Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Grahamstown

For one person, living is cheaper in Grahamstown: $1,121 a month against $1,775 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $7,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

86

Cost of Living Index in Athens
Learn more

Athens Living Index
54

Cost of Living Index in Grahamstown
Learn more

Grahamstown Living Index

Jump to prices

Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Grahamstown

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,121

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Grahamstown

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,775 in Athens versus $1,121 in Grahamstown.

Athens $1,775
Grahamstown $1,121

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $1,757 in Grahamstown.

Athens $2,721
Grahamstown $1,757

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,666 in Athens versus $2,392 in Grahamstown.

Athens $3,666
Grahamstown $2,392

Living in Athens is roughly 58% more expensive than in Grahamstown, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athens is 31% above, Grahamstown is 17% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.84

$10.85 R 179

53.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.8 €60.3

$42.03 R 692

61.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.14 €9.91

$6.06 R 99.9

83.83%

Cappuccino

$4.03 €3.58

$2.13 R 35.03

89.20%

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

$2.77 €2.46

$1.04 R 17.21

166.35%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$0.72 R 11.94

-23.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 €5.10

$2.76 R 45.45

107.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.45 €4.85

$3.07 R 50.6

77.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.12 R 18.45

62.50%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 €1.23

$1.01 R 16.57

36.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$1.45 R 23.86

93.10%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.30

$2.82 R 46.40

71.28%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.05 €13.39

$8.78 R 145

71.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 €9.45

$5.25 R 86.5

102.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.43 €16.39

$8.51 R 140

116.57%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$2.19 R 36.07

0.46%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$1.47 R 24.17

29.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.69 R 27.91

-18.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.72 R 28.34

22.09%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 €0.96

$1.67 R 27.50

-35.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.37 R 22.55

-18.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.30 R 21.36

-13.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.02 R 16.73

-13.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.48 €4.88

$3.20 R 52.7

71.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.13 €9.01

$4.68 R 77.1

116.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 €1.89

$1.22 R 20.02

74.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.78 R 29.34

26.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.36 €1.21

$1.54 R 25.32

-11.69%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.89 €26.59

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.45 €3.96

$0.62 R 10.13

617.74%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 €0.90

$0.47 R 7.72

117.02%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.92 €15.05

$8.17 R 135

107.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.40 R 23.07

60.71%

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

$28.0K €24.9K

$35.0K R 576.1K

-19.84%

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

$28.2K €25.1K

$32.8K R 540.0K

-13.87%

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

$205 €182

$120 R 1,983

69.99%

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

$26.65 €23.71

$34.81 R 574

-23.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.02

$44.20 R 728

-31.27%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.47

$31.55 R 520

72.71%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.88 €23.02

$10.55 R 174

145.31%

Cinema Ticket

$10.42 €9.27

$10.60 R 175

-1.70%

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

$569 €506

$175 R 2,891

224.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K €11.2K

$4,834 R 79.6K

160.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 €78.9

$71.5 R 1,178

23.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.46 €35.99

$36.90 R 608

9.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.3

$109 R 1,803

-4.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$94.3 R 1,553

28.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$741 €659

$394 R 6,497

87.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$655 €582

$366 R 6,038

78.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,300 €1,156

$726 R 12.0K

78.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 €1,021

$719 R 11.9K

59.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,014 €3,570

$874 R 14.4K

359.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,460 €3,078

$646 R 10.6K

435.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,242 €1,105

$1,164 R 19.2K

6.69%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

11.94

-62.48%

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

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Last update for Grahamstown: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$655 36.9%

Grahamstown

$366 32.7% 44% $288

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$310 17.5%

Grahamstown

$196 17.5% 37% $115

Eating Out

Athens

$268 15.1%

Grahamstown

$158 14.1% 41.2% $111

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$262 14.7%

Grahamstown

$199 17.8% 23.8% $62

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$160 9%

Grahamstown

$140 12.5% 12.2% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Grahamstown

$53 4.7% 30% $23

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Grahamstown

$9.1 * 0.8% 79.7% $36

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 $394 in Grahamstown. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Athens pays 7% 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 $42.00 in Grahamstown for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $310 vs $196 per month, with Grahamstown cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇿🇦 Grahamstown

🕒 Local time

10:55 10:55 AM

09:55 9:55 AM

1 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

67,264

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Athens Grahamstown 7,930 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Athens
Grahamstown

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 Grahamstown: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Grahamstown wins on cost – living expenses run 58% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Grahamstown the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 7% 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 $394 in Grahamstown. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $569 in Athens versus $175 in Grahamstown. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Grahamstown – a meal for two runs $42.00 versus $68.0 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,121 in Grahamstown versus $1,775 in Athens, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Grahamstown but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Grahamstown the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Grahamstown delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,121 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Grahamstown hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athens and Grahamstown 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 Grahamstown gentler on the wallet – expenses run 58% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.