Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Sarande

For one person, living is cheaper in Sarande: $1,285 a month against $1,775 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $5,900 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
63

Cost of Living Index in Sarande
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Sarande Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Sarande

🇦🇱 Albania

$1,285

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Sarande

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,775 in Athens versus $1,285 in Sarande.

Athens $1,775
Sarande $1,285

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $2,181 in Sarande.

Athens $2,721
Sarande $2,181

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,666 in Athens versus $3,076 in Sarande.

Athens $3,666
Sarande $3,076

Living in Athens is roughly 38% more expensive than in Sarande, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athens is 31% above, Sarande is 5% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.84

$9.93 ALL 800

68.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.8 €60.3

$54.5 ALL 4,392

24.32%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.14 €9.91

$11.03 ALL 888

1.00%

Cappuccino

$4.03 €3.58

$2.23 ALL 180

80.72%

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

$2.77 €2.46

$2.44 ALL 197

13.52%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$1.15 ALL 92.8

-52.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 €5.10

$3.52 ALL 283

63.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.45 €4.85

$4.12 ALL 332

32.28%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.62

$2.18 ALL 175

-16.51%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 €1.23

$1.18 ALL 95.4

16.95%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$2.31 ALL 186

21.21%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.30

$3.77 ALL 304

28.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.05 €13.39

$12.44 ALL 1,002

20.98%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 €9.45

$9.09 ALL 732

16.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.43 €16.39

$16.98 ALL 1,368

8.54%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$1.94 ALL 156

13.40%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$2.41 ALL 194

-21.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.98 ALL 160

-30.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.83 ALL 147

14.75%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 €0.96

$1.01 ALL 81.5

6.93%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.29 ALL 103

-13.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.48 ALL 119

-24.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.77 ALL 62.2

14.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.48 €4.88

$4.82 ALL 388

13.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.13 €9.01

$7.46 ALL 601

35.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 €1.89

$1.61 ALL 129

32.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$2.06 ALL 166

9.22%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.36 €1.21

$1.10 ALL 88.7

23.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.89 €26.59

$22.72 ALL 1,830

31.56%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.45 €3.96

$3.69 ALL 297

20.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 €0.90

$3.56 ALL 287

-71.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.92 €15.05

$18.51 ALL 1,491

-8.59%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 €2.00

$2.23 ALL 180

0.90%

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

$28.0K €24.9K

$33.1K ALL 2.7M

-15.40%

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

$28.2K €25.1K

$27.8K ALL 2.2M

1.68%

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

$205 €182

$99.9 ALL 8,043

104.85%

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

$26.65 €23.71

$18.16 ALL 1,462

46.75%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.02

$19.41 ALL 1,563

56.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.47

$87.5 ALL 7,047

-37.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.88 €23.02

$40.89 ALL 3,293

-36.71%

Cinema Ticket

$10.42 €9.27

$9.79 ALL 788

6.44%

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

$569 €506

$296 ALL 23.8K

92.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K €11.2K

$7,951 ALL 640.3K

58.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 €78.9

$71.9 ALL 5,789

23.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.46 €35.99

$47.68 ALL 3,839

-15.14%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.3

$120 ALL 9,692

-12.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$111 ALL 8,958

9.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$741 €659

$857 ALL 69.0K

-13.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$655 €582

$373 ALL 30.1K

75.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,300 €1,156

$1,094 ALL 88.1K

18.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 €1,021

$925 ALL 74.5K

24.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,014 €3,570

$4,468 ALL 359.8K

-10.17%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,460 €3,078

$2,840 ALL 228.7K

21.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,242 €1,105

$756 ALL 60.9K

64.32%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

5.39

-16.88%

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

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Last update for Sarande: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$655 36.9%

Sarande

$373 29.1% 43% $281

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$310 17.5%

Sarande

$281 21.9% 9.6% $30

Eating Out

Athens

$268 15.1%

Sarande

$180 14% 33% $89

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$262 14.7%

Sarande

$137 10.7% 47.5% $124

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$160 9%

Sarande

$158 12.3% 1.2% $1.9

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Sarande

$107 8.3% 42.2% $32

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Sarande

$49 3.8% 8.4% $3.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $741 in Athens and $857 in Sarande. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Athens pays 64% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $68.0 in Athens vs $55.0 in Sarande for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $310 vs $281 per month, with Sarande cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇦🇱 Sarande

🕒 Local time

12:54 12:54 PM

11:54 11:54 AM

1 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

17,233

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Albanian Lek ALL L

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ALL = 1.24 USD

100 ALL = 1.1 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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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 Sarande: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sarande wins on cost – living expenses run 38% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Sarande the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 64% higher in Athens, 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: $741 in Athens versus $857 in Sarande. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Sarande – a meal for two runs $55.0 versus $68.0 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,775 per month in Athens versus $1,285 in Sarande – a 38% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,285 in Sarande versus $1,775 in Athens, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Sarande but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Sarande the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Sarande delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,285 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Sarande hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athens and Sarande 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 Sarande gentler on the wallet – expenses run 38% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.