Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and San Pawl Il-bahar

For one person, living costs are similar in Athens and in San Pawl Il-bahar: $1,775 and $1,697 a month, rent and utilities included.

86

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index
83

Cost of Living Index in San Pawl Il-bahar
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San Pawl Il-bahar Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

San Pawl Il-bahar

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,697

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in San Pawl Il-bahar

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 San Pawl Il-bahar actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,775 in Athens versus $1,697 in San Pawl Il-bahar.

Athens $1,775
San Pawl Il-bahar $1,697

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $2,593 in San Pawl Il-bahar.

Athens $2,721
San Pawl Il-bahar $2,593

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,666 in Athens versus $3,489 in San Pawl Il-bahar.

Athens $3,666
San Pawl Il-bahar $3,489

Living in Athens is roughly 5% more expensive than in San Pawl Il-bahar, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Athens 31% above, San Pawl Il-bahar 26% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.84

$19.75 €17.57

-15.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.8 €60.3

$82.2 €73.1

-17.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.14 €9.91

$11.28 €10.03

-1.24%

Cappuccino

$4.03 €3.58

$2.58 €2.30

56.20%

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

$2.77 €2.46

$2.47 €2.20

12.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$1.95 €1.74

-71.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 €5.10

$4.50 €4.00

27.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.45 €4.85

$5.18 €4.60

5.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.31 €1.17

38.93%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 €1.23

$1.16 €1.03

18.97%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$3.82 €3.40

-26.70%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.30

$3.62 €3.22

33.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.05 €13.39

$8.44 €7.50

78.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 €9.45

$7.75 €6.89

37.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.43 €16.39

$9.41 €8.37

95.86%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$2.98 €2.65

-26.17%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$2.05 €1.82

-7.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$2.93 €2.60

-53.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$2.86 €2.54

-26.57%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 €0.96

$1.57 €1.40

-31.21%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.84 €1.64

-39.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.19 €1.06

-5.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.20 €1.07

-26.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.48 €4.88

$6.33 €5.63

-13.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.13 €9.01

$8.30 €7.38

22.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 €1.89

$1.49 €1.32

42.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$2.00 €1.78

12.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.36 €1.21

$2.76 €2.46

-50.72%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.89 €26.59

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.45 €3.96

$5.72 €5.09

-22.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 €0.90

$2.17 €1.93

-53.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.92 €15.05

$26.51 €23.58

-36.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.47 €1.30

53.06%

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

$28.0K €24.9K

$38.3K €34.1K

-26.82%

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

$28.2K €25.1K

$39.6K €35.2K

-28.66%

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

$205 €182

$58.9 €52.4

247.60%

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

$26.65 €23.71

$20.63 €18.35

29.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.02

$39.96 €35.54

-23.97%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.47

$49.65 €44.17

9.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.88 €23.02

$13.51 €12.02

91.56%

Cinema Ticket

$10.42 €9.27

$9.96 €8.86

4.62%

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

$569 €506

$371 €330

53.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K €11.2K

$11.1K €9,915

12.90%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 €78.9

$22.55 €20.06

293.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.46 €35.99

$33.53 €29.83

20.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.3

$96.5 €85.8

8.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$75.4 €67.1

60.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$741 €659

$981 €872

-24.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$655 €582

$848 €755

-22.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,300 €1,156

$1,640 €1,459

-20.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 €1,021

$1,348 €1,199

-14.82%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,014 €3,570

$3,441 €3,061

16.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,460 €3,078

$2,867 €2,550

20.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,242 €1,105

$1,670 €1,485

-25.61%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

2.9

54.48%

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

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Last update for San Pawl Il-bahar: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$655 36.9%

San Pawl Il-bahar

$848 50% 29.6% $194

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$310 17.5%

San Pawl Il-bahar

$256 15.1% 17.6% $55

Eating Out

Athens

$268 15.1%

San Pawl Il-bahar

$273 16.1% 2% $5.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$262 14.7%

San Pawl Il-bahar

$119 7% 54.3% $142

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$160 9%

San Pawl Il-bahar

$103 6.1% 35.9% $57

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

San Pawl Il-bahar

$70 4.1% 7.6% $5.8

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

San Pawl Il-bahar

$28 * 1.6% 38.5% $17

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 $981 in San Pawl Il-bahar. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

San Pawl Il-bahar pays 34% 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 $82.0 in San Pawl Il-bahar. Groceries flip the comparison at $310 vs $256, with San Pawl Il-bahar cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇲🇹 San Pawl Il-bahar

🕒 Local time

19:41 7:41 PM

18:41 6:41 PM

1 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

21,046

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Athens San Pawl Il-bahar 860 km ≈ 1 h 30 min 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 San Pawl Il-bahar: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Pawl Il-bahar wins on cost – living expenses run 5% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making San Pawl Il-bahar the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 34% lower in San Pawl Il-bahar. 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 $981 in San Pawl Il-bahar. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $569 in Athens versus $371 in San Pawl Il-bahar. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in San Pawl Il-bahar – a meal for two runs $82.0 versus $68.0 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,697 in San Pawl Il-bahar versus $1,775 in Athens, a $2,500 budget is realistic in San Pawl Il-bahar but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes San Pawl Il-bahar the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but San Pawl Il-bahar delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,697 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes San Pawl Il-bahar hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athens and San Pawl Il-bahar 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 San Pawl Il-bahar gentler on the wallet – expenses run 5% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.