Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Assela

For one person, living is cheaper in Assela: $848 a month against $1,779 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $11,200 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
40

Cost of Living Index in Assela
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Assela Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,779

/mo nomad

Assela

🇪🇹 Ethiopia

$848

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Assela

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 Assela actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,779 in Athens versus $848 in Assela.

Athens $1,779
Assela $848

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $1,219 in Assela.

Athens $2,721
Assela $1,219

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,663 in Athens versus $1,591 in Assela.

Athens $3,663
Assela $1,591

Living in Athens is roughly 110% more expensive than in Assela, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athens is 32% above, Assela is 37% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.83 €14.99

$4.11 ETB 661

309.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.0 €58.8

$43.23 ETB 6,951

52.67%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.21 €9.98

$6.64 ETB 1,068

68.83%

Cappuccino

$4.08 €3.64

$0.90 ETB 144

353.33%

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

$2.77 €2.47

$0.63 ETB 101

339.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 €0.48

$0.68 ETB 109

-20.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.70 €5.07

$0.78 ETB 126

630.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.26 €5.58

$2.22 ETB 356

181.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 €1.64

$1.05 ETB 169

75.24%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 €1.27

$1.16 ETB 187

23.28%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.67 €2.38

$2.15 ETB 345

24.19%

Eggs

$4.95 €4.41

$1.79 ETB 287

176.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.09 €13.44

$7.60 ETB 1,222

98.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.99 €9.79

$10.23 ETB 1,645

7.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.77 €17.60

$9.05 ETB 1,455

118.45%

Apples (1kg)

$2.12 €1.89

$5.35 ETB 860

-60.37%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 €1.76

$0.63 ETB 101

214.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.33 €1.18

$2.21 ETB 355

-39.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$0.71 ETB 114

204.23%

Potato (1kg)

$1.06 €0.94

$0.47 ETB 74.8

125.53%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 €1.02

$1.09 ETB 175

5.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 €0.96

$0.66 ETB 106

63.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.85 €0.75

$0.60 ETB 97.2

41.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.46 €4.86

$8.07 ETB 1,298

-32.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.03 €8.93

$5.50 ETB 884

82.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.04 €1.82

$0.72 ETB 116

183.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 €2.12

$1.27 ETB 205

87.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.35 €1.20

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.52 €27.18

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 €3.39

$1.29 ETB 208

195.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 €0.92

$0.29 ETB 47.03

255.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.49 €14.68

$2.02 ETB 324

716.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.34 €2.09

$0.90 ETB 145

160.00%

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

$27.8K €24.7K

$55.7K ETB 9.0M

-50.18%

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

$26.6K €23.7K

$54.7K ETB 8.8M

-51.40%

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

$202 €180

$209 ETB 33.6K

-3.25%

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

$26.81 €23.87

$7.22 ETB 1,161

271.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.49 €27.14

$212 ETB 34.1K

-85.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.1 €48.14

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.40 €24.40

Cinema Ticket

$10.44 €9.30

$3.77 ETB 607

176.92%

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

$568 €505

$627 ETB 100.8K

-9.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.2K €13.5K

$30.6K ETB 4.9M

-50.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.7 €80.7

$33.49 ETB 5,386

170.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.32 €35.01

$72.2 ETB 11.6K

-45.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.7

$77.8 ETB 12.5K

35.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 €115

$81.6 ETB 13.1K

58.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$742 €661

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$648 €577

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,271 €1,132

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,122 €999

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,999 €3,561

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,281 €2,921

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,245 €1,109

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.44

18.5

-76.00%

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

Last update for Athens: October 31, 2026

Last update for Assela: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$648 36.4%

Assela

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$316 17.8%

Assela

$213 25.1% 32.8% $104

Eating Out

Athens

$272 15.3%

Assela

$77 9.1% 71.6% $194

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$260 14.6%

Assela

$428 50.5% 65% $169

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$164 9.2%

Assela

$119 14.1% 27.2% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Assela

$7.6 * 0.9% 89.9% $67

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Assela

$2.8 * 0.3% 93.9% $42

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $66 in Athens vs $43 in Assela for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $316 vs $213 per month, with Assela cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇪🇹 Assela

🕒 Local time

05:01 5:01 AM

06:01 6:01 AM

1 h ahead of Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

139,500

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Ethiopian Birr ETB Br

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 ETB = 6.22 USD

1,000 ETB = 5.54 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ETB, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.89 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Ethiopian Birr exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 161 ETB (1,000 ETB = 6.22 USD). 1 EUR = 181 ETB (1,000 ETB = 5.54 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

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Between locations

Athens Assela 3,680 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

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Assela

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 Assela: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Assela is about 52% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $2,669 in Athens and $1,271 in Assela to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Childcare runs $568 in Athens versus $627 in Assela. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Assela – a meal for two runs $43 versus $66 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $848 in Assela versus $1,779 in Athens, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Assela but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Assela 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.