Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Southwark

For one person, living is cheaper in Southwark: $1,473 a month against $1,775 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $3,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Athens outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

86

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index
72

Cost of Living Index in Southwark
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Southwark Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Southwark

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$1,473

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Southwark

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,775 in Athens versus $1,473 in Southwark.

Athens $1,775
Southwark $1,473

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $4,277 in Southwark.

Athens $2,721
Southwark $4,277

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,666 in Athens versus $7,080 in Southwark.

Athens $3,666
Southwark $7,080

Living in Athens is roughly 20% more expensive than in Southwark, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Athens 31% above, Southwark 9% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.84

$24.89 £18.67

-32.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.8 €60.3

$98.4 £73.8

-31.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.14 €9.91

$10.65 £7.99

4.60%

Cappuccino

$4.03 €3.58

$5.71 £4.28

-29.42%

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

$2.77 €2.46

$2.97 £2.22

-6.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$2.50 £1.87

-78.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 €5.10

$9.43 £7.07

-39.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.45 €4.85

$8.01 £6.01

-31.96%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.95 £1.47

-6.67%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 €1.23

$2.04 £1.53

-32.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$2.10 £1.58

33.33%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.30

$4.40 £3.30

9.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.05 €13.39

$11.64 £8.74

29.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 €9.45

$9.39 £7.04

13.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.43 €16.39

$14.91 £11.19

23.61%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$2.95 £2.21

-25.42%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$1.36 £1.02

39.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$2.87 £2.15

-52.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$3.38 £2.53

-37.87%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 €0.96

$1.65 £1.24

-34.55%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.73 £1.30

-35.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.30 £0.98

-13.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.78 £1.33

-50.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.48 €4.88

$23.70 £17.78

-76.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.13 €9.01

$11.87 £8.91

-14.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 €1.89

$3.02 £2.27

-29.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$3.23 £2.42

-30.34%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.36 €1.21

$3.90 £2.93

-65.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.89 €26.59

$159 £119

-81.23%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.45 €3.96

$5.05 £3.79

-11.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 €0.90

$2.70 £2.02

-62.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.92 €15.05

$39.31 £29.49

-56.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 €2.00

$2.14 £1.60

5.14%

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

$28.0K €24.9K

$38.6K £28.9K

-27.35%

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

$28.2K €25.1K

$40.2K £30.2K

-29.85%

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

$205 €182

$329 £247

-37.84%

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

$26.65 €23.71

$17.85 £13.39

49.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.02

$40.79 £30.60

-25.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.47

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.88 €23.02

Cinema Ticket

$10.42 €9.27

$17.69 £13.27

-41.10%

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

$569 €506

$2,484 £1,864

-77.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K €11.2K

$29.9K £22.4K

-57.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 €78.9

$90.9 £68.2

-2.51%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.46 €35.99

$46.17 £34.63

-12.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.3

$103 £77.1

2.08%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$89.2 £66.9

36.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$741 €659

$2,309 £1,732

-67.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$655 €582

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,300 €1,156

$5,679 £4,260

-77.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 €1,021

$3,867 £2,901

-70.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,014 €3,570

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,460 €3,078

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,242 €1,105

$4,165 £3,124

-70.17%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

5.12

-12.50%

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

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Last update for Southwark: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$655 36.9%

Southwark

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$310 17.5%

Southwark

$324 22% 4.4% $14

Eating Out

Athens

$268 15.1%

Southwark

$385 26.1% 43.4% $116

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$262 14.7%

Southwark

$388 26.3% 48.2% $126

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$160 9%

Southwark

$148 10.1% 7.4% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Southwark

$35 * 2.4% 53% $40

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Southwark

$193 13.1% 331% $149

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 $2,309 in Southwark. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Southwark pays 235% 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 $98.0 in Southwark for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $310 vs $324 per month, with Athens cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇬🇧 Southwark

🕒 Local time

01:25 1:25 AM

23:25 11:25 PM

2 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

71,552

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Athens Southwark 2,390 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Athens
Southwark

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 Southwark: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Southwark wins on cost – living expenses run 20% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Southwark the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 235% lower in Southwark. 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 $2,309 in Southwark. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Southwark – a meal for two runs $98.0 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 $1,473 in Southwark – a 20% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,473 in Southwark versus $1,775 in Athens, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Southwark but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Southwark the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Southwark delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,473 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Southwark hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athens and Southwark 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 Southwark gentler on the wallet – expenses run 20% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.