Cost of living comparison

Turkey

compared to

United States

Grand Forks vs. Istanbul Cost of Living Summary

Grand Forks is 28.5% more expensive than Istanbul.

Restaurants: pay 78.6% more in Grand Forks
Groceries: pay 2.1 times more in Grand Forks
Transportation: pay 39.3% less in Grand Forks
Housing: pay 33.2% more in Grand Forks
Childcare: pay 43.0% less in Grand Forks
Entertainment and Sports: pay 38.3% more in Grand Forks

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

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Grand Forks vs. Istanbul Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Grand Forks instead of Istanbul, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 78.6% more for restaurants

	Istanbul	Grand Forks
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$12.19 TRY606.11	$21.50	+76.3%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$9.35 TRY464.68	$12.95	+38.5%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.73 TRY86.04	$2.75	+58.9%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.58 TRY28.76	$3.00	+418.4%
Average			+78.6%

Istanbul vs. Grand Forks - Cost of restaurants

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pay 2.1 times more for groceries

	Istanbul	Grand Forks
Bread 1 loaf	$0.92 TRY45.76	$3.52	+282.0%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.28 TRY262.29	$12.13	+129.8%
Milk (1 gallon)	$4.69 TRY232.86	$4.24	-9.4%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.41 TRY119.84	$3.59	+48.9%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.54 TRY126.19	??
Apples (1 lb)	$0.85 TRY42.32	??
Bananas (1 lb)	$1.03 TRY51.06	$0.92	-10.4%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.57 TRY28.45	$2.00	+249.4%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.84 TRY41.53	$1.45	+73.5%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.31 TRY15.42	$1.00	+222.3%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.29 TRY14.22	$1.29	+350.8%
Average			+113.8%

Istanbul vs. Grand Forks - Cost of groceries

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pay 39.3% less for transportation

	Istanbul	Grand Forks
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$5.43 TRY270.07	$3.23	-40.6%
Monthly public transit pass	$67.03 TRY3,331.58	$42.00	-37.3%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$50,810.11 TRY3M	??
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$8.40 TRY417.69	??
Average			-39.3%

Istanbul vs. Grand Forks - Cost of transportation

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pay 33.2% more for housing

	Istanbul	Grand Forks
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$16.15 TRY802.49	$72.13	+346.8%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$996.85 TRY49,547.03	$975.00	-2.2%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$647.83 TRY32,199.56	$806.00	+24.4%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$68.87 TRY3,423.14	$167.59	+143.3%
Average			+33.2%

Istanbul vs. Grand Forks - Cost of housing

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pay 43.0% less for childcare

	Istanbul	Grand Forks
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$1,021.62 TRY50,778.49	$582.00	-43.0%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$25,999.20 TRY1M	??
Average			-43.0%

Istanbul vs. Grand Forks - Cost of childcare

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pay 38.3% more for entertainment and sports

	Istanbul	Grand Forks
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$4.78 TRY237.39	$5.00	+4.7%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$4.31 TRY214.45	$6.00	+39.1%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.34 TRY116.17	$10.00	+327.9%
Monthly membership at local gym	$76.22 TRY3,788.18	$62.50	-18.0%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$8.13 TRY404.07	$15.00	+84.5%
Average			+38.3%

Istanbul vs. Grand Forks - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay (unknown) more for clothing

	Istanbul	Grand Forks
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$53.35 TRY2,651.47	??
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$39.62 TRY1,969.15	??
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$99.91 TRY4,966.02	??
Men's business shoes (leather)	$95.52 TRY4,747.86	??

Istanbul vs. Grand Forks - 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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