Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Guarda

For one person, living is cheaper in Guarda: $1,281 a month against $1,771 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 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
62

Cost of Living Index in Guarda
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Guarda Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,771

/mo nomad

Guarda

🇵🇹 Portugal

$1,281

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Guarda

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,771 in Athens versus $1,281 in Guarda.

Athens $1,771
Guarda $1,281

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,736 in Athens versus $1,993 in Guarda.

Athens $2,736
Guarda $1,993

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,701 in Athens versus $2,705 in Guarda.

Athens $3,701
Guarda $2,705

Living in Athens is roughly 38% more expensive than in Guarda, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athens is 31% above, Guarda is 5% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.83 €14.97

$12.86 €11.44

30.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.2 €60.7

$45.18 €40.19

51.04%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.43 €10.17

$11.11 €9.89

2.88%

Cappuccino

$4.06 €3.61

$1.70 €1.51

138.82%

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

$2.74 €2.44

$1.92 €1.71

42.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 €0.47

$1.67 €1.48

-68.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.69 €5.06

$2.27 €2.02

150.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.68 €5.06

$3.95 €3.52

43.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.85 €1.64

$0.98 €0.87

88.78%

White Bread (500g)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.67 €1.49

-13.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.82 €2.51

$1.60 €1.42

76.25%

Eggs

$4.86 €4.32

$3.79 €3.37

28.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.27 €13.58

$11.34 €10.08

34.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.36 €9.21

$11.99 €10.67

-13.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.10 €16.99

$23.90 €21.25

-20.08%

Apples (1kg)

$2.22 €1.98

$2.41 €2.14

-7.88%

Banana (1kg)

$1.92 €1.71

$1.69 €1.50

13.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.41 €1.25

$2.11 €1.87

-33.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.04 €1.82

$2.34 €2.08

-12.82%

Potato (1kg)

$1.05 €0.93

$2.34 €2.08

-55.13%

Onion (1kg)

$1.17 €1.04

$2.32 €2.07

-49.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 €0.96

$0.92 €0.82

17.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.84 €0.75

$1.14 €1.01

-26.32%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.49 €4.89

$6.84 €6.08

-19.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.17 €9.05

$5.13 €4.57

98.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 €1.90

$1.72 €1.53

23.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 €2.03

$2.51 €2.23

-9.16%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.69 €1.51

-18.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.71 €26.43

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.39 €3.90

$4.96 €4.41

-11.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.00 €0.89

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.63 €14.79

$17.02 €15.14

-2.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.38 €2.11

$2.21 €1.96

7.69%

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

$28.4K €25.3K

$32.4K €28.8K

-12.34%

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

$27.2K €24.2K

$38.5K €34.3K

-29.33%

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

$203 €181

$190 €169

7.13%

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

$26.79 €23.83

$16.68 €14.83

60.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.16 €26.82

$49.92 €44.40

-39.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.7 €47.74

$56.1 €49.94

-4.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.40 €23.48

Cinema Ticket

$10.59 €9.42

$6.92 €6.16

53.03%

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

$566 €504

$429 €382

31.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.9K €11.4K

$13.5K €12.0K

-4.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.1 €79.3

$33.49 €29.79

166.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.48 €36.01

$22.63 €20.13

78.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.3

$134 €119

-22.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$165 €147

-24.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$729 €648

$398 €354

83.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$647 €576

$284 €253

128.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,328 €1,181

$736 €655

80.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,169 €1,040

$561 €499

108.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,024 €3,579

$1,364 €1,213

194.95%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,483 €3,098

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,240 €1,103

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

3.27

37.00%

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

Last update for Athens: October 20, 2026

Last update for Guarda: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$647 36.5%

Guarda

$284 22.2% 56.1% $363

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$312 17.6%

Guarda

$309 24.1% 1.1% $3.6

Eating Out

Athens

$271 15.3%

Guarda

$190 14.9% 29.7% $80

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$260 14.7%

Guarda

$256 20% 1.5% $3.9

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$161 9.1%

Guarda

$160 12.5% 0.6% $1

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Guarda

$70 5.5% 6.5% $4.9

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Guarda

$12 * 0.9% 73.7% $33

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 $729 in Athens and $398 in Guarda. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $68.0 in Athens vs $45.00 in Guarda for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $312 vs $309 per month, with Guarda cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇵🇹 Guarda

🕒 Local time

16:08 4:08 PM

14:08 2:08 PM

2 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

40,126

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Athens Guarda 2,670 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Athens
Guarda

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 Guarda: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Guarda wins on cost – living expenses run 38% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Guarda the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $2,657 in Athens and $1,922 in Guarda 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $729 in Athens versus $398 in Guarda. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $566 in Athens versus $429 in Guarda. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Guarda – a meal for two runs $45.00 versus $68.0 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,281 in Guarda versus $1,771 in Athens, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Guarda but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Guarda the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Guarda delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,281 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Guarda hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athens and Guarda 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 Guarda gentler on the wallet – expenses run 38% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.