Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Benidorm

For one person, living is cheaper in Benidorm: $1,689 a month against $1,775 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $1,000 less a year. The total is higher in Athens despite lower rent and utilities.

86

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index
82

Cost of Living Index in Benidorm
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Benidorm Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Benidorm

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,689

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Benidorm

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,775 in Athens versus $1,689 in Benidorm.

Athens $1,775
Benidorm $1,689

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $2,487 in Benidorm.

Athens $2,721
Benidorm $2,487

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,666 in Athens versus $3,284 in Benidorm.

Athens $3,666
Benidorm $3,284

Living in Athens is roughly 5% more expensive than in Benidorm, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Athens 31% above, Benidorm 25% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.84

$17.29 €15.38

-3.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.8 €60.3

$52.8 €46.96

28.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.14 €9.91

$12.46 €11.08

-10.59%

Cappuccino

$4.03 €3.58

$2.38 €2.12

69.33%

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

$2.77 €2.46

$2.34 €2.08

18.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$1.17 €1.04

-52.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 €5.10

$3.38 €3.00

69.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.45 €4.85

$3.65 €3.25

49.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.14 €1.01

59.65%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 €1.23

$1.34 €1.19

2.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$1.41 €1.25

98.58%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.30

$3.38 €3.00

42.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.05 €13.39

$10.95 €9.74

37.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 €9.45

$7.78 €6.92

36.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.43 €16.39

$15.79 €14.05

16.72%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$2.09 €1.86

5.26%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$1.86 €1.66

2.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.89 €1.68

-27.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$2.64 €2.35

-20.45%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 €0.96

$1.72 €1.53

-37.21%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.75 €1.56

-36.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.11 €0.99

0.90%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.40 €0.36

120.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.48 €4.88

$6.07 €5.40

-9.72%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.13 €9.01

$5.61 €4.99

80.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 €1.89

$0.90 €0.80

136.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$0.89 €0.79

152.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.36 €1.21

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.89 €26.59

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.45 €3.96

$4.40 €3.92

1.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 €0.90

$1.36 €1.21

-25.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.92 €15.05

$23.59 €20.98

-28.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.74 €1.54

29.31%

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

$28.0K €24.9K

$35.5K €31.6K

-21.04%

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

$28.2K €25.1K

$28.6K €25.4K

-1.18%

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

$205 €182

$158 €140

29.60%

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

$26.65 €23.71

$16.12 €14.34

65.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.02

$22.34 €19.88

35.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.47

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.88 €23.02

Cinema Ticket

$10.42 €9.27

$10.84 €9.64

-3.87%

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

$569 €506

$579 €515

-1.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K €11.2K

$9,540 €8,486

31.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 €78.9

$90.7 €80.7

-2.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.46 €35.99

$42.19 €37.53

-4.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.3

$96.9 €86.2

8.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$117 €104

3.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$741 €659

$1,012 €900

-26.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$655 €582

$821 €730

-20.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,300 €1,156

$1,743 €1,550

-25.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 €1,021

$1,323 €1,177

-13.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,014 €3,570

$5,089 €4,527

-21.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,460 €3,078

$2,476 €2,202

39.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,242 €1,105

$1,763 €1,568

-29.54%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

3.3

35.76%

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

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Last update for Benidorm: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$655 36.9%

Benidorm

$821 48.6% 25.4% $166

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$310 17.5%

Benidorm

$241 14.3% 22.4% $70

Eating Out

Athens

$268 15.1%

Benidorm

$242 14.4% 9.6% $26

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$262 14.7%

Benidorm

$196 11.6% 25% $65

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$160 9%

Benidorm

$156 9.2% 2.5% $3.9

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Benidorm

$22 * 1.3% 71.2% $54

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Benidorm

$11 * 0.7% 75% $34

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 $741 in Athens and $1,012 in Benidorm. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Benidorm pays 42% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $68.0 in Athens vs $53.0 in Benidorm for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $310 vs $241 per month, with Benidorm cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇪🇸 Benidorm

🕒 Local time

08:51 8:51 AM

07:51 7:51 AM

1 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

72,342

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Athens Benidorm 2,080 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

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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 Benidorm: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Benidorm wins on cost – living expenses run 5% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Benidorm the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 42% lower in Benidorm. 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 $1,012 in Benidorm. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $569 in Athens versus $579 in Benidorm. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Benidorm – a meal for two runs $53.0 versus $68.0 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,689 in Benidorm versus $1,775 in Athens, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Benidorm but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Benidorm the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Benidorm delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,689 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Benidorm hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athens and Benidorm 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 Benidorm gentler on the wallet – expenses run 5% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.