Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Kabul

For one person, living is cheaper in Kabul: $488 a month against $1,779 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $15,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

85

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index
24

Cost of Living Index in Kabul
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Kabul Living Index

Jump to prices

Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,779

/mo nomad

Kabul

🇦🇫 Afghanistan

$488

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Kabul

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,779 in Athens versus $488 in Kabul.

Athens $1,779
Kabul $488

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $664 in Kabul.

Athens $2,721
Kabul $664

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,663 in Athens versus $839 in Kabul.

Athens $3,663
Kabul $839

Living in Athens is roughly 265% more expensive than in Kabul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athens is 32% above, Kabul is 64% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.83 €14.99

$2.83 ؋184

494.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.0 €58.8

$7.79 ؋506

747.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.21 €9.99

$4.59 ؋298

144.23%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.27 ؋147

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 ؋123

Cappuccino

$4.08 €3.64

$1.13 ؋73.2

261.06%

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

$2.77 €2.47

$0.46 ؋29.77

502.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 €0.48

$0.15 ؋9.70

260.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.70 €5.08

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.26 €5.58

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 €1.64

$0.81 ؋52.8

127.16%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 €1.27

$0.25 ؋16.31

472.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.67 €2.38

$1.86 ؋121

43.55%

Eggs

$4.95 €4.41

$1.57 ؋102

215.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.09 €13.45

$4.39 ؋285

243.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.99 €9.79

$3.89 ؋253

182.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.77 €17.61

$6.71 ؋436

194.63%

Apples (1kg)

$2.12 €1.89

$0.69 ؋44.68

207.25%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 €1.76

$0.85 ؋55.5

132.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.33 €1.19

$0.96 ؋62.2

38.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$0.55 ؋35.64

292.73%

Potato (1kg)

$1.06 €0.94

$0.65 ؋42.18

63.08%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 €1.02

$0.47 ؋30.73

144.68%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 €0.97

$0.30 ؋19.67

260.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.85 €0.75

$0.39 ؋25.15

117.95%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.87 ؋121

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.75 ؋49.05

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.05 ؋67.9

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.46 €4.86

$2.42 ؋157

125.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.03 €8.93

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.04 €1.82

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 €2.12

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.35 €1.20

$0.13 ؋8.65

938.46%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.52 €27.19

$8.09 ؋525

277.26%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 €3.39

$2.10 ؋136

81.43%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 €0.92

$0.45 ؋29.22

128.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.49 €14.68

$2.63 ؋171

527.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.34 €2.09

$1.11 ؋71.8

110.81%

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

$27.8K €24.7K

$8,558 ؋556.0K

224.45%

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

$26.6K €23.7K

$34.0K ؋2.2M

-21.65%

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

$202 €180

$42.10 ؋2,735

380.33%

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

$26.81 €23.88

$12.70 ؋825

111.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.49 €27.16

$95.2 ؋6,187

-67.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.1 €48.17

$11.29 ؋734

378.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.40 €24.41

$4.11 ؋267

566.67%

Cinema Ticket

$10.44 €9.30

$2.33 ؋151

348.07%

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

$568 €506

$20.27 ؋1,317

2699.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.2K €13.5K

$2,131 ؋138.5K

612.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.7 €80.8

$10.78 ؋700

740.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.32 €35.03

$15.98 ؋1,038

146.06%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.7

$57.3 ؋3,725

83.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 €115

$25.02 ؋1,626

415.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$742 €661

$125 ؋8,133

492.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$648 €578

$107 ؋6,934

507.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,271 €1,132

$219 ؋14.2K

480.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,122 €999

$116 ؋7,513

869.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,999 €3,562

$678 ؋44.0K

489.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,281 €2,923

$356 ؋23.1K

821.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,245 €1,109

$344 ؋22.4K

261.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.44

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

Last update for Athens: October 31, 2026

Last update for Kabul: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$648 36.4%

Kabul

$107 21.9% 83.5% $542

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$316 17.8%

Kabul

$101 20.7% 68.1% $215

Eating Out

Athens

$272 15.3%

Kabul

$52 10.7% 80.7% $219

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$260 14.6%

Kabul

$150 30.7% 42.2% $109

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$164 9.2%

Kabul

$49 10.1% 70% $115

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Kabul

$16 3.3% 78.7% $59

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Kabul

$13 2.7% 71.1% $32

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $742 in Athens and $125 in Kabul. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Athens pays about 3.6 times 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: $66 in Athens vs $8 in Kabul for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $316 vs $101 per month, with Kabul cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇦🇫 Kabul

🕒 Local time

21:35 9:35 PM

00:05 12:05 AM

2 h 30 min ahead of Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

3,289,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Afghanistan Afghani AFN ؋

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 AFN = 1.54 USD

100 AFN = 1.37 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AFN, 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).

Afghanistan Afghani exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 64.97 AFN (100 AFN = 1.54 USD). 1 EUR = 72.93 AFN (100 AFN = 1.37 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Athens Kabul 4,050 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Athens
Kabul

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 Kabul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kabul wins on cost – living expenses run 73% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Kabul the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Athens is about 3.6 times higher, 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: $742 in Athens versus $125 in Kabul. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Kabul – a meal for two runs $8 versus $66 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,779 per month in Athens versus $488 in Kabul – Kabul is about 73% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $488 in Kabul versus $1,779 in Athens, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Kabul but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Kabul 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.

Expats usually find Kabul gentler on the wallet – expenses run 73% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.