Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Secunda

For one person, living is cheaper in Secunda: $1,056 a month against $1,775 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $8,600 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
51

Cost of Living Index in Secunda
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Secunda Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Secunda

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,056

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Secunda

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,775 in Athens versus $1,056 in Secunda.

Athens $1,775
Secunda $1,056

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $1,618 in Secunda.

Athens $2,721
Secunda $1,618

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,666 in Athens versus $2,180 in Secunda.

Athens $3,666
Secunda $2,180

Living in Athens is roughly 68% more expensive than in Secunda, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athens is 31% above, Secunda is 22% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.84

$5.88 R 96.8

183.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.8 €60.3

$30.10 R 496

125.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.14 €9.91

$5.51 R 90.8

102.18%

Cappuccino

$4.03 €3.58

$2.19 R 36.07

84.02%

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

$2.77 €2.46

$0.87 R 14.39

218.39%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$0.49 R 8.09

12.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 €5.10

$1.05 R 17.30

446.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.45 €4.85

$1.33 R 21.95

309.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.14 R 18.80

59.65%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 €1.23

$0.93 R 15.39

48.39%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$1.82 R 30.01

53.85%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.30

$2.52 R 41.60

91.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.05 €13.39

$8.19 R 135

83.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 €9.45

$4.98 R 82.1

113.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.43 €16.39

$7.24 R 119

154.56%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$1.78 R 29.25

23.60%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$1.60 R 26.30

18.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.78 R 29.33

-23.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.54 R 25.43

36.36%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 €0.96

$1.07 R 17.70

0.93%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.22 R 20.12

-8.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.21 R 19.98

-7.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.32 R 21.82

-33.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.48 €4.88

$3.27 R 53.8

67.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.13 €9.01

$4.96 R 81.7

104.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 €1.89

$1.50 R 24.78

42.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.98 R 32.66

13.64%

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

$0.29 R 4.71

1434.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 €0.90

$0.80 R 13.12

27.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.92 €15.05

$14.38 R 237

17.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.55 R 25.49

45.16%

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

$28.0K €24.9K

$35.4K R 582.9K

-20.77%

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

$28.2K €25.1K

$33.5K R 551.6K

-15.68%

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

$205 €182

$153 R 2,518

33.86%

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

$26.65 €23.71

$36.64 R 604

-27.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.02

$37.15 R 612

-18.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.47

$32.57 R 537

67.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.88 €23.02

$10.79 R 178

139.85%

Cinema Ticket

$10.42 €9.27

$7.09 R 117

46.97%

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

$569 €506

$89.3 R 1,472

537.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K €11.2K

$5,575 R 91.8K

125.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 €78.9

$52.1 R 858

70.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.46 €35.99

$31.44 R 518

28.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.3

$91.5 R 1,507

14.71%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$82.6 R 1,360

46.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$741 €659

$394 R 6,486

88.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$655 €582

$363 R 5,984

80.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,300 €1,156

$743 R 12.2K

74.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 €1,021

$735 R 12.1K

56.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,014 €3,570

$861 R 14.2K

366.35%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,460 €3,078

$648 R 10.7K

433.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,242 €1,105

$1,418 R 23.4K

-12.40%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

11.34

-60.49%

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

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Last update for Secunda: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$655 36.9%

Secunda

$363 34.4% 44.5% $291

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$310 17.5%

Secunda

$190 18% 38.6% $120

Eating Out

Athens

$268 15.1%

Secunda

$103 9.8% 61.5% $165

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$262 14.7%

Secunda

$227 21.5% 13.4% $35

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$160 9%

Secunda

$116 11% 27.5% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Secunda

$47 4.4% 37.9% $29

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Secunda

$10 * 1% 77.2% $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 $394 in Secunda. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Secunda 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: $68.0 in Athens vs $30.00 in Secunda for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $310 vs $190 per month, with Secunda cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇿🇦 Secunda

🕒 Local time

15:13 3:13 PM

14:13 2:13 PM

1 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

40,198

💱 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 Secunda 7,190 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Athens
Secunda

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 Secunda: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Secunda wins on cost – living expenses run 68% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Secunda the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 14% lower in Secunda. 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 $394 in Secunda. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $569 in Athens versus $89.3 in Secunda. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Secunda – a meal for two runs $30.00 versus $68.0 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,056 in Secunda versus $1,775 in Athens, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Secunda but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Secunda the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Secunda delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,056 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Secunda hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athens and Secunda 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 Secunda gentler on the wallet – expenses run 68% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.