Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Durres

For one person, living is cheaper in Durres: $1,138 a month against $1,775 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $7,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

86

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index
55

Cost of Living Index in Durres
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Durres Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Durres

🇦🇱 Albania

$1,138

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Durres

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,775 in Athens versus $1,138 in Durres.

Athens $1,775
Durres $1,138

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $1,733 in Durres.

Athens $2,721
Durres $1,733

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,666 in Athens versus $2,329 in Durres.

Athens $3,666
Durres $2,329

Living in Athens is roughly 56% more expensive than in Durres, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athens is 31% above, Durres is 16% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.84

$10.51 ALL 846

58.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.8 €60.3

$37.27 ALL 3,001

81.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.14 €9.91

$10.18 ALL 820

9.43%

Cappuccino

$4.03 €3.58

$1.98 ALL 160

103.54%

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

$2.77 €2.46

$2.04 ALL 164

35.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$1.05 ALL 84.2

-47.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 €5.10

$2.98 ALL 240

92.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.45 €4.85

$4.23 ALL 340

28.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.62

$2.11 ALL 170

-13.74%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 €1.23

$1.07 ALL 86.2

28.97%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$2.37 ALL 190

18.14%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.30

$3.69 ALL 297

30.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.05 €13.39

$12.79 ALL 1,030

17.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 €9.45

$7.64 ALL 615

39.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.43 €16.39

$14.57 ALL 1,173

26.49%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$1.15 ALL 93.0

91.30%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$2.38 ALL 192

-20.17%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.54 ALL 124

-11.04%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.31 ALL 106

60.31%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 €0.96

$0.92 ALL 74.0

17.39%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 €1.00

$0.94 ALL 76.1

19.15%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.25 ALL 101

-10.40%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.70 ALL 56.7

25.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.48 €4.88

$4.24 ALL 341

29.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.13 €9.01

$11.01 ALL 887

-7.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 €1.89

$1.50 ALL 121

42.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$2.06 ALL 166

9.22%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.36 €1.21

$0.48 ALL 38.53

183.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.89 €26.59

$19.19 ALL 1,545

55.76%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.45 €3.96

$3.57 ALL 287

24.65%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 €0.90

$2.47 ALL 199

-58.70%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.92 €15.05

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 €2.00

$2.18 ALL 176

3.21%

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

$28.0K €24.9K

$16.1K ALL 1.3M

74.45%

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

$28.2K €25.1K

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

$205 €182

$93.6 ALL 7,534

118.68%

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

$26.65 €23.71

$16.62 ALL 1,338

60.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.02

$16.68 ALL 1,343

82.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.47

$40.50 ALL 3,262

34.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.88 €23.02

$61.3 ALL 4,932

-57.75%

Cinema Ticket

$10.42 €9.27

$7.48 ALL 602

39.30%

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

$569 €506

$183 ALL 14.7K

210.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K €11.2K

$4,590 ALL 369.6K

174.18%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 €78.9

$39.06 ALL 3,146

126.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.46 €35.99

$41.02 ALL 3,303

-1.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.3

$89.4 ALL 7,195

17.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$159 ALL 12.8K

-23.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$741 €659

$444 ALL 35.8K

66.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$655 €582

$336 ALL 27.0K

95.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,300 €1,156

$690 ALL 55.6K

88.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 €1,021

$469 ALL 37.8K

144.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,014 €3,570

$1,774 ALL 142.9K

126.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,460 €3,078

$1,154 ALL 92.9K

199.90%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,242 €1,105

$940 ALL 75.7K

32.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

5.25

-14.67%

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

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Last update for Durres: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$655 36.9%

Durres

$336 29.5% 48.7% $319

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$310 17.5%

Durres

$261 22.9% 16% $50

Eating Out

Athens

$268 15.1%

Durres

$174 15.3% 35.1% $94

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$262 14.7%

Durres

$127 11.2% 51.5% $135

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$160 9%

Durres

$148 13% 7.5% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Durres

$55 4.9% 26.4% $20

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Durres

$37 3.3% 17.6% $7.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $741 in Athens and $444 in Durres. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Athens pays 32% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $68.0 in Athens vs $37.00 in Durres for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $310 vs $261 per month, with Durres cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇦🇱 Durres

🕒 Local time

15:13 3:13 PM

14:13 2:13 PM

1 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

175,110

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Albanian Lek ALL L

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ALL = 1.24 USD

100 ALL = 1.1 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Athens Durres 520 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Athens
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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 Durres: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Durres wins on cost – living expenses run 56% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Durres the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 32% higher in Athens, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $741 in Athens versus $444 in Durres. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Durres – a meal for two runs $37.00 versus $68.0 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,775 per month in Athens versus $1,138 in Durres – a 56% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,138 in Durres versus $1,775 in Athens, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Durres but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Durres the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Durres delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,138 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Durres hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athens and Durres 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 Durres gentler on the wallet – expenses run 56% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.