Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Aalst and Athens

For one person, living is cheaper in Athens: $1,775 a month against $2,067 in Aalst, rent and utilities included – about $3,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

101

Cost of Living Index in Aalst
Learn more

Aalst Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Athens
Learn more

Athens Living Index

Jump to prices

Aalst

🇧🇪 Belgium

$2,067

/mo nomad

Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Aalst and in Athens

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Aalst and in Athens actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,067 in Aalst versus $1,775 in Athens.

Aalst $2,067
Athens $1,775

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,086 in Aalst versus $2,721 in Athens.

Aalst $3,086
Athens $2,721

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,105 in Aalst versus $3,666 in Athens.

Aalst $4,105
Athens $3,666

Living in Aalst is roughly 16% more expensive than in Athens, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Aalst 53% above, Athens 31% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.53 €20.10

$16.69 €14.89

34.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$106 €94.3

$67.8 €60.5

55.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.43 €11.99

$11.14 €9.94

20.56%

Cappuccino

$4.43 €3.95

$4.03 €3.60

9.93%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 €3.24

$2.77 €2.47

31.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.17 €2.83

$0.55 €0.49

476.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.55 €4.96

$5.74 €5.12

-3.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.53 €4.93

$5.45 €4.86

1.47%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.82 €1.63

-28.02%

White Bread (500g)

$2.81 €2.51

$1.38 €1.23

103.62%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.13 €1.90

$2.80 €2.50

-23.93%

Eggs

$3.83 €3.42

$4.83 €4.31

-20.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.39 €15.52

$15.05 €13.44

15.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.87 €10.59

$10.63 €9.48

11.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.29 €19.90

$18.43 €16.44

20.94%

Apples (1kg)

$2.99 €2.67

$2.20 €1.96

35.91%

Banana (1kg)

$2.43 €2.17

$1.90 €1.69

27.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.67 €2.38

$1.37 €1.22

94.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.23 €2.88

$2.10 €1.87

53.81%

Potato (1kg)

$2.47 €2.21

$1.08 €0.97

128.70%

Onion (1kg)

$1.95 €1.74

$1.12 €1.00

74.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 €1.37

$1.12 €1.00

37.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.05 €0.94

$0.88 €0.79

19.32%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.93 €11.54

$5.48 €4.89

135.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.74 €7.80

$10.13 €9.04

-13.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.72 €1.54

$2.13 €1.90

-19.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.08 €1.85

$2.25 €2.01

-7.56%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.09 €2.76

$1.36 €1.22

127.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.89 €26.68

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.86 €2.55

$4.45 €3.97

-35.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.35 €2.09

$1.02 €0.91

130.39%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.40 €36.05

$16.92 €15.10

138.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.12 €1.89

$2.25 €2.00

-5.78%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$34.7K €30.9K

$28.0K €25.0K

23.66%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$32.8K €29.3K

$28.2K €25.2K

16.23%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$203 €181

$205 €183

-0.88%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$21.94 €19.58

$26.65 €23.79

-17.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$50.8 €45.37

$30.38 €27.12

67.31%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.21 €32.32

$54.5 €48.63

-33.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.03 €18.77

$25.88 €23.10

-18.74%

Cinema Ticket

$15.18 €13.55

$10.42 €9.30

45.68%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$1,605 €1,433

$569 €508

182.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$33.7K €30.1K

$12.6K €11.2K

168.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$113 €101

$88.7 €79.1

27.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.17 €41.21

$40.46 €36.11

14.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 €90.9

$105 €93.6

-2.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$163 €146

$121 €108

34.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$911 €813

$741 €661

22.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$808 €721

$655 €584

23.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,384 €1,236

$1,300 €1,160

6.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,104 €985

$1,148 €1,024

-3.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,162 €3,714

$4,014 €3,582

3.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,890 €2,580

$3,460 €3,088

-16.47%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,782 €2,483

$1,242 €1,109

123.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.46

4.48

-22.77%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Aalst: October 12, 2026

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Aalst

$807 39.1%

Athens

$655 36.9% 18.9% $153

Groceries & Markets

Aalst

$360 17.4%

Athens

$310 17.5% 13.8% $50

Eating Out

Aalst

$340 16.4%

Athens

$268 15.1% 21.1% $72

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Aalst

$276 13.3%

Athens

$262 14.7% 5.1% $14

Clothing & Footwear

Aalst

$191 9.2%

Athens

$160 9% 16.3% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Aalst

$67 3.2%

Athens

$75 4.2% 13.2% $8.8

Getting Around

Aalst

$27 * 1.3%

Athens

$45 2.5% 66.6% $18

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $911 in Aalst and $741 in Athens. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Aalst pays 124% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $106 in Aalst vs $68.0 in Athens for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $360 vs $310 per month, with Athens cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇪 Aalst

🇬🇷 Athens

🕒 Local time

05:56 5:56 AM

06:56 6:56 AM

1 h ahead of Aalst

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

78,271

3,090,508 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Aalst Athens 2,110 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Aalst
Athens

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Aalst vs Athens: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Aalst and Athens differ by about 16% in total monthly costs ($2,067 vs $1,775 including rent). Athens is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 124% higher in Aalst, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $911 in Aalst versus $741 in Athens. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 16% higher in Aalst. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,067 per month in Aalst versus $1,775 in Athens – a 16% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,775 in Athens versus $2,067 in Aalst, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Athens but tight or insufficient in Aalst. The gap between the two cities makes Athens the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Aalst and Athens are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Athens gentler on the wallet – expenses run 16% less than in Aalst. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.