Cost of living in Fethiye: how far your pounds go against London and the UK average

Your pounds go a long way in Fethiye, as long as you shop at the market, eat Turkish and don't need private schools. The catch is inflation: lira prices rise by around 30% a year, so any budget you draw up today needs a sense of humour and a review every few months.

The short version

• A one-bedroom flat in central Fethiye averages about TRY 36,900 a month (about £547), against £2,338 for the average London rent and £1,406 across the UK [4][7].
• A meal at an inexpensive restaurant is about TRY 500 (about £7.40), and a three-course dinner for two about TRY 3,300 (about £49) [4].
• Turkish consumer prices rose 29.77% in the year to October 2026 [5]. Lira prices on this page will be out of date within months; what matters is how the pound moves against them.
• Your UK State Pension is uprated each year if you live in Turkey, because the UK and Turkey have a social security agreement [3]. That's a real advantage over retiring to Thailand or Australia.
• The NHS doesn't cover you, and Turkey has no reciprocal health agreement with the UK, so budget for health insurance [1].

Pound conversions use the Bank of England spot rate of 5 November 2026 (£1 = TRY 67.4414).

Inflation and the lira: read this first

Turkey has had high inflation for several years. TÜİK, the official statistics office, put annual consumer price inflation at 29.77% in October 2026 [5]. The lira has tended to weaken against the pound over time, so a Brit with income in sterling has often found local prices stable or even falling in pound terms, while Turkish wages struggle to keep up.

That cuts both ways. If the pound falls, or the lira steadies while prices keep rising, your costs in pounds go up. For context, the Turkish minimum wage for 2026 is TRY 28,075 a month net (about £416), or TRY 33,030 gross (about £490) [6]. Our guide to living on UK pensions in Turkey goes deeper into budgeting with a moving currency.

Rent

Rent is where Fethiye beats the UK hands down. The ONS put the average UK private rent at £1,406 a month in September 2026, and £2,338 in London [7]. Crowd-sourced figures for Fethiye, updated in November 2026, compare like this [4]:

Numbeo warns that its Fethiye figures come from relatively few contributors, so treat them as a rough guide [4]. Rents in the resort areas are also seasonal: a flat that's cheap from October to April can double for July and August. On renewal, the legal rise is capped at the 12-month average of inflation, which was 31.23% for November 2026 renewals. Our renting in Fethiye guide explains how that works.

Food: the market, the supermarket and eating out

Fethiye's weekly market is the place to buy fruit, vegetables, cheese, olives and spices, and it's where the cost of living drops furthest. Supermarket staples are cheap too; it's imported treats that bite.

All figures are crowd-sourced averages updated on 6 November 2026 [4].

Alcohol carries heavy Turkish taxes, so a beer is no longer the bargain it was ten years ago, and imported wine and spirits cost more than in a UK supermarket. Tea, on the other hand, is everywhere and cheap. PG Tips, Marmite and a Christmas pud are a different story; our British food, shops and pubs in Fethiye guide says where to find them.

For the UK side, the ONS put average UK household spending at £676.60 a week in the year to March 2025, all categories included [8].

Getting around

• Dolmuş and local buses: a one-way local fare averages about TRY 70 (about £1.05) [4].
• Taxis: the starting fare is about TRY 250 (about £3.70) [4]. Taxis are dearer than the dolmuş by a long way, and short hops add up.
• Petrol: about TRY 78 a litre (about £1.16) in November 2026 [4]. That's below UK pump prices, but cars themselves are expensive in Turkey because of high purchase taxes.
• Dalaman airport: the airport bus to Fethiye costs about TRY 300 (about £4.45) in 2026. See choosing where to live for the options.

The average UK household spends £96.40 a week on transport [8]. Brits living in Fethiye town or Çalış can get by on the dolmuş for a fraction of that; in the hill villages, a car is usually part of the budget. Our driving and getting around Fethiye guide has more.

Bills

• Electricity, water, heating and rubbish for an 85 m² flat average about TRY 3,880 a month (about £58) [4]. Air conditioning drives the bill in July and August, and in winter it's usually the heating too.
• Mobile: about TRY 530 a month (about £7.90) for a plan with 10 GB+ data [4]. Phones brought from the UK must be registered with the Turkish authorities if you stay long-term, which carries a hefty fee.
• Home broadband: about TRY 1,195 a month (about £17.70) for 60 Mbps or more [4].
• No council tax for tenants. Owners pay a small annual property tax to the municipality. Owners also need compulsory earthquake insurance (DASK), and many pay a monthly site fee (aidat) for shared pools and gardens.

The UK average household spends £118.40 a week on housing (net), fuel and power [8].

Healthcare and insurance

This is the line that changes the sums for most Brits. The FCDO says Turkey has no reciprocal healthcare agreement with the UK, so you should have appropriate health insurance [1]. Private health insurance is also a requirement for most residence permit applications. Premiums depend on age, cover and medical history, and they rise sharply in your sixties and seventies, so get quotes before you commit to the move.

After at least a year of residence on a valid permit, you can apply to join Turkey's General Health Insurance scheme (GSS) and pay a monthly premium [1]. The FCDO notes that if you receive a UK State Pension you can only join as a policyholder in your own right, not as your spouse's dependant [1]. Our healthcare in Fethiye guide explains the public and private options.

Schools and childcare

A full-day private preschool averages about TRY 25,000 a month (about £370) [4]. Fethiye has few international school options, and families often look further afield. See schools in Fethiye.

Putting it together

These are illustrations built from the averages above, not quotes, and they'll date quickly with inflation.

The pension bonus

The UK State Pension only goes up each year if you live in the EEA, Gibraltar, Switzerland or a country whose social security agreement with the UK allows it [2]. Unlike Brits in Thailand or Australia, British pensioners in Turkey get the increase, because Turkey is on the government's list of countries with a social security agreement that allows uprating [3]. Read the UK State Pension abroad for how it's paid. Currency still matters: a 10% fall in the pound means 10% fewer lira each month.

Found the cheapest decent çay garden in Çalış, or a butcher who'll do you a proper joint for Sunday? Share it in our community group for Brits in Turkey.

Sources

1. GOV.UK (FCDO): Living in Turkey (last updated 31 December 2025)
2. GOV.UK: State Pension if you retire abroad, how your pension is affected
3. GOV.UK (DWP): Countries where we pay an annual increase in the State Pension (updated 27 October 2026)
4. Numbeo: Cost of living in Fethiye (crowd-sourced, last updated 6 November 2026)
5. CNBC-e: Kasımda ev ve iş yeri kiralarına yapılabilecek zam oranı belli oldu (3 November 2026, TÜİK inflation figures)
6. Ekonomist: GSS primi 2026 ne kadar oldu (23 December 2025, 2026 minimum wage)
7. ONS: Private rent and house prices, UK: October 2026 (21 October 2026, rents for September 2026)
8. ONS: Family spending in the UK, April 2024 to March 2025 (11 June 2026)

Keep reading

• Living on UK pensions in Turkey: inflation and the lira
• Renting in Fethiye
• Healthcare and health insurance in Fethiye
• Sending money between the UK and abroad