Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Elmina

For one person, living is cheaper in Elmina: $668 a month against $1,775 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $13,300 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
33

Cost of Living Index in Elmina
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Elmina Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Elmina

🇬🇭 Ghana

$668

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Elmina

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,775 in Athens versus $668 in Elmina.

Athens $1,775
Elmina $668

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $1,125 in Elmina.

Athens $2,721
Elmina $1,125

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,666 in Athens versus $1,582 in Elmina.

Athens $3,666
Elmina $1,582

Living in Athens is roughly 166% more expensive than in Elmina, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athens is 31% above, Elmina is 51% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.88

$7.82 GHS 90.8

113.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.8 €60.4

$50.8 GHS 590

33.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.14 €9.93

$10.26 GHS 119

8.58%

Cappuccino

$4.03 €3.59

$4.46 GHS 51.7

-9.64%

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

$2.77 €2.47

$1.53 GHS 17.80

81.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$0.44 GHS 5.11

25.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 €5.11

$1.81 GHS 20.98

217.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.45 €4.86

$2.17 GHS 25.12

151.15%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.62

$3.67 GHS 42.57

-50.41%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 €1.23

$1.67 GHS 19.32

-17.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 €2.50

$3.06 GHS 35.54

-8.50%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.31

$2.68 GHS 31.13

80.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.05 €13.42

$12.03 GHS 140

25.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 €9.47

$7.08 GHS 82.1

50.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.43 €16.43

$9.62 GHS 112

91.58%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$3.61 GHS 41.82

-39.06%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$1.40 GHS 16.28

35.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.77 GHS 20.53

-22.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$3.56 GHS 41.34

-41.01%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 €0.96

$2.69 GHS 31.21

-59.85%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 €1.00

$2.65 GHS 30.74

-57.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 €1.00

$0.72 GHS 8.32

55.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.60 GHS 7.01

46.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.48 €4.89

$2.51 GHS 29.12

118.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.13 €9.03

$7.06 GHS 81.9

43.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 €1.90

$1.21 GHS 14.07

76.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.01

$2.33 GHS 27.07

-3.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.36 €1.22

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.89 €26.65

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.45 €3.97

$1.74 GHS 20.24

155.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 €0.91

$1.26 GHS 14.61

-19.05%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.92 €15.09

$4.30 GHS 49.87

293.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.34 GHS 15.54

67.91%

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

$28.0K €25.0K

$7,913 GHS 91.8K

254.23%

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

$28.2K €25.2K

$9,662 GHS 112.1K

192.19%

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

$205 €182

$73.7 GHS 855

177.61%

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

$26.65 €23.76

$19.07 GHS 221

39.75%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.09

$42.25 GHS 490

-28.09%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.58

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.88 €23.07

Cinema Ticket

$10.42 €9.29

$12.66 GHS 147

-17.69%

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

$569 €507

$470 GHS 5,450

21.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K €11.2K

$18.6K GHS 216.0K

-32.41%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 €79.1

$14.18 GHS 164

525.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.46 €36.08

$18.59 GHS 216

117.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.5

$36.74 GHS 426

185.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$52.0 GHS 603

133.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$741 €661

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$655 €584

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,300 €1,159

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 €1,023

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,014 €3,579

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,460 €3,085

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,242 €1,108

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

26.75

-83.25%

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

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Last update for Elmina: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$655 36.9%

Elmina

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$310 17.5%

Elmina

$276 41.4% 11% $34

Eating Out

Athens

$268 15.1%

Elmina

$168 25.2% 37.3% $100

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$262 14.7%

Elmina

$135 20.2% 48.4% $127

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$160 9%

Elmina

$55 8.2% 65.8% $105

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Elmina

$25 * 3.8% 66.4% $50

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Elmina

$8 * 1.2% 82.1% $37

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $68.0 in Athens vs $51.0 in Elmina for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $310 vs $276 per month, with Elmina cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇬🇭 Elmina

🕒 Local time

15:53 3:53 PM

12:53 12:53 PM

3 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

34,403

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Ghanaian Cedi GHS ₵

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 GHS = 8.62 USD

100 GHS = 7.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GHS, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Ghanaian Cedi exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 11.6 GHS (100 GHS = 8.62 USD). 1 EUR = 13.01 GHS (100 GHS = 7.69 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Athens Elmina 4,450 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Athens
Elmina

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 Elmina: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Elmina wins on cost – living expenses run 166% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Elmina the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $2,662 in Athens and $1,001 in Elmina to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Childcare runs $569 in Athens versus $470 in Elmina. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Elmina – a meal for two runs $51.0 versus $68.0 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $668 in Elmina versus $1,775 in Athens, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Elmina but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Elmina the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Elmina delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $668 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Elmina hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athens and Elmina 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 Elmina gentler on the wallet – expenses run 166% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.