Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Quarteira

For one person, living costs are similar in Athens and in Quarteira: $1,775 and $1,720 a month, rent and utilities included.

86

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index
84

Cost of Living Index in Quarteira
Learn more

Quarteira Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Quarteira

🇵🇹 Portugal

$1,720

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Quarteira

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,775 in Athens versus $1,720 in Quarteira.

Athens $1,775
Quarteira $1,720

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $2,512 in Quarteira.

Athens $2,721
Quarteira $2,512

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,666 in Athens versus $3,304 in Quarteira.

Athens $3,666
Quarteira $3,304

Living in Athens is roughly 3% more expensive than in Quarteira, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Athens 31% above, Quarteira 27% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.84

$13.70 €12.19

21.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.8 €60.3

$59.2 €52.6

14.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.14 €9.91

$10.99 €9.78

1.36%

Cappuccino

$4.03 €3.58

$1.84 €1.63

119.02%

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

$2.77 €2.46

$2.25 €2.00

23.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$1.64 €1.46

-66.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 €5.10

$2.82 €2.51

103.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.45 €4.85

$2.44 €2.17

123.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.01 €0.90

80.20%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 €1.23

$1.50 €1.33

-8.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$1.47 €1.31

90.48%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.30

$3.52 €3.13

37.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.05 €13.39

$12.55 €11.17

19.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 €9.45

$6.17 €5.49

72.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.43 €16.39

$11.41 €10.15

61.52%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$2.16 €1.92

1.85%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$1.42 €1.27

33.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.85 €1.64

-25.95%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$2.51 €2.23

-16.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 €0.96

$1.83 €1.63

-40.98%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.95 €1.74

-42.56%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.41 €1.26

-20.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.84 €0.74

4.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.48 €4.88

$6.38 €5.68

-14.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.13 €9.01

$4.98 €4.43

103.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 €1.89

$0.97 €0.86

119.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$2.06 €1.83

9.22%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.36 €1.21

$5.20 €4.62

-73.85%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.89 €26.59

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.45 €3.96

$3.77 €3.35

18.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 €0.90

$1.08 €0.96

-5.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.92 €15.05

$16.48 €14.66

2.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 €2.00

$2.09 €1.86

7.66%

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

$28.0K €24.9K

$33.9K €30.2K

-17.37%

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

$28.2K €25.1K

$38.2K €34.0K

-26.12%

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

$205 €182

$163 €145

25.76%

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

$26.65 €23.71

$19.17 €17.05

39.02%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.02

$34.28 €30.50

-11.38%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.47

$87.9 €78.2

-38.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.88 €23.02

Cinema Ticket

$10.42 €9.27

$9.87 €8.78

5.57%

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

$569 €506

$452 €402

25.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K €11.2K

$10.9K €9,700

15.41%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 €78.9

$71.5 €63.6

23.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.46 €35.99

$44.65 €39.72

-9.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.3

$103 €91.9

1.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$119 €106

2.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$741 €659

$852 €758

-13.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$655 €582

$784 €697

-16.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,300 €1,156

$1,436 €1,278

-9.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 €1,021

$1,201 €1,068

-4.40%

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

$1,323 €1,177

-6.08%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

3.57

25.49%

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

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Last update for Quarteira: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$655 36.9%

Quarteira

$784 45.6% 19.7% $129

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$310 17.5%

Quarteira

$231 13.4% 25.6% $79

Eating Out

Athens

$268 15.1%

Quarteira

$199 11.6% 25.7% $69

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$262 14.7%

Quarteira

$216 12.6% 17.4% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$160 9%

Quarteira

$152 8.9% 4.8% $7.7

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Quarteira

$108 6.3% 42.9% $32

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Quarteira

$30 * 1.7% 33.2% $15

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 $852 in Quarteira. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Quarteira pays 6% 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 $59.0 in Quarteira for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $310 vs $231 per month, with Quarteira cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇵🇹 Quarteira

🕒 Local time

05:48 5:48 AM

03:48 3:48 AM

2 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

24,421

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Athens Quarteira 2,800 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

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 Quarteira: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Quarteira wins on cost – living expenses run 3% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Quarteira the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 6% lower in Quarteira. 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 $852 in Quarteira. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $569 in Athens versus $452 in Quarteira. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Quarteira – a meal for two runs $59.0 versus $68.0 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,720 in Quarteira versus $1,775 in Athens, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Quarteira but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Quarteira the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Quarteira delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,720 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Quarteira hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athens and Quarteira 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 Quarteira gentler on the wallet – expenses run 3% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.