Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Hawassa

For one person, living is cheaper in Hawassa: $838 a month against $1,779 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $11,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

85

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index
40

Cost of Living Index in Hawassa
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Hawassa Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,779

/mo nomad

Hawassa

🇪🇹 Ethiopia

$838

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Hawassa

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,779 in Athens versus $838 in Hawassa.

Athens $1,779
Hawassa $838

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $1,202 in Hawassa.

Athens $2,721
Hawassa $1,202

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,663 in Athens versus $1,566 in Hawassa.

Athens $3,663
Hawassa $1,566

Living in Athens is roughly 112% more expensive than in Hawassa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athens is 32% above, Hawassa is 38% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.83 €14.99

$3.88 ETB 625

333.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.0 €58.8

$42.15 ETB 6,777

56.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.21 €9.99

$6.60 ETB 1,061

69.85%

Cappuccino

$4.08 €3.64

$0.88 ETB 142

363.64%

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

$2.77 €2.47

$0.63 ETB 101

339.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 €0.48

$0.68 ETB 109

-20.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.70 €5.08

$0.78 ETB 125

630.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.26 €5.58

$2.21 ETB 355

183.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 €1.64

$1.05 ETB 169

75.24%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 €1.27

$1.17 ETB 189

22.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.67 €2.38

$1.03 ETB 165

159.22%

Eggs

$4.95 €4.41

$1.58 ETB 254

213.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.09 €13.45

$7.38 ETB 1,186

104.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.99 €9.79

$10.02 ETB 1,612

9.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.77 €17.61

$9.27 ETB 1,491

113.27%

Apples (1kg)

$2.12 €1.89

$5.23 ETB 841

-59.46%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 €1.76

$0.63 ETB 101

214.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.33 €1.19

$2.24 ETB 361

-40.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$0.69 ETB 112

213.04%

Potato (1kg)

$1.06 €0.94

$0.47 ETB 75.0

125.53%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 €1.02

$1.09 ETB 175

5.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 €0.97

$0.66 ETB 106

63.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.85 €0.75

$0.57 ETB 91.7

49.12%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.46 €4.86

$7.91 ETB 1,272

-30.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.03 €8.93

$5.65 ETB 908

77.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.04 €1.82

$0.67 ETB 108

204.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 €2.12

$1.22 ETB 197

95.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.35 €1.20

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.52 €27.19

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 €3.39

$1.36 ETB 218

180.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 €0.92

$0.27 ETB 43.39

281.48%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.49 €14.68

$2.02 ETB 325

716.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.34 €2.09

$0.95 ETB 153

146.32%

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

$27.8K €24.7K

$54.3K ETB 8.7M

-48.84%

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

$26.6K €23.7K

$55.5K ETB 8.9M

-52.10%

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

$202 €180

$205 ETB 33.0K

-1.41%

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

$26.81 €23.88

$7.48 ETB 1,202

258.42%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.49 €27.16

$216 ETB 34.8K

-85.92%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.1 €48.17

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.40 €24.41

Cinema Ticket

$10.44 €9.30

$3.81 ETB 613

174.02%

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

$568 €506

$616 ETB 99.1K

-7.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.2K €13.5K

$30.4K ETB 4.9M

-50.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.7 €80.8

$33.38 ETB 5,368

171.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.32 €35.03

$69.6 ETB 11.2K

-43.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.7

$77.4 ETB 12.4K

35.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 €115

$83.5 ETB 13.4K

54.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$742 €661

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$648 €578

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,271 €1,132

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,122 €999

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,999 €3,562

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,281 €2,923

$500 ETB 80.3K

556.73%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,245 €1,109

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.44

18.5

-76.00%

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

Last update for Athens: October 31, 2026

Last update for Hawassa: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$648 36.4%

Hawassa

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$316 17.8%

Hawassa

$205 24.5% 35.1% $111

Eating Out

Athens

$272 15.3%

Hawassa

$75 8.9% 72.4% $197

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$260 14.6%

Hawassa

$429 51.2% 65.3% $170

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$164 9.2%

Hawassa

$119 14.2% 27.5% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Hawassa

$7.6 * 0.9% 89.8% $67

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Hawassa

$2.7 * 0.3% 94% $42

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $66 in Athens vs $42 in Hawassa for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $316 vs $205 per month, with Hawassa cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇪🇹 Hawassa

🕒 Local time

23:18 11:18 PM

00:18 12:18 AM

1 h ahead of Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

160,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Ethiopian Birr ETB Br

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 ETB = 6.22 USD

1,000 ETB = 5.54 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ETB, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 0.891 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Ethiopian Birr exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 161 ETB (1,000 ETB = 6.22 USD). 1 EUR = 181 ETB (1,000 ETB = 5.54 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

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Between locations

Athens Hawassa 3,750 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Athens
Hawassa

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 Hawassa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Hawassa wins on cost – living expenses run 53% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Hawassa the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $2,669 in Athens and $1,258 in Hawassa 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 $568 in Athens versus $616 in Hawassa. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Hawassa – a meal for two runs $42 versus $66 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $838 in Hawassa versus $1,779 in Athens, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Hawassa but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Hawassa the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.