Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Ar-rass

For one person, living is cheaper in Ar-rass: $1,162 a month against $1,779 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $7,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

85

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Ar-rass
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Ar-rass Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,779

/mo nomad

Ar-rass

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,162

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Ar-rass

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 Ar-rass actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,779 in Athens versus $1,162 in Ar-rass.

Athens $1,779
Ar-rass $1,162

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $1,717 in Ar-rass.

Athens $2,721
Ar-rass $1,717

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,663 in Athens versus $2,272 in Ar-rass.

Athens $3,663
Ar-rass $2,272

Living in Athens is roughly 53% more expensive than in Ar-rass, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athens is 32% above, Ar-rass is 14% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.83 €15.06

$6.73 SAR 25.27

150.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.0 €59.1

$37.53 SAR 141

75.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.21 €10.03

$8.20 SAR 30.78

36.71%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.81 SAR 6.79

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.19 SAR 8.23

Cappuccino

$4.08 €3.65

$3.29 SAR 12.36

24.01%

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

$2.77 €2.48

$0.88 SAR 3.30

214.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 €0.48

$0.27 SAR 1.01

100.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.70 €5.10

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.26 €5.60

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 €1.65

$1.81 SAR 6.81

1.66%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 €1.28

$0.38 SAR 1.43

276.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.67 €2.39

$1.82 SAR 6.85

46.70%

Eggs

$4.95 €4.43

$3.67 SAR 13.78

34.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.09 €13.51

$6.77 SAR 25.40

122.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.99 €9.83

$7.99 SAR 29.97

37.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.77 €17.69

$12.90 SAR 48.43

53.26%

Apples (1kg)

$2.12 €1.90

$2.14 SAR 8.03

-0.93%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 €1.77

$1.73 SAR 6.48

14.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.33 €1.19

$1.64 SAR 6.17

-18.90%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.93

$1.56 SAR 5.84

38.46%

Potato (1kg)

$1.06 €0.95

$1.25 SAR 4.68

-15.20%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 €1.03

$1.33 SAR 5.01

-13.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 €0.97

$1.26 SAR 4.73

-14.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.85 €0.76

$0.58 SAR 2.17

46.55%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$3.01 SAR 11.29

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.95 SAR 7.33

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.12 SAR 7.94

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.46 €4.88

$7.88 SAR 29.58

-30.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.03 €8.97

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.04 €1.83

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 €2.13

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.35 €1.21

$0.96 SAR 3.60

40.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.52 €27.31

$42.22 SAR 158

-27.71%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 €3.41

$2.61 SAR 9.78

45.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 €0.92

$1.49 SAR 5.60

-30.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.49 €14.75

$13.93 SAR 52.3

18.38%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.34 €2.10

$0.61 SAR 2.27

283.61%

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

$27.8K €24.8K

$25.3K SAR 95.1K

9.60%

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

$26.6K €23.8K

$21.7K SAR 81.4K

22.63%

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

$202 €181

$94.9 SAR 356

113.09%

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

$26.81 €23.99

$24.18 SAR 90.7

10.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.49 €27.28

$60.3 SAR 226

-49.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.1 €48.38

$43.79 SAR 164

23.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.40 €24.52

Cinema Ticket

$10.44 €9.34

$13.26 SAR 49.79

-21.27%

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

$568 €508

$417 SAR 1,565

36.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.2K €13.6K

$11.2K SAR 42.0K

35.51%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.7 €81.1

$42.38 SAR 159

113.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.32 €35.19

$55.8 SAR 209

-29.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €94.1

$97.9 SAR 368

7.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 €115

$74.6 SAR 280

72.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$742 €664

$562 SAR 2,110

31.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$648 €580

$416 SAR 1,560

56.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,271 €1,138

$383 SAR 1,439

231.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,122 €1,004

$620 SAR 2,327

80.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,999 €3,578

$1,915 SAR 7,189

108.80%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,281 €2,936

$1,353 SAR 5,078

142.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,245 €1,114

$1,732 SAR 6,502

-28.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.44

5.54

-19.86%

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

Last update for Athens: October 31, 2026

Last update for Ar-rass: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$648 36.4%

Ar-rass

$416 35.8% 35.9% $233

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$316 17.8%

Ar-rass

$197 16.9% 37.8% $120

Eating Out

Athens

$272 15.3%

Ar-rass

$123 10.5% 54.9% $149

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$260 14.6%

Ar-rass

$179 15.4% 30.9% $80

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$164 9.2%

Ar-rass

$122 10.5% 25.7% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Ar-rass

$70 6.1% 6.2% $4.6

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Ar-rass

$56 4.8% 25.1% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $742 in Athens and $562 in Ar-rass. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ar-rass pays 39% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $66 in Athens vs $38 in Ar-rass for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $316 vs $197 per month, with Ar-rass cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇸🇦 Ar-rass

🕒 Local time

16:40 4:40 PM

17:40 5:40 PM

1 h ahead of Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

121,359

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Athens Ar-rass 2,290 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Athens
Ar-rass

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

Athens vs Ar-rass: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,779 in Athens and $1,162 in Ar-rass, so Ar-rass is about 35% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 28% lower in Athens. 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: $742 in Athens versus $562 in Ar-rass. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $568 in Athens versus $417 in Ar-rass. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 61% higher in Athens. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Ar-rass gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.