Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Harlow

For one person, living is cheaper in Athens: $1,775 a month against $2,320 in Harlow, rent and utilities included – about $6,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Harlow outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

86

Cost of Living Index in Athens
Learn more

Athens Living Index
113

Cost of Living Index in Harlow
Learn more

Harlow Living Index

Jump to prices

Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Harlow

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,320

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Harlow

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,775 in Athens versus $2,320 in Harlow.

Athens $1,775
Harlow $2,320

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $3,416 in Harlow.

Athens $2,721
Harlow $3,416

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,666 in Athens versus $4,513 in Harlow.

Athens $3,666
Harlow $4,513

Living in Athens costs roughly 23% less than in Harlow, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Athens 31% above, Harlow 72% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.84

$21.12 £15.84

-20.98%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.8 €60.3

$93.0 £69.7

-27.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.14 €9.91

$10.72 £8.04

3.92%

Cappuccino

$4.03 €3.58

$5.71 £4.28

-29.42%

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

$2.77 €2.46

$2.61 £1.96

6.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$1.79 £1.34

-69.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 €5.10

$6.71 £5.03

-14.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.45 €4.85

$6.81 £5.11

-19.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.35 £1.01

34.81%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 €1.23

$1.38 £1.03

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$1.10 £0.82

154.55%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.30

$2.35 £1.76

105.53%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.05 €13.39

$6.66 £5.00

125.98%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 €9.45

$6.12 £4.59

73.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.43 €16.39

$6.73 £5.05

173.85%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$2.03 £1.52

8.37%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$1.18 £0.88

61.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.15 £0.86

19.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.95 £1.47

7.69%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 €0.96

$1.58 £1.19

-31.65%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.33 £1.00

-15.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.35 £1.01

-17.04%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.48 £1.11

-40.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.48 €4.88

$20.83 £15.63

-73.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.13 €9.01

$9.04 £6.78

12.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 €1.89

$2.72 £2.04

-21.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.93 £1.45

16.58%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.36 €1.21

$2.63 £1.97

-48.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.89 €26.59

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.45 €3.96

$5.84 £4.38

-23.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 €0.90

$1.62 £1.22

-37.04%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.92 €15.05

$21.14 £15.86

-19.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.85 £1.38

21.62%

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

$28.0K €24.9K

$37.4K £28.0K

-25.03%

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

$28.2K €25.1K

$41.1K £30.8K

-31.23%

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

$205 €182

$220 £165

-6.80%

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

$26.65 €23.71

$11.73 £8.80

127.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.02

$28.08 £21.07

8.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.47

$45.62 £34.22

19.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.88 €23.02

$8.11 £6.09

219.11%

Cinema Ticket

$10.42 €9.27

$12.56 £9.43

-17.04%

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

$569 €506

$1,062 £797

-46.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K €11.2K

$20.0K £15.0K

-36.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 €78.9

$69.9 £52.4

26.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.46 €35.99

$31.69 £23.77

27.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.3

$77.1 £57.8

36.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$37.87 £28.41

220.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$741 €659

$1,397 £1,048

-46.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$655 €582

$1,324 £993

-50.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,300 €1,156

$2,253 £1,690

-42.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 €1,021

$2,211 £1,659

-48.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,014 €3,570

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,460 €3,078

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,242 €1,105

$2,992 £2,245

-58.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

4.91

-8.76%

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

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Last update for Harlow: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$655 36.9%

Harlow

$1.3K 57.1% 102% $669

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$310 17.5%

Harlow

$209 9% 32.5% $101

Eating Out

Athens

$268 15.1%

Harlow

$334 14.4% 24.7% $66

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$262 14.7%

Harlow

$259 11.2% 0.9% $2.3

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$160 9%

Harlow

$97 4.2% 39.1% $62

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Harlow

$71 3.1% 6.1% $4.6

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Harlow

$24 * 1.1% 45.5% $20

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 $1,397 in Harlow. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Harlow pays 141% 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 $93.0 in Harlow. Groceries flip the comparison at $310 vs $209, with Harlow cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇬🇧 Harlow

🕒 Local time

00:55 12:55 AM

22:55 10:55 PM

2 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

86,191

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Athens Harlow 2,390 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Athens
Harlow

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 Harlow: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Athens wins on cost – living expenses run 31% lower than in Harlow. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Athens the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 141% lower in Harlow. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $741 in Athens versus $1,397 in Harlow. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $569 in Athens versus $1,062 in Harlow. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Athens – a meal for two runs $68.0 versus $93.0 in Harlow. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,775 in Athens versus $2,320 in Harlow, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Athens but tight or insufficient in Harlow. The gap between the two cities makes Athens the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Athens delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,775 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Athens hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athens and Harlow 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 Athens gentler on the wallet – expenses run 31% less than in Harlow. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.