Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Lillehammer

For one person, living is cheaper in Lillehammer: $1,487 a month against $1,775 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $3,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Athens outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

86

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index
72

Cost of Living Index in Lillehammer
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Lillehammer Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Lillehammer

🇳🇴 Norway

$1,487

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Lillehammer

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,775 in Athens versus $1,487 in Lillehammer.

Athens $1,775
Lillehammer $1,487

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $2,355 in Lillehammer.

Athens $2,721
Lillehammer $2,355

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,666 in Athens versus $3,223 in Lillehammer.

Athens $3,666
Lillehammer $3,223

Living in Athens is roughly 19% more expensive than in Lillehammer, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Athens 31% above, Lillehammer 10% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.84

$16.65 NOK 157

0.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.8 €60.3

$82.7 NOK 779

-18.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.14 €9.91

$14.08 NOK 133

-20.88%

Cappuccino

$4.03 €3.58

$4.94 NOK 46.49

-18.42%

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

$2.77 €2.46

$3.59 NOK 33.81

-22.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$2.44 NOK 22.94

-77.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 €5.10

$10.56 NOK 99.4

-45.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.45 €4.85

$7.36 NOK 69.2

-25.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.62

$2.44 NOK 22.95

-25.41%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 €1.23

$3.38 NOK 31.84

-59.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$3.65 NOK 34.38

-23.29%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.30

$4.72 NOK 44.47

2.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.05 €13.39

$13.18 NOK 124

14.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 €9.45

$16.62 NOK 156

-36.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.43 €16.39

$31.35 NOK 295

-41.21%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$3.93 NOK 36.99

-44.02%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$2.97 NOK 27.97

-36.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$3.72 NOK 35.01

-63.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$5.65 NOK 53.2

-62.83%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 €0.96

$2.87 NOK 26.98

-62.37%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 €1.00

$3.03 NOK 28.52

-63.04%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 €1.00

$2.93 NOK 27.59

-61.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$2.29 NOK 21.58

-61.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.48 €4.88

$17.48 NOK 165

-68.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.13 €9.01

$18.52 NOK 174

-45.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 €1.89

$3.55 NOK 33.43

-40.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$4.46 NOK 42.00

-49.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.36 €1.21

$2.32 NOK 21.81

-41.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.89 €26.59

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.45 €3.96

$9.47 NOK 89.1

-53.01%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 €0.90

$1.61 NOK 15.14

-36.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.92 €15.05

$59.9 NOK 564

-71.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 €2.00

$2.40 NOK 22.64

-6.25%

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

$28.0K €24.9K

$45.8K NOK 431.3K

-38.82%

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

$28.2K €25.1K

$45.6K NOK 429.4K

-38.11%

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

$205 €182

$275 NOK 2,591

-25.68%

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

$26.65 €23.71

$35.71 NOK 336

-25.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.02

$81.1 NOK 763

-62.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.47

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.88 €23.02

Cinema Ticket

$10.42 €9.27

$20.67 NOK 195

-49.59%

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

$569 €506

$294 NOK 2,765

93.77%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K €11.2K

$4,382 NOK 41.3K

187.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 €78.9

$107 NOK 1,005

-16.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.46 €35.99

$49.98 NOK 470

-19.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.3

$117 NOK 1,103

-10.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$158 NOK 1,483

-23.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$741 €659

$1,033 NOK 9,723

-28.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$655 €582

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,300 €1,156

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 €1,021

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,014 €3,570

$3,281 NOK 30.9K

22.33%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,460 €3,078

$1,291 NOK 12.2K

167.93%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,242 €1,105

$2,056 NOK 19.4K

-39.58%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

5.32

-15.79%

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

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Last update for Lillehammer: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$655 36.9%

Lillehammer

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$310 17.5%

Lillehammer

$507 34.1% 63.2% $196

Eating Out

Athens

$268 15.1%

Lillehammer

$326 21.9% 21.7% $58

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$262 14.7%

Lillehammer

$392 26.4% 49.8% $130

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$160 9%

Lillehammer

$194 13.1% 21.4% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Lillehammer

$41 * 2.8% 45.1% $34

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Lillehammer

$27 * 1.8% 40.3% $18

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 $1,033 in Lillehammer. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lillehammer pays 66% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $68.0 in Athens vs $83.0 in Lillehammer for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $310 vs $507 per month, with Athens cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇳🇴 Lillehammer

🕒 Local time

21:50 9:50 PM

20:50 8:50 PM

1 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

28,831

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NOK, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Athens Lillehammer 2,740 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Athens
Lillehammer

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 Lillehammer: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lillehammer wins on cost – living expenses run 19% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Lillehammer the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 66% lower in Lillehammer. 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 $1,033 in Lillehammer. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $569 in Athens versus $294 in Lillehammer. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Lillehammer – a meal for two runs $83.0 versus $68.0 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,487 in Lillehammer versus $1,775 in Athens, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Lillehammer but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Lillehammer the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Lillehammer delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,487 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Lillehammer hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athens and Lillehammer 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 Lillehammer gentler on the wallet – expenses run 19% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.