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Student Cities in Turkey

Compare cost of living, university options, and student life across 9 major Turkish cities.

Istanbul

Pop. 16M50,000+ int'l students

Turkey's largest city and economic capital. Bridges Europe and Asia. The top destination for international students with the most ...

25 universities6 public, 19 private$450–800/mo
Istanbul University, Boğaziçi University...Explore

Ankara

Pop. 5.7M20,000+ int'l students

The capital city and political center. Home to Turkey's top-ranked universities including METU (#1 nationally), Hacettepe, and Ank...

8 universities4 public, 4 private$350–600/mo
Ankara University, Middle East Technical University...Explore

Izmir

Pop. 4.4M10,000+ int'l students

Turkey's third largest city on the Aegean coast. Known for its liberal atmosphere, Mediterranean lifestyle, and strong universitie...

5 universities3 public, 2 private$380–650/mo
Ege University, Dokuz Eylül University...Explore

Konya

Pop. 2.3M12,000+ int'l students

A historic city in central Anatolia, known worldwide for Rumi's legacy and the Whirling Dervishes. Very affordable with strong pub...

3 universities3 public, 0 private$250–400/mo
Selçuk University, Necmettin Erbakan University...Explore

Sakarya

Pop. 1.1M8,000+ int'l students

A green city between Istanbul and Ankara, known for Sakarya University's large international student body (6,200+ international st...

2 universities2 public, 0 private$250–380/mo
Sakarya University, Sakarya University of Applied Sciences...Explore

Bursa

Pop. 3.1M5,000+ int'l students

Turkey's fourth largest city and former Ottoman capital. Major industrial hub (automotive, textiles) with the historic Uludağ moun...

1 universities1 public, 0 private$300–550/mo
Bursa Uludağ University...Explore

Antalya

Pop. 2.6M3,500+ int'l students

Turkey's Mediterranean tourism capital. Beautiful beaches, warm climate year-round, and a large international expat community. Akd...

1 universities1 public, 0 private$400–700/mo
Akdeniz University...Explore

Karabük

Pop. 250K11,500+ int'l students

A small city in northern Turkey that hosts the highest number of international students per capita in the country. Karabük Univers...

1 universities1 public, 0 private$200–320/mo
Karabük University...Explore

Gaziantep

Pop. 2.1M5,000+ int'l students

Southeastern Turkey's cultural capital and UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy. Famous worldwide for its cuisine (baklava, kebab, l...

1 universities1 public, 0 private$250–400/mo
Gaziantep University...Explore

City Cost Comparison

CityRentFoodTransportMonthly TotalUniversities
Istanbul$250–700$150–250$20–30$450–80025
Ankara$150–400$120–200$15–25$350–6008
Izmir$200–450$130–220$15–25$380–6505
Konya$100–250$100–170$10–20$250–4003
Sakarya$100–220$100–160$10–15$250–3802
Bursa$150–350$120–200$15–20$300–5501
Antalya$200–500$140–230$15–25$400–7001
Karabük$80–180$80–140$8–12$200–3201
Gaziantep$100–250$90–160$10–15$250–4001

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