Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Alcala de Henares

For one person, living is cheaper in Athens: $1,775 a month against $1,932 in Alcala de Henares, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Alcala de Henares outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

86

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index
93

Cost of Living Index in Alcala de Henares
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Alcala de Henares Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Alcala de Henares

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,932

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Alcala de Henares

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,775 in Athens versus $1,932 in Alcala de Henares.

Athens $1,775
Alcala de Henares $1,932

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $2,723 in Alcala de Henares.

Athens $2,721
Alcala de Henares $2,723

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,666 in Athens versus $3,515 in Alcala de Henares.

Athens $3,666
Alcala de Henares $3,515

Living in Athens costs roughly 8% less than in Alcala de Henares, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Athens 31% above, Alcala de Henares 43% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.84

$17.00 €15.12

-1.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.8 €60.3

$65.8 €58.5

3.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.14 €9.91

$11.08 €9.86

0.54%

Cappuccino

$4.03 €3.58

$2.72 €2.42

48.16%

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

$2.77 €2.46

$3.34 €2.97

-17.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$1.87 €1.67

-70.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 €5.10

$3.96 €3.52

44.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.45 €4.85

$4.64 €4.13

17.46%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.19 €1.05

52.94%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 €1.23

$1.55 €1.38

-10.97%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$1.72 €1.53

62.79%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.30

$2.96 €2.64

63.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.05 €13.39

$21.99 €19.56

-31.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 €9.45

$9.20 €8.18

15.54%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.43 €16.39

$17.25 €15.35

6.84%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$2.68 €2.39

-17.91%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$2.31 €2.05

-17.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$2.18 €1.94

-37.16%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$2.58 €2.29

-18.60%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 €0.96

$2.13 €1.89

-49.30%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 €1.00

$2.13 €1.89

-47.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.57 €1.40

-28.66%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.70 €0.63

25.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.48 €4.88

$6.12 €5.44

-10.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.13 €9.01

$7.84 €6.98

29.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 €1.89

$1.22 €1.08

74.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$2.14 €1.91

5.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.36 €1.21

$1.46 €1.30

-6.85%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.89 €26.59

$46.53 €41.39

-35.76%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.45 €3.96

$3.80 €3.38

17.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 €0.90

$1.93 €1.72

-47.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.92 €15.05

$23.26 €20.69

-27.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.80 €1.60

25.00%

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

$28.0K €24.9K

$35.7K €31.8K

-21.49%

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

$28.2K €25.1K

$30.3K €26.9K

-6.75%

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

$205 €182

$189 €168

8.36%

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

$26.65 €23.71

$19.65 €17.48

35.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.02

$30.18 €26.85

0.66%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.47

$40.29 €35.84

35.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.88 €23.02

$8.12 €7.22

218.72%

Cinema Ticket

$10.42 €9.27

$9.43 €8.39

10.50%

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

$569 €506

$178 €159

218.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K €11.2K

$5,820 €5,177

116.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 €78.9

$73.7 €65.6

20.23%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.46 €35.99

$36.52 €32.48

10.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.3

$78.2 €69.6

34.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$94.3 €83.9

28.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$741 €659

$966 €859

-23.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$655 €582

$879 €782

-25.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,300 €1,156

$1,858 €1,653

-30.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 €1,021

$1,142 €1,016

0.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,014 €3,570

$4,260 €3,789

-5.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,460 €3,078

$3,507 €3,119

-1.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,242 €1,105

$1,735 €1,544

-28.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

3.14

42.68%

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

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Last update for Alcala de Henares: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$655 36.9%

Alcala de Henares

$879 45.5% 34.3% $224

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$310 17.5%

Alcala de Henares

$310 16.1% 0.1% $0.4

Eating Out

Athens

$268 15.1%

Alcala de Henares

$252 13% 6% $16

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$262 14.7%

Alcala de Henares

$239 12.4% 8.8% $23

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$160 9%

Alcala de Henares

$127 6.6% 20.4% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Alcala de Henares

$59 3.1% 21.5% $16

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Alcala de Henares

$66 3.4% 46.7% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $741 in Athens and $966 in Alcala de Henares. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Alcala de Henares pays 40% 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: $68.0 in Athens vs $66.0 in Alcala de Henares. Groceries flip the comparison at $310 vs $310, with Athens cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇪🇸 Alcala de Henares

🕒 Local time

12:32 12:32 PM

11:32 11:32 AM

1 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

199,184

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Athens Alcala de Henares 2,340 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

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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

Athens vs Alcala de Henares: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Athens and Alcala de Henares differ by about 9% in total monthly costs ($1,775 vs $1,932 including rent). Athens is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 40% lower in Alcala de Henares. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $741 in Athens versus $966 in Alcala de Henares. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $569 in Athens versus $178 in Alcala de Henares. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Alcala de Henares pay roughly 0% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,775 in Athens versus $1,932 in Alcala de Henares, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Athens but tight or insufficient in Alcala de Henares. 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, Athens and Alcala de Henares 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 9% less than in Alcala de Henares. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.