Cost of living comparison

Turkey

compared to

Switzerland

Biel vs. Istanbul Cost of Living Summary

Biel is 76.0% more expensive than Istanbul.

Restaurants: pay 2.6 times more in Biel
Groceries: pay 2.2 times more in Biel
Transportation: pay 42.3% more in Biel
Housing: pay 52.9% more in Biel
Childcare: pay 90.8% more in Biel
Entertainment and Sports: pay 75.2% more in Biel
Clothing: pay 58.8% more in Biel

The cost of restaurants, groceries, childcare, entertainment and sports, clothing, and housing in Biel are more expensive than in Istanbul. Notably, restaurants, groceries, and childcare are significantly more expensive in Biel.

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Biel vs. Istanbul Cost Breakdown

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

Display currency: USD

pay 2.6 times more for restaurants

	Istanbul	Biel
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$12.19 TRY606.11	$30.00 CHF24.75	+146.0%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$9.35 TRY464.68	$18.00 CHF14.85	+92.5%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.73 TRY86.04	$5.04 CHF4.16	+191.1%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.58 TRY28.76	$4.20 CHF3.47	+625.8%
Average			+155.9%

Istanbul vs. Biel - Cost of restaurants

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pay 2.2 times more for groceries

	Istanbul	Biel
Bread 1 loaf	$0.92 TRY45.76	$3.89 CHF3.21	+322.4%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.28 TRY262.29	$11.10 CHF9.16	+110.3%
Milk (1 gallon)	$4.69 TRY232.86	$7.99 CHF6.59	+70.5%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.41 TRY119.84	$7.12 CHF5.88	+195.4%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.54 TRY126.19	$12.52 CHF10.33	+393.3%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.85 TRY42.32	$1.41 CHF1.17	+66.1%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.03 TRY51.06	$0.94 CHF0.78	-8.3%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.57 TRY28.45	$1.13 CHF0.93	+97.6%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.84 TRY41.53	$1.42 CHF1.17	+69.4%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.31 TRY15.42	$0.65 CHF0.54	+110.5%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.29 TRY14.22	$0.82 CHF0.67	+185.3%
Average			+122.9%

Istanbul vs. Biel - Cost of groceries

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pay 42.3% more for transportation

	Istanbul	Biel
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.43 TRY270.07	$8.48 CHF7.00	+56.1%
Monthly public transit pass	$67.03 TRY3,331.58	$93.60 CHF77.23	+39.6%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$50,810.11 TRY3M	$42,598.89 CHF35,147.41	-16.2%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$8.40 TRY417.69	$44.28 CHF36.53	+426.9%
Average			+42.3%

Istanbul vs. Biel - Cost of transportation

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pay 52.9% more for housing

	Istanbul	Biel
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$16.15 TRY802.49	$51.20 CHF42.24	+217.1%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$996.85 TRY49,547.03	$1,239.97 CHF1,023.07	+24.4%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$647.83 TRY32,199.56	$1,115.97 CHF920.76	+72.3%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$68.87 TRY3,423.14	$104.00 CHF85.81	+51.0%
Average			+52.9%

Istanbul vs. Biel - Cost of housing

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pay 90.8% more for childcare

	Istanbul	Biel
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$1,021.62 TRY50,778.49	$2,639.93 CHF2,178.15	+158.4%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$25,999.20 TRY1M	$36,611.05 CHF30,206.97	+40.8%
Average			+90.8%

Istanbul vs. Biel - Cost of childcare

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pay 75.2% more for entertainment and sports

	Istanbul	Biel
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$4.78 TRY237.39	$7.80 CHF6.44	+63.3%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$4.31 TRY214.45	$6.00 CHF4.95	+39.1%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.34 TRY116.17	$10.80 CHF8.91	+362.1%
Monthly membership at local gym	$76.22 TRY3,788.18	$76.00 CHF62.70	-0.3%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$8.13 TRY404.07	$21.60 CHF17.82	+165.7%
Average			+75.2%

Istanbul vs. Biel - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 58.8% more for clothing

	Istanbul	Biel
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$53.35 TRY2,651.47	$107.40 CHF88.61	+101.3%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$39.62 TRY1,969.15	$40.00 CHF33.00	+1.0%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$99.91 TRY4,966.02	$138.68 CHF114.42	+38.8%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$95.52 TRY4,747.86	$215.18 CHF177.54	+125.3%
Average			+58.8%

Istanbul vs. Biel - Cost of clothing

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

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