Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Scottburgh

For one person, living is cheaper in Scottburgh: $1,097 a month against $1,775 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

86

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index
53

Cost of Living Index in Scottburgh
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Scottburgh Living Index

Jump to prices

Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Scottburgh

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,097

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Scottburgh

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,775 in Athens versus $1,097 in Scottburgh.

Athens $1,775
Scottburgh $1,097

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $1,694 in Scottburgh.

Athens $2,721
Scottburgh $1,694

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,666 in Athens versus $2,292 in Scottburgh.

Athens $3,666
Scottburgh $2,292

Living in Athens is roughly 62% more expensive than in Scottburgh, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athens is 31% above, Scottburgh is 19% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.84

$7.88 R 130

111.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.8 €60.3

$39.22 R 646

72.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.14 €9.91

$5.88 R 96.8

89.46%

Cappuccino

$4.03 €3.58

$2.66 R 43.74

51.50%

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

$2.77 €2.46

$1.09 R 17.88

154.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$0.88 R 14.55

-37.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 €5.10

$2.38 R 39.13

141.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.45 €4.85

$2.48 R 40.78

119.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.22 R 20.06

49.18%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 €1.23

$0.93 R 15.24

48.39%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$1.49 R 24.63

87.92%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.30

$2.33 R 38.32

107.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.05 €13.39

$8.10 R 133

85.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 €9.45

$5.16 R 85.1

106.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.43 €16.39

$7.40 R 122

149.05%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$1.99 R 32.71

10.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$1.94 R 32.03

-2.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.95 R 32.05

-29.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.73 R 28.45

21.39%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 €0.96

$1.55 R 25.56

-30.32%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.40 R 23.05

-20.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.16 R 19.09

-3.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.16 R 19.10

-24.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.48 €4.88

$3.65 R 60.2

50.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.13 €9.01

$4.74 R 78.1

113.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 €1.89

$1.46 R 24.08

45.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.85 R 30.47

21.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.36 €1.21

$1.49 R 24.51

-8.72%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.89 €26.59

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.45 €3.96

$0.43 R 7.09

934.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 €0.90

$0.70 R 11.47

45.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.92 €15.05

$7.59 R 125

122.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.50 R 24.75

50.00%

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

$28.0K €24.9K

$36.0K R 592.9K

-22.11%

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

$28.2K €25.1K

$30.6K R 504.9K

-7.88%

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

$205 €182

$148 R 2,436

38.36%

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

$26.65 €23.71

$35.47 R 584

-24.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.02

$39.05 R 643

-22.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.47

$31.70 R 522

71.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.88 €23.02

$10.92 R 180

137.00%

Cinema Ticket

$10.42 €9.27

$7.35 R 121

41.77%

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

$569 €506

$309 R 5,089

84.25%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K €11.2K

$7,540 R 124.2K

66.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 €78.9

$54.5 R 897

62.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.46 €35.99

$29.70 R 489

36.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.3

$100 R 1,648

4.87%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$85.1 R 1,402

42.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$741 €659

$389 R 6,407

90.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$655 €582

$366 R 6,038

78.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,300 €1,156

$739 R 12.2K

75.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 €1,021

$718 R 11.8K

59.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,014 €3,570

$867 R 14.3K

362.84%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,460 €3,078

$664 R 10.9K

421.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,242 €1,105

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

11.78

-61.97%

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

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Last update for Scottburgh: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$655 36.9%

Scottburgh

$366 33.4% 44% $288

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$310 17.5%

Scottburgh

$194 17.6% 37.7% $117

Eating Out

Athens

$268 15.1%

Scottburgh

$137 12.5% 48.8% $131

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$262 14.7%

Scottburgh

$222 20.3% 15% $39

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$160 9%

Scottburgh

$121 11.1% 24.2% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Scottburgh

$46 4.2% 38.4% $29

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Scottburgh

$9.9 * 0.9% 78% $35

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 $389 in Scottburgh. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $68.0 in Athens vs $39.00 in Scottburgh for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $310 vs $194 per month, with Scottburgh cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇿🇦 Scottburgh

🕒 Local time

10:40 10:40 AM

09:40 9:40 AM

1 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

23,949

💱 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 Scottburgh 7,630 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Athens
Scottburgh

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 Scottburgh: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Scottburgh wins on cost – living expenses run 62% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Scottburgh the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $2,662 in Athens and $1,646 in Scottburgh to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $741 in Athens versus $389 in Scottburgh. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $569 in Athens versus $309 in Scottburgh. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Scottburgh – a meal for two runs $39.00 versus $68.0 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,097 in Scottburgh versus $1,775 in Athens, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Scottburgh but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Scottburgh the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Scottburgh delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,097 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Scottburgh hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athens and Scottburgh 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 Scottburgh gentler on the wallet – expenses run 62% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.