Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Marseille

For one person, living is cheaper in Athens: $1,806 a month against $2,000 in Marseille, rent and utilities included – about $2,300 less a year. The total is higher in Marseille despite lower rent and utilities.

87

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index
96

Cost of Living Index in Marseille
Learn more

Marseille Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,806

/mo nomad

Marseille

🇫🇷 France

$2,000

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Marseille

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,806 in Athens versus $2,000 in Marseille.

Athens $1,806
Marseille $2,000

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,731 in Athens versus $3,188 in Marseille.

Athens $2,731
Marseille $3,188

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,656 in Athens versus $4,376 in Marseille.

Athens $3,656
Marseille $4,376

Living in Athens costs roughly 10% less than in Marseille, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Athens 35% above, Marseille 49% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.66 €14.87

$19.34 €17.26

-13.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €59.1

$74.3 €66.3

-10.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.06 €9.87

$13.21 €11.79

-16.28%

Cappuccino

$4.14 €3.69

$3.54 €3.16

16.95%

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

$2.80 €2.50

$3.39 €3.03

-17.40%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.57 €0.51

$2.07 €1.85

-72.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.64 €5.03

$6.85 €6.11

-17.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.46 €4.87

$6.75 €6.02

-19.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.96 €1.75

$1.28 €1.15

53.12%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 €1.26

$2.52 €2.25

-44.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.83 €2.53

$3.06 €2.73

-7.52%

Eggs

$5.04 €4.50

$4.82 €4.30

4.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.35 €13.70

$27.38 €24.43

-43.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.34 €9.23

$14.87 €13.27

-30.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.97 €16.93

$27.06 €24.15

-29.90%

Apples (1kg)

$2.17 €1.93

$3.89 €3.47

-44.22%

Banana (1kg)

$1.91 €1.70

$2.85 €2.54

-32.98%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.38 €1.23

$4.33 €3.87

-68.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$4.11 €3.67

-46.47%

Potato (1kg)

$1.10 €0.98

$2.96 €2.64

-62.84%

Onion (1kg)

$1.13 €1.00

$2.60 €2.32

-56.54%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.10 €0.99

$1.91 €1.71

-42.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.83 €0.74

$1.41 €1.26

-41.13%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.60 €4.99

$13.63 €12.17

-58.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.19 €9.09

$10.05 €8.97

1.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.18 €1.95

$4.03 €3.59

-45.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.45 €2.19

$3.83 €3.42

-36.03%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.38 €1.23

$1.91 €1.71

-27.75%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.87 €27.55

$45.30 €40.42

-31.85%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.37 €3.90

$5.50 €4.91

-20.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.04 €0.93

$3.32 €2.96

-68.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.11 €15.27

$28.11 €25.09

-39.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.31 €2.07

$2.25 €2.01

2.67%

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

$28.0K €25.0K

$34.7K €31.0K

-19.34%

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

$28.0K €25.0K

$34.7K €30.9K

-19.17%

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

$210 €187

$187 €167

12.27%

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

$26.70 €23.83

$17.42 €15.54

53.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.13 €26.89

$37.23 €33.22

-19.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.6 €48.72

$39.55 €35.29

38.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.03 €23.23

$21.45 €19.14

21.35%

Cinema Ticket

$10.78 €9.62

$13.85 €12.36

-22.17%

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

$575 €513

$881 €786

-34.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.1K €11.7K

$10.1K €9,040

29.54%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$93.2 €83.1

$82.0 €73.2

13.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.68 €36.30

$49.70 €44.35

-18.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.9

$112 €99.6

-6.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$128 €115

$132 €118

-3.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$756 €674

$891 €795

-15.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$652 €582

-0.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,294 €1,154

$1,539 €1,374

-15.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,163 €1,038

$1,349 €1,204

-13.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,008 €3,577

$4,992 €4,455

-19.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,452 €3,081

$3,544 €3,163

-2.60%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,243 €1,110

$2,408 €2,149

-48.37%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

3.89

15.17%

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

Last update for Athens: October 5, 2026

Last update for Marseille: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$652 36.5%

Marseille

$652 32.9% 0% $0.1

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$315 17.6%

Marseille

$468 23.7% 48.8% $154

Eating Out

Athens

$269 15%

Marseille

$306 15.5% 14% $38

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$267 14.9%

Marseille

$241 12.2% 9.4% $25

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$165 9.2%

Marseille

$169 8.5% 2.6% $4.2

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$76 4.3%

Marseille

$67 3.4% 11.7% $8.9

Getting Around

Athens

$46 2.6%

Marseille

$75 3.8% 63.4% $29

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $756 in Athens and $891 in Marseille. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Marseille pays 94% 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: $66.0 in Athens vs $74.0 in Marseille for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $315 vs $468 per month, with Athens cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇫🇷 Marseille

🕒 Local time

14:16 2:16 PM

13:16 1:16 PM

1 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

873,076

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Athens Marseille 1,650 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

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Athens
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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 Marseille: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Athens wins on cost – living expenses run 11% lower than in Marseille. 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 94% lower in Marseille. 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: $756 in Athens versus $891 in Marseille. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Athens – a meal for two runs $66.0 versus $74.0 in Marseille. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,806 per month in Athens versus $2,000 in Marseille – a 11% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,806 in Athens versus $2,000 in Marseille, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Athens but tight or insufficient in Marseille. 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 $1,806 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Athens hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athens and Marseille 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 11% less than in Marseille. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.