Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Elbasan

For one person, living is cheaper in Elbasan: $882 a month against $1,775 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $10,700 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
43

Cost of Living Index in Elbasan
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Elbasan Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Elbasan

🇦🇱 Albania

$882

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Elbasan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,775 in Athens versus $882 in Elbasan.

Athens $1,775
Elbasan $882

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $1,391 in Elbasan.

Athens $2,721
Elbasan $1,391

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,666 in Athens versus $1,901 in Elbasan.

Athens $3,666
Elbasan $1,901

Living in Athens is roughly 101% more expensive than in Elbasan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athens is 31% above, Elbasan is 35% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.84

$9.79 ALL 788

70.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.8 €60.3

$36.36 ALL 2,928

86.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.14 €9.91

$6.85 ALL 552

62.63%

Cappuccino

$4.03 €3.58

$1.68 ALL 135

139.88%

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

$2.77 €2.46

$1.35 ALL 109

105.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$0.63 ALL 50.8

-12.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 €5.10

$2.16 ALL 174

165.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.45 €4.85

$2.83 ALL 228

92.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.88 ALL 151

-3.19%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 €1.23

$0.91 ALL 73.4

51.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$1.62 ALL 131

72.84%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.30

$2.70 ALL 218

78.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.05 €13.39

$9.98 ALL 804

50.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 €9.45

$5.87 ALL 473

81.09%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.43 €16.39

$11.19 ALL 901

64.70%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$1.20 ALL 96.3

83.33%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$2.28 ALL 184

-16.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.36 ALL 109

0.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.07 ALL 86.1

96.26%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 €0.96

$0.98 ALL 79.0

10.20%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.09 ALL 87.5

2.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 €1.00

$0.81 ALL 65.1

38.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.65 ALL 52.1

35.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.48 €4.88

$4.38 ALL 353

25.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.13 €9.01

$8.07 ALL 649

25.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 €1.89

$1.02 ALL 82.0

108.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.85 ALL 149

21.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.36 €1.21

$0.48 ALL 38.46

183.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.89 €26.59

$19.51 ALL 1,571

53.20%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.45 €3.96

$3.77 ALL 303

18.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 €0.90

$1.51 ALL 122

-32.45%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.92 €15.05

$14.94 ALL 1,203

13.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 €2.00

$2.15 ALL 173

4.65%

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

$28.0K €24.9K

$28.9K ALL 2.3M

-3.09%

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

$28.2K €25.1K

$29.9K ALL 2.4M

-5.59%

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

$205 €182

$61.1 ALL 4,918

235.03%

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

$26.65 €23.71

$15.20 ALL 1,224

75.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.02

$12.00 ALL 966

153.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.47

$56.6 ALL 4,558

-3.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.88 €23.02

$17.22 ALL 1,386

50.29%

Cinema Ticket

$10.42 €9.27

$4.33 ALL 349

140.65%

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

$569 €506

$139 ALL 11.2K

309.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K €11.2K

$1,835 ALL 147.8K

585.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 €78.9

$72.1 ALL 5,804

23.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.46 €35.99

$44.85 ALL 3,611

-9.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.3

$94.8 ALL 7,630

10.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$96.3 ALL 7,754

25.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$741 €659

$299 ALL 24.1K

147.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$655 €582

$204 ALL 16.4K

221.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,300 €1,156

$442 ALL 35.6K

194.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 €1,021

$311 ALL 25.1K

268.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,014 €3,570

$1,361 ALL 109.6K

195.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,460 €3,078

$858 ALL 69.1K

303.12%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,242 €1,105

$539 ALL 43.4K

130.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

6.1

-26.56%

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

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Last update for Elbasan: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$655 36.9%

Elbasan

$204 23.1% 68.9% $451

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$310 17.5%

Elbasan

$210 23.8% 32.5% $101

Eating Out

Athens

$268 15.1%

Elbasan

$143 16.3% 46.5% $125

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$262 14.7%

Elbasan

$88 10% 66.3% $173

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$160 9%

Elbasan

$139 15.7% 13.3% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Elbasan

$65 7.4% 13.4% $10

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Elbasan

$33 3.7% 27% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $741 in Athens and $299 in Elbasan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Athens pays 131% 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 $36.00 in Elbasan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $310 vs $210 per month, with Elbasan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇦🇱 Elbasan

🕒 Local time

07:08 7:08 AM

06:08 6:08 AM

1 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

78,703

💱 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

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City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

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Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Athens vs Elbasan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Elbasan wins on cost – living expenses run 101% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Elbasan the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 131% 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 $299 in Elbasan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Elbasan – a meal for two runs $36.00 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 $882 in Elbasan – a 101% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $882 in Elbasan versus $1,775 in Athens, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Elbasan but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Elbasan the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Elbasan delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $882 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Elbasan hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athens and Elbasan 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 Elbasan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 101% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.