Cost of living comparison

Turkey

compared to

United States

Des Moines vs. Istanbul Cost of Living Summary

Des Moines is 33.3% more expensive than Istanbul.

Restaurants: pay 66.7% more in Des Moines
Groceries: pay 88.7% more in Des Moines
Transportation: pay 21.8% less in Des Moines
Housing: pay 43.5% more in Des Moines
Childcare: pay 27.5% less in Des Moines
Entertainment and Sports: pay 35.9% more in Des Moines
Clothing: pay 18.3% more in Des Moines

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

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Des Moines vs. Istanbul Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Des Moines instead of Istanbul, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 66.7% more for restaurants

	Istanbul	Des Moines
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$12.19 TRY603.79	$20.00	+64.0%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$9.35 TRY462.91	$12.00	+28.4%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.73 TRY85.71	$3.00	+73.3%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.58 TRY28.65	$2.49	+330.1%
Average			+66.7%

Istanbul vs. Des Moines - Cost of restaurants

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pay 88.7% more for groceries

	Istanbul	Des Moines
Bread 1 loaf	$0.92 TRY45.58	$2.95	+220.3%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.28 TRY261.28	$4.77	-9.6%
Milk (1 gallon)	$4.69 TRY231.97	$3.38	-28.0%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.41 TRY119.39	$3.93	+63.0%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.54 TRY125.71	$4.39	+72.8%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.85 TRY42.16	$2.01	+136.4%
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.03 TRY50.86	$0.70	-32.2%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.57 TRY28.34	$2.01	+251.5%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.84 TRY41.37	$1.70	+103.5%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.31 TRY15.36	$1.43	+360.4%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.29 TRY14.17	$1.00	+247.7%
Average			+88.7%

Istanbul vs. Des Moines - Cost of groceries

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pay 21.8% less for transportation

	Istanbul	Des Moines
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.43 TRY269.03	$3.71	-31.8%
Monthly public transit pass	$67.03 TRY3,318.85	$58.00	-13.5%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$50,810.11 TRY3M	$35,052.00	-31.0%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$8.40 TRY416.09	$11.94	+42.1%
Average			-21.8%

Istanbul vs. Des Moines - Cost of transportation

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pay 43.5% more for housing

	Istanbul	Des Moines
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$16.15 TRY799.42	$71.15	+340.7%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$996.85 TRY49,357.64	$1,161.80	+16.5%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$647.83 TRY32,076.47	$864.75	+33.5%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$68.87 TRY3,410.06	$143.28	+108.0%
Average			+43.5%

Istanbul vs. Des Moines - Cost of housing

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pay 27.5% less for childcare

	Istanbul	Des Moines
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$1,021.62 TRY50,584.39	$1,183.50	+15.8%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$25,999.20 TRY1M	$11,812.00	-54.6%
Average			-27.5%

Istanbul vs. Des Moines - Cost of childcare

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pay 35.9% more for entertainment and sports

	Istanbul	Des Moines
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$4.78 TRY236.49	$5.00	+4.7%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$4.31 TRY213.63	$6.00	+39.1%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.34 TRY115.73	$8.03	+243.6%
Monthly membership at local gym	$76.22 TRY3,773.70	$63.75	-16.4%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$8.13 TRY402.53	$15.00	+84.5%
Average			+35.9%

Istanbul vs. Des Moines - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 18.3% more for clothing

	Istanbul	Des Moines
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$53.35 TRY2,641.33	$60.68	+13.7%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$39.62 TRY1,961.62	$43.33	+9.4%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$99.91 TRY4,947.03	$103.00	+3.1%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$95.52 TRY4,729.71	$145.78	+52.6%
Average			+18.3%

Istanbul vs. Des Moines - 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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Size Comparison · See true size

Istanbul is about 23 times bigger than Des Moines.

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