Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Side

For one person, living is cheaper in Side: $1,173 a month against $1,779 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $7,300 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
56

Cost of Living Index in Side
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Side Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,779

/mo nomad

Side

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,173

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Side

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,779 in Athens versus $1,173 in Side.

Athens $1,779
Side $1,173

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $1,882 in Side.

Athens $2,721
Side $1,882

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,663 in Athens versus $2,591 in Side.

Athens $3,663
Side $2,591

Living in Athens is roughly 52% more expensive than in Side, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athens is 32% above, Side is 13% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.83 €14.99

$9.39 ₺470

79.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.0 €58.8

$63.6 ₺3,180

3.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.21 €9.99

$9.71 ₺486

15.45%

Cappuccino

$4.08 €3.64

$3.60 ₺180

13.33%

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

$2.77 €2.47

$2.22 ₺111

24.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 €0.48

$0.37 ₺18.35

45.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.70 €5.08

$4.06 ₺203

40.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.26 €5.58

$5.98 ₺299

4.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.84 €1.64

$1.00 ₺50.2

84.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 €1.27

$0.99 ₺49.61

44.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.67 €2.38

$2.59 ₺130

3.09%

Eggs

$4.95 €4.41

$2.24 ₺112

120.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.09 €13.45

$14.23 ₺712

6.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.99 €9.79

$6.07 ₺304

81.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.77 €17.61

$27.41 ₺1,372

-27.87%

Apples (1kg)

$2.12 €1.89

$1.62 ₺81.2

30.86%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 €1.76

$2.43 ₺122

-18.52%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.33 €1.19

$1.43 ₺71.8

-6.99%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$1.42 ₺70.9

52.11%

Potato (1kg)

$1.06 €0.94

$0.81 ₺40.50

30.86%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 €1.02

$0.78 ₺39.17

47.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 €0.97

$1.66 ₺83.3

-34.94%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.85 €0.75

$0.75 ₺37.68

13.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.46 €4.86

$2.72 ₺136

100.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.03 €8.93

$14.80 ₺740

-32.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.04 €1.82

$1.67 ₺83.4

22.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 €2.12

$3.08 ₺154

-22.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.35 €1.20

$0.63 ₺31.48

114.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.52 €27.19

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 €3.39

$1.29 ₺64.6

195.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 €0.92

$1.02 ₺51.2

0.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.49 €14.68

$5.61 ₺281

193.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.34 €2.09

$1.60 ₺79.9

46.25%

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

$27.8K €24.7K

$49.1K ₺2.5M

-43.41%

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

$26.6K €23.7K

$43.4K ₺2.2M

-38.68%

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

$202 €180

$77.7 ₺3,889

160.19%

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

$26.81 €23.88

$10.41 ₺521

157.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.49 €27.16

$23.82 ₺1,192

28.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.1 €48.17

$53.3 ₺2,668

1.43%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.40 €24.41

Cinema Ticket

$10.44 €9.30

$7.69 ₺385

35.76%

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

$568 €506

$504 ₺25.2K

12.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.2K €13.5K

$12.2K ₺611.7K

24.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.7 €80.8

$46.71 ₺2,337

94.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.32 €35.03

$56.3 ₺2,817

-30.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.7

$155 ₺7,760

-32.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 €115

$118 ₺5,881

9.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$742 €661

$483 ₺24.2K

53.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$648 €578

$331 ₺16.6K

95.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,271 €1,132

$763 ₺38.2K

66.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,122 €999

$562 ₺28.1K

99.72%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,999 €3,562

$1,427 ₺71.4K

180.18%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,281 €2,923

$1,000 ₺50.0K

228.13%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,245 €1,109

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.44

38.25

-88.39%

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

Last update for Athens: October 31, 2026

Last update for Side: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$648 36.4%

Side

$331 28.2% 49% $318

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$316 17.8%

Side

$294 25% 7.1% $22

Eating Out

Athens

$272 15.3%

Side

$190 16.2% 30% $82

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$260 14.6%

Side

$112 9.5% 56.9% $148

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$164 9.2%

Side

$169 14.4% 3.1% $5.2

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Side

$69 5.9% 8.4% $6.3

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Side

$8.9 * 0.8% 80.1% $36

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 $483 in Side. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $66 in Athens vs $64 in Side for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $316 vs $294 per month, with Side cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇹🇷 Side

🕒 Local time

20:36 8:36 PM

21:36 9:36 PM

1 h ahead of Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

12,500

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 TRY = 2 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Athens Side 690 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Athens
Side

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 Side: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Side wins on cost – living expenses run 34% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Side the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $2,669 in Athens and $1,760 in Side 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: $742 in Athens versus $483 in Side. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $568 in Athens versus $504 in Side. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Side – a meal for two runs $64 versus $66 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,173 in Side versus $1,779 in Athens, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Side but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Side 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.