Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and the Canary Islands

For one person, living is cheaper in the Canary Islands: $1,650 a month against $1,775 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $1,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

86

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in the Canary Islands
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Canary Islands Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Canary Islands

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,650

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in the Canary Islands

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 the Canary Islands actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,775 in Athens versus $1,650 in the Canary Islands.

Athens $1,775
Canary Islands $1,650

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $2,373 in the Canary Islands.

Athens $2,721
Canary Islands $2,373

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,666 in Athens versus $3,095 in the Canary Islands.

Athens $3,666
Canary Islands $3,095

Living in Athens is roughly 8% more expensive than in the Canary Islands, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Athens 31% above, Canary Islands 22% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.84

$20.32 €18.07

-17.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.8 €60.3

$61.1 €54.3

11.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.14 €9.91

$9.42 €8.38

18.26%

Cappuccino

$4.03 €3.58

$2.05 €1.83

96.59%

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

$2.77 €2.46

$1.86 €1.65

48.92%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$1.10 €0.98

-50.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 €5.10

$2.85 €2.53

101.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.45 €4.85

$3.42 €3.04

59.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.36 €1.21

33.82%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 €1.23

$2.39 €2.13

-42.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$1.58 €1.40

77.22%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.30

$2.18 €1.94

121.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.05 €13.39

$19.31 €17.18

-22.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 €9.45

$9.93 €8.83

7.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.43 €16.39

$17.23 €15.33

6.96%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$2.73 €2.43

-19.41%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$2.25 €2.00

-15.56%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$2.16 €1.92

-36.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$2.51 €2.23

-16.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 €0.96

$2.14 €1.91

-49.53%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 €1.00

$2.02 €1.80

-44.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.70 €1.51

-34.12%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.93 €0.83

-5.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.48 €4.88

$4.66 €4.14

17.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.13 €9.01

$7.86 €6.99

28.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 €1.89

$1.70 €1.51

25.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.75 €1.55

28.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.36 €1.21

$0.86 €0.76

58.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.89 €26.59

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.45 €3.96

$4.24 €3.78

4.95%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 €0.90

$1.69 €1.50

-39.64%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.92 €15.05

$16.59 €14.75

1.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.70 €1.51

32.35%

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

$28.0K €24.9K

$24.9K €22.2K

12.49%

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

$28.2K €25.1K

$29.0K €25.8K

-2.54%

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

$205 €182

$126 €112

62.28%

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

$26.65 €23.71

$20.91 €18.60

27.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.02

$35.49 €31.57

-14.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.47

$47.49 €42.25

14.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.88 €23.02

$24.07 €21.41

7.52%

Cinema Ticket

$10.42 €9.27

$9.85 €8.76

5.79%

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

$569 €506

$400 €355

42.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K €11.2K

$5,096 €4,533

146.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 €78.9

$68.3 €60.7

29.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.46 €35.99

$38.65 €34.38

4.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.3

$89.6 €79.7

17.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$114 €101

6.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$741 €659

$1,111 €988

-33.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$655 €582

$680 €605

-3.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,300 €1,156

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 €1,021

$825 €734

39.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,014 €3,570

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,460 €3,078

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,242 €1,105

$1,369 €1,218

-9.27%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

3.33

34.53%

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

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Last update for the Canary Islands: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$655 36.9%

Canary Islands

$680 41.2% 3.9% $26

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$310 17.5%

Canary Islands

$316 19.2% 1.9% $5.9

Eating Out

Athens

$268 15.1%

Canary Islands

$248 15.1% 7.4% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$262 14.7%

Canary Islands

$182 11.1% 30.2% $79

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$160 9%

Canary Islands

$140 8.5% 12.7% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Canary Islands

$67 4.1% 10.8% $8.1

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Canary Islands

$16 * 1% 64.1% $29

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 $1,111 in the Canary Islands. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Canary Islands pays 10% 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 $61.0 in the Canary Islands. Groceries flip the comparison at $310 vs $316, with Athens cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇪🇸 Canary Islands

🕒 Local time

01:09 1:09 AM

23:09 11:09 PM

2 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

12,050

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Athens Canary Islands 3,890 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Athens
Canary Islands

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 Canary Islands: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Canary Islands wins on cost – living expenses run 8% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Canary Islands the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 10% lower in the Canary Islands. 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 $1,111 in the Canary Islands. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $569 in Athens versus $400 in the Canary Islands. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in the Canary Islands – a meal for two runs $61.0 versus $68.0 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,650 in the Canary Islands versus $1,775 in Athens, a $2,000 budget is realistic in the Canary Islands but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Canary Islands the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Canary Islands delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,650 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Canary Islands hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athens and Canary Islands 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 Canary Islands gentler on the wallet – expenses run 8% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.