Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Randburg

For one person, living is cheaper in Randburg: $1,058 a month against $1,775 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $8,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

86

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index
52

Cost of Living Index in Randburg
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Randburg Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Randburg

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,058

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Randburg

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,775 in Athens versus $1,058 in Randburg.

Athens $1,775
Randburg $1,058

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $1,714 in Randburg.

Athens $2,721
Randburg $1,714

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,666 in Athens versus $2,370 in Randburg.

Athens $3,666
Randburg $2,370

Living in Athens is roughly 68% more expensive than in Randburg, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athens is 31% above, Randburg is 22% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.84

$10.48 R 173

59.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.8 €60.3

$43.30 R 713

56.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.14 €9.91

$5.35 R 88.2

108.22%

Cappuccino

$4.03 €3.58

$2.50 R 41.19

61.20%

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

$2.77 €2.46

$1.18 R 19.43

134.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$0.89 R 14.59

-38.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 €5.10

$2.54 R 41.84

125.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.45 €4.85

$3.11 R 51.3

75.24%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.33 R 21.87

36.84%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 €1.23

$1.14 R 18.79

21.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$1.77 R 29.09

58.19%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.30

$2.73 R 45.04

76.92%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.05 €13.39

$8.60 R 142

75.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 €9.45

$5.46 R 90.0

94.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.43 €16.39

$7.42 R 122

148.38%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$2.11 R 34.83

4.27%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$1.67 R 27.54

13.77%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.75 R 28.84

-21.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.63 R 26.84

28.83%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 €0.96

$1.66 R 27.30

-34.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.64 R 26.97

-31.71%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.22 R 20.15

-8.20%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.27 R 20.92

-30.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.48 €4.88

$3.27 R 53.9

67.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.13 €9.01

$5.22 R 85.9

94.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 €1.89

$1.52 R 25.07

40.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$2.20 R 36.27

2.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.36 €1.21

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.89 €26.59

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.45 €3.96

$0.31 R 5.18

1335.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 €0.90

$0.89 R 14.63

14.61%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.92 €15.05

$14.30 R 236

18.32%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.49 R 24.49

51.01%

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

$28.0K €24.9K

$36.0K R 593.8K

-22.23%

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

$28.2K €25.1K

$32.5K R 536.0K

-13.23%

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

$205 €182

$150 R 2,479

35.96%

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

$26.65 €23.71

$38.56 R 635

-30.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.02

$37.13 R 612

-18.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.47

$20.40 R 336

167.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.88 €23.02

$4.63 R 76.3

458.96%

Cinema Ticket

$10.42 €9.27

$7.04 R 116

48.01%

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

$569 €506

$262 R 4,320

117.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K €11.2K

$5,581 R 91.9K

125.50%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 €78.9

$52.7 R 868

68.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.46 €35.99

$46.09 R 759

-12.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.3

$111 R 1,825

-5.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$84.9 R 1,399

42.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$741 €659

$313 R 5,159

136.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$655 €582

$298 R 4,914

119.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,300 €1,156

$617 R 10.2K

110.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 €1,021

$718 R 11.8K

59.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,014 €3,570

$603 R 9,935

565.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,460 €3,078

$785 R 12.9K

340.98%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,242 €1,105

$1,879 R 31.0K

-33.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

11.34

-60.49%

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

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Last update for Randburg: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$655 36.9%

Randburg

$298 28.2% 54.4% $356

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$310 17.5%

Randburg

$205 19.3% 34.1% $106

Eating Out

Athens

$268 15.1%

Randburg

$157 14.9% 41.4% $111

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$262 14.7%

Randburg

$226 21.4% 13.5% $35

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$160 9%

Randburg

$132 12.5% 17.2% $27

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Randburg

$34 3.3% 54.2% $41

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Randburg

$4.8 * 0.5% 89.4% $40

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 $313 in Randburg. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Randburg pays 51% 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 $43.00 in Randburg for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $310 vs $205 per month, with Randburg cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇿🇦 Randburg

🕒 Local time

10:10 10:10 AM

09:10 9:10 AM

1 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

335,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Athens Randburg 7,140 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Athens
Randburg

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 Randburg: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Randburg wins on cost – living expenses run 68% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Randburg the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 51% lower in Randburg. 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 $313 in Randburg. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $569 in Athens versus $262 in Randburg. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Randburg – a meal for two runs $43.00 versus $68.0 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,058 in Randburg versus $1,775 in Athens, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Randburg but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Randburg the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Randburg delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,058 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Randburg hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athens and Randburg 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 Randburg gentler on the wallet – expenses run 68% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.