Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Riffa

For one person, living is cheaper in Riffa: $1,199 a month against $1,779 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $7,000 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
58

Cost of Living Index in Riffa
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Riffa Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,779

/mo nomad

Riffa

🇧🇭 Bahrain

$1,199

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Riffa

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,779 in Athens versus $1,199 in Riffa.

Athens $1,779
Riffa $1,199

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $1,877 in Riffa.

Athens $2,721
Riffa $1,877

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,663 in Athens versus $2,554 in Riffa.

Athens $3,663
Riffa $2,554

Living in Athens is roughly 48% more expensive than in Riffa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athens is 32% above, Riffa is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.83 €14.99

$5.36 BHD 2.02

213.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.0 €58.8

$40.33 BHD 15.21

63.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.21 €9.99

$5.78 BHD 2.18

93.94%

Cappuccino

$4.08 €3.64

$4.02 BHD 1.52

1.49%

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

$2.77 €2.47

$0.65 BHD 0.24

326.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 €0.48

$0.26 BHD 0.10

107.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.70 €5.08

$6.50 BHD 2.45

-12.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.26 €5.58

$8.06 BHD 3.04

-22.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 €1.64

$1.43 BHD 0.54

28.67%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 €1.27

$0.68 BHD 0.25

110.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.67 €2.38

$1.90 BHD 0.72

40.53%

Eggs

$4.95 €4.41

$2.32 BHD 0.88

113.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.09 €13.45

$8.01 BHD 3.02

88.39%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.99 €9.79

$6.26 BHD 2.36

75.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.77 €17.61

$8.55 BHD 3.23

131.23%

Apples (1kg)

$2.12 €1.89

$2.28 BHD 0.86

-7.02%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 €1.76

$1.69 BHD 0.64

17.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.33 €1.19

$1.89 BHD 0.71

-29.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$1.07 BHD 0.41

101.87%

Potato (1kg)

$1.06 €0.94

$1.01 BHD 0.38

4.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 €1.02

$0.65 BHD 0.24

76.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 €0.97

$0.52 BHD 0.20

107.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.85 €0.75

$0.51 BHD 0.19

66.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.46 €4.86

$5.45 BHD 2.06

0.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.03 €8.93

$13.20 BHD 4.98

-24.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.04 €1.82

$1.89 BHD 0.71

7.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 €2.12

$2.57 BHD 0.97

-7.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.35 €1.20

$0.78 BHD 0.29

73.08%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.52 €27.19

$35.09 BHD 13.24

-13.02%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 €3.39

$5.34 BHD 2.01

-28.65%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 €0.92

$3.39 BHD 1.28

-69.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.49 €14.68

$10.55 BHD 3.98

56.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.34 €2.09

$0.50 BHD 0.19

368.00%

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

$27.8K €24.7K

$23.0K BHD 8,659

20.96%

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

$26.6K €23.7K

$19.3K BHD 7,280

37.85%

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

$202 €180

$130 BHD 49.14

55.23%

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

$26.81 €23.88

$24.76 BHD 9.34

8.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.49 €27.16

$35.12 BHD 13.25

-13.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.1 €48.17

$72.6 BHD 27.39

-25.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.40 €24.41

$13.09 BHD 4.94

109.32%

Cinema Ticket

$10.44 €9.30

$10.78 BHD 4.06

-3.15%

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

$568 €506

$623 BHD 235

-8.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.2K €13.5K

$5,641 BHD 2,128

169.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.7 €80.8

$29.25 BHD 11.03

209.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.32 €35.03

$21.36 BHD 8.06

84.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.7

$65.5 BHD 24.72

60.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 €115

$40.29 BHD 15.20

220.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$742 €661

$925 BHD 349

-19.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$648 €578

$416 BHD 157

55.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,271 €1,132

$1,542 BHD 582

-17.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,122 €999

$878 BHD 331

27.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,999 €3,562

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,281 €2,923

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,245 €1,109

$1,417 BHD 534

-12.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.44

5.5

-19.27%

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

Last update for Athens: October 31, 2026

Last update for Riffa: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$648 36.4%

Riffa

$416 34.7% 35.8% $232

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$316 17.8%

Riffa

$207 17.3% 34.6% $109

Eating Out

Athens

$272 15.3%

Riffa

$161 13.4% 40.8% $111

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$260 14.6%

Riffa

$190 15.9% 26.7% $69

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$164 9.2%

Riffa

$70 5.9% 57% $93

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Riffa

$94 7.9% 25.6% $19

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Riffa

$61 5.1% 34.8% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $742 in Athens and $925 in Riffa. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Riffa pays 14% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $66 in Athens vs $40 in Riffa for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $316 vs $207 per month, with Riffa cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇧🇭 Riffa

🕒 Local time

02:50 2:50 AM

03:50 3:50 AM

1 h ahead of Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

121,566

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Bahraini Dinar BHD .د.ب

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 BHD = 2.65 USD

1 BHD = 2.36 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Athens Riffa 2,840 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

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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 Riffa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Riffa wins on cost – living expenses run 33% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Riffa the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 12% lower in Athens. 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: $742 in Athens versus $925 in Riffa. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Riffa – a meal for two runs $40 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 $1,199 in Riffa – Riffa is about 33% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,199 in Riffa versus $1,779 in Athens, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Riffa but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Riffa 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.

Safety-wise, Athens and Riffa are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.