	-3.4%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.37 KZT621.11	$0.57 TRY28.58	-58.3%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.34 KZT604.89	$0.84 TRY41.72	-37.4%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.35 KZT160.48	$0.31 TRY15.49	-12.4%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.26 KZT119.16	$0.29 TRY14.29	+8.7%
Average			-18.0%

Almaty vs. Istanbul - Cost of groceries

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 2.2 times more for transportation

	Almaty	Istanbul
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$2.64 KZT1,197.33	$5.43 TRY271.32	+105.5%
Monthly public transit pass	$22.15 KZT10,029.31	$67.03 TRY3,347.00	+202.7%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$22,370.46 KZT10M	$50,810.11 TRY3M	+127.1%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$6.71 KZT3,039.19	$8.40 TRY419.62	+25.2%
Average			+122.0%

Almaty vs. Istanbul - Cost of transportation

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 18.8% more for housing

	Almaty	Istanbul
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$18.11 KZT8,201.75	$16.15 TRY806.20	-10.9%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$802.28 KZT363K	$996.85 TRY49,776.31	+24.3%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$513.47 KZT233K	$647.83 TRY32,348.56	+26.2%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$69.56 KZT31,502.48	$68.87 TRY3,438.98	-1.0%
Average			+18.8%

Almaty vs. Istanbul - Cost of housing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 2.2 times more for childcare

	Almaty	Istanbul
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$456.34 KZT207K	$1,021.62 TRY51,013.47	+123.9%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$12,216.13 KZT6M	$25,999.20 TRY1M	+112.8%
Average			+118.3%

Almaty vs. Istanbul - Cost of childcare

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 20.5% more for entertainment and sports

	Almaty	Istanbul
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.24 KZT1,468.94	$4.78 TRY238.49	+47.2%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.30 KZT1,496.57	$4.31 TRY215.45	+30.6%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.63 KZT1,190.35	$2.34 TRY116.71	-11.1%
Monthly membership at local gym	$70.49 KZT31,922.00	$76.22 TRY3,805.71	+8.1%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$6.71 KZT3,039.19	$8.13 TRY405.94	+21.1%
Average			+20.5%

Almaty vs. Istanbul - Cost of entertainment and sports

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

pay 31.0% less for clothing

	Almaty	Istanbul
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$96.07 KZT43,505.37	$53.35 TRY2,663.74	-44.5%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$47.45 KZT21,486.00	$39.62 TRY1,978.26	-16.5%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$145.68 KZT65,972.03	$99.91 TRY4,989.00	-31.4%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$134.22 KZT60,783.71	$95.52 TRY4,769.83	-28.8%
Average			-31.0%

Almaty vs. Istanbul - Cost of clothing

Improve prices · Change currency (USD)

We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated November 2026). How we calculate this

Compare further: Almaty vs. Istanbul

Salary Calculator · Free tool

What salary would you need in Istanbul?

More cost comparisons

Almaty vs.

Cairo

Almaty vs.

Bangkok

Almaty vs.

London

Almaty vs.

Rome

Almaty vs.

Toronto

Almaty vs.

Madrid

Almaty vs.

Warsaw

Almaty vs.

Lima

Share this

Compare countries by overall cost of living

See the cost of living in Kazakhstan vs. Turkey. This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Kazakhstan and Turkey.

Help us improve these prices

MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate. Learn more

Add prices for Almaty

Add prices for Istanbul

Ask the Elsewhere Community

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Istanbul or Almaty. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.