Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Békéscsaba

For one person, living is cheaper in Békéscsaba: $1,117 a month against $1,806 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $8,300 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

87

Cost of Living Index in Athens
Learn more

Athens Living Index
54

Cost of Living Index in Békéscsaba
Learn more

Békéscsaba Living Index

Jump to prices

Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,806

/mo nomad

Békéscsaba

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,117

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Békéscsaba

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,806 in Athens versus $1,117 in Békéscsaba.

Athens $1,806
Békéscsaba $1,117

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,731 in Athens versus $1,626 in Békéscsaba.

Athens $2,731
Békéscsaba $1,626

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,656 in Athens versus $2,136 in Békéscsaba.

Athens $3,656
Békéscsaba $2,136

Living in Athens is roughly 62% more expensive than in Békéscsaba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athens is 35% above, Békéscsaba is 17% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.66 €14.87

$8.90 Ft 2,895

87.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €59.1

$44.10 Ft 14.3K

50.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.06 €9.87

$5.52 Ft 1,795

100.36%

Cappuccino

$4.14 €3.69

$2.08 Ft 677

99.04%

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

$2.80 €2.50

$1.34 Ft 436

108.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.57 €0.51

$0.91 Ft 296

-37.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.64 €5.03

$1.06 Ft 344

432.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.46 €4.87

$1.21 Ft 393

351.24%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.96 €1.75

$1.15 Ft 373

70.43%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 €1.26

$1.49 Ft 486

-5.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.83 €2.53

$2.16 Ft 704

31.02%

Eggs

$5.04 €4.50

$3.27 Ft 1,065

54.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.35 €13.70

$10.02 Ft 3,260

53.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.34 €9.23

$6.80 Ft 2,212

52.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.97 €16.93

$14.57 Ft 4,739

30.20%

Apples (1kg)

$2.17 €1.93

$1.91 Ft 623

13.61%

Banana (1kg)

$1.91 €1.70

$2.05 Ft 666

-6.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.38 €1.23

$1.50 Ft 489

-8.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$2.71 Ft 883

-18.82%

Potato (1kg)

$1.10 €0.98

$0.93 Ft 302

18.28%

Onion (1kg)

$1.13 €1.00

$1.02 Ft 333

10.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.10 €0.99

$1.10 Ft 357

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.83 €0.74

$0.48 Ft 157

72.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.60 €4.99

$8.12 Ft 2,641

-31.03%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.19 €9.09

$3.14 Ft 1,021

224.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.18 €1.95

$1.05 Ft 342

107.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.45 €2.19

$2.11 Ft 685

16.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.38 €1.23

$1.24 Ft 402

11.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.87 €27.55

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.37 €3.90

$2.81 Ft 914

55.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.04 €0.93

$1.37 Ft 447

-24.09%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.11 €15.27

$6.15 Ft 2,000

178.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.31 €2.07

$1.82 Ft 592

26.92%

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

$28.0K €25.0K

$29.3K Ft 9.5M

-4.46%

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

$28.0K €25.0K

$33.6K Ft 10.9M

-16.68%

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

$210 €187

$175 Ft 56.9K

19.86%

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

$26.70 €23.83

$23.75 Ft 7,728

12.42%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.13 €26.89

$20.97 Ft 6,823

43.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.6 €48.72

$33.80 Ft 11.0K

61.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.03 €23.23

Cinema Ticket

$10.78 €9.62

$9.23 Ft 3,004

16.79%

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

$575 €513

$549 Ft 178.5K

4.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.1K €11.7K

$16.8K Ft 5.5M

-21.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$93.2 €83.1

$99.5 Ft 32.4K

-6.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.68 €36.30

$30.60 Ft 9,955

32.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.9

$61.4 Ft 20.0K

69.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$128 €115

$120 Ft 39.0K

6.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$756 €674

$408 Ft 132.9K

85.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$652 €582

$336 Ft 109.2K

94.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,294 €1,154

$555 Ft 180.7K

132.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,163 €1,038

$420 Ft 136.7K

176.75%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,008 €3,577

$1,542 Ft 501.8K

159.89%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,452 €3,081

$1,169 Ft 380.2K

195.42%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,243 €1,110

$1,359 Ft 442.2K

-8.53%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

6.43

-30.33%

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

Last update for Athens: October 5, 2026

Last update for Békéscsaba: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$652 36.5%

Békéscsaba

$336 30% 48.5% $317

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$315 17.6%

Békéscsaba

$228 20.4% 27.5% $87

Eating Out

Athens

$269 15%

Békéscsaba

$129 11.6% 51.8% $139

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$267 14.9%

Békéscsaba

$220 19.6% 17.6% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$165 9.2%

Békéscsaba

$140 12.5% 15% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$76 4.3%

Békéscsaba

$52 4.7% 31.4% $24

Getting Around

Athens

$46 2.6%

Békéscsaba

$15 * 1.3% 68.2% $31

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 $756 in Athens and $408 in Békéscsaba. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Békéscsaba pays 9% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $66.0 in Athens vs $44.00 in Békéscsaba for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $315 vs $228 per month, with Békéscsaba cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇭🇺 Békéscsaba

🕒 Local time

21:30 9:30 PM

20:30 8:30 PM

1 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

54,460

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 325 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD). 1 EUR = 365 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Athens Békéscsaba 990 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Athens
Békéscsaba

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 Békéscsaba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Békéscsaba wins on cost – living expenses run 62% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Békéscsaba the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 9% lower in Békéscsaba. 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: $756 in Athens versus $408 in Békéscsaba. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $575 in Athens versus $549 in Békéscsaba. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Békéscsaba – a meal for two runs $44.00 versus $66.0 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,117 in Békéscsaba versus $1,806 in Athens, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Békéscsaba but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Békéscsaba the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Békéscsaba delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,117 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Békéscsaba hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athens and Békéscsaba 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 Békéscsaba gentler on the wallet – expenses run 62% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.