Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Sal

For one person, living is cheaper in Sal: $851 a month against $1,779 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $11,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

85

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index
41

Cost of Living Index in Sal
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Sal Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,779

/mo nomad

Sal

🇨🇻 Cape Verde

$851

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Sal

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,779 in Athens versus $851 in Sal.

Athens $1,779
Sal $851

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $1,317 in Sal.

Athens $2,721
Sal $1,317

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,663 in Athens versus $1,784 in Sal.

Athens $3,663
Sal $1,784

Living in Athens is roughly 109% more expensive than in Sal, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athens is 32% above, Sal is 37% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.83 €14.99

$5.62 CVE 550

199.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.0 €58.8

$44.81 CVE 4,385

47.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.21 €9.99

$11.38 CVE 1,113

-1.49%

Cappuccino

$4.08 €3.64

$2.36 CVE 231

72.88%

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

$2.77 €2.47

$2.53 CVE 248

9.49%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 €0.48

$1.11 CVE 108

-51.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.70 €5.08

$4.62 CVE 452

23.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.26 €5.58

$3.08 CVE 302

103.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 €1.64

$1.60 CVE 157

15.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 €1.27

$2.20 CVE 215

-35.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.67 €2.38

$1.20 CVE 117

122.50%

Eggs

$4.95 €4.41

$2.89 CVE 283

71.28%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.09 €13.45

$9.08 CVE 888

66.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.99 €9.79

$7.80 CVE 763

40.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.77 €17.61

$15.92 CVE 1,558

24.18%

Apples (1kg)

$2.12 €1.89

$3.13 CVE 306

-32.27%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 €1.76

$2.38 CVE 233

-16.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.33 €1.19

$3.19 CVE 312

-58.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$3.84 CVE 376

-43.75%

Potato (1kg)

$1.06 €0.94

$1.69 CVE 166

-37.28%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 €1.02

$1.83 CVE 179

-37.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 €0.97

$1.49 CVE 146

-27.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.85 €0.75

$1.09 CVE 107

-22.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.46 €4.86

$4.44 CVE 434

22.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.03 €8.93

$6.41 CVE 627

56.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.04 €1.82

$4.09 CVE 400

-50.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 €2.12

$1.83 CVE 179

30.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.35 €1.20

$0.99 CVE 97.2

36.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.52 €27.19

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 €3.39

$2.06 CVE 202

84.95%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 €0.92

$3.14 CVE 307

-67.20%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.49 €14.68

$12.47 CVE 1,220

32.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.34 €2.09

$1.34 CVE 131

74.63%

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

$27.8K €24.7K

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

$26.6K €23.7K

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

$202 €180

$60.0 CVE 5,870

237.09%

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

$26.81 €23.88

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.49 €27.16

$49.50 CVE 4,844

-38.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.1 €48.17

$27.44 CVE 2,685

97.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.40 €24.41

Cinema Ticket

$10.44 €9.30

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

$568 €506

$116 CVE 11.4K

388.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.2K €13.5K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.7 €80.8

$30.02 CVE 2,937

201.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.32 €35.03

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.7

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 €115

$144 CVE 14.1K

-10.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$742 €661

$252 CVE 24.7K

193.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$648 €578

$168 CVE 16.4K

286.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,271 €1,132

$301 CVE 29.4K

323.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,122 €999

$207 CVE 20.2K

442.47%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,999 €3,562

$669 CVE 65.5K

497.70%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,281 €2,923

$339 CVE 33.2K

867.49%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,245 €1,109

$257 CVE 25.1K

384.69%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.44

5.25

-15.43%

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

Last update for Athens: October 31, 2026

Last update for Sal: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$648 36.4%

Sal

$168 19.7% 74.1% $481

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$316 17.8%

Sal

$295 34.7% 6.7% $21

Eating Out

Athens

$272 15.3%

Sal

$151 17.8% 44.3% $120

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$260 14.6%

Sal

$110 * 12.9% 57.8% $150

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$164 9.2%

Sal

$78 * 9.2% 52.2% $86

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Sal

$27 * 3.2% 63.4% $48

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Sal

$22 * 2.6% 51.6% $23

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 $742 in Athens and $252 in Sal. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Athens pays about 4.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $66 in Athens vs $45 in Sal for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $316 vs $295 per month, with Sal cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇨🇻 Sal

🕒 Local time

02:39 2:39 AM

23:39 11:39 PM

3 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

1,288

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Cabo Verdean Escudo CVE $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 CVE = 10.22 USD

1,000 CVE = 9.1 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CVE, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.891 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Cabo Verdean Escudo exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 97.85 CVE (100 CVE = 1.02 USD). 1 EUR = 110 CVE (1,000 CVE = 9.1 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

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Between locations

Athens Sal 5,110 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Athens
Sal

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 Sal: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sal wins on cost – living expenses run 52% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Sal the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Athens is about 4.8 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $742 in Athens versus $252 in Sal. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $568 in Athens versus $116 in Sal. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Sal – a meal for two runs $45 versus $66 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $851 in Sal versus $1,779 in Athens, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Sal but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Sal 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 Sal are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Sal wins on affordability, Athens on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.