Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Athens and Sun City

For one person, living is cheaper in Sun City: $1,255 a month against $1,775 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $6,200 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
61

Cost of Living Index in Sun City
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Sun City Living Index

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Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Sun City

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,255

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Athens and in Sun City

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,775 in Athens versus $1,255 in Sun City.

Athens $1,775
Sun City $1,255

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,721 in Athens versus $1,930 in Sun City.

Athens $2,721
Sun City $1,930

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,666 in Athens versus $2,606 in Sun City.

Athens $3,666
Sun City $2,606

Living in Athens is roughly 41% more expensive than in Sun City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Athens is 31% above, Sun City is 7% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.84

$11.94 R 197

39.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.8 €60.3

$43.53 R 717

55.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.14 €9.91

$7.40 R 122

50.54%

Cappuccino

$4.03 €3.58

$2.46 R 40.54

63.82%

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

$2.77 €2.46

$1.23 R 20.26

125.20%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$0.93 R 15.34

-40.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.74 €5.10

$2.20 R 36.18

160.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.45 €4.85

$2.77 R 45.61

96.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.35 R 22.30

34.81%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 €1.23

$1.28 R 21.14

7.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$1.77 R 29.18

58.19%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.30

$2.63 R 43.27

83.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.05 €13.39

$8.41 R 139

78.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 €9.45

$5.65 R 93.1

88.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.43 €16.39

$8.48 R 140

117.33%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$2.10 R 34.58

4.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$1.88 R 30.91

1.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.77 R 29.21

-22.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$2.12 R 34.93

-0.94%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 €0.96

$1.67 R 27.45

-35.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.83 R 30.09

-38.80%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.49 R 24.55

-24.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.32 R 21.70

-33.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.48 €4.88

$3.38 R 55.8

62.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.13 €9.01

$6.09 R 100

66.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.13 €1.89

$1.89 R 31.11

12.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$2.40 R 39.52

-6.25%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.36 €1.21

$1.49 R 24.54

-8.72%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.89 €26.59

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.45 €3.96

$0.82 R 13.44

442.68%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 €0.90

$0.91 R 15.01

12.09%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.92 €15.05

$14.50 R 239

16.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.49 R 24.59

51.01%

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

$28.0K €24.9K

$35.2K R 579.9K

-20.37%

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

$28.2K €25.1K

$31.5K R 519.7K

-10.50%

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

$205 €182

$233 R 3,832

-12.05%

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

$26.65 €23.71

$38.09 R 628

-30.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.02

$36.25 R 597

-16.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.47

$32.16 R 530

69.43%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.88 €23.02

$10.57 R 174

144.84%

Cinema Ticket

$10.42 €9.27

$7.69 R 127

35.50%

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

$569 €506

$246 R 4,052

131.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.6K €11.2K

$5,459 R 89.9K

130.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 €78.9

$58.1 R 957

52.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.46 €35.99

$46.31 R 763

-12.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.3

$107 R 1,766

-2.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$107 R 1,757

13.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$741 €659

$395 R 6,502

87.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$655 €582

$354 R 5,834

84.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,300 €1,156

$737 R 12.1K

76.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,148 €1,021

$737 R 12.1K

55.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,014 €3,570

$890 R 14.7K

350.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,460 €3,078

$658 R 10.8K

426.26%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,242 €1,105

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

10.91

-58.94%

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

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Last update for Sun City: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Athens

$655 36.9%

Sun City

$354 28.2% 45.9% $300

Groceries & Markets

Athens

$310 17.5%

Sun City

$219 17.5% 29.4% $91

Eating Out

Athens

$268 15.1%

Sun City

$172 13.7% 35.7% $96

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Athens

$262 14.7%

Sun City

$307 24.5% 17.3% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Athens

$160 9%

Sun City

$143 11.4% 10.4% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Athens

$75 4.2%

Sun City

$48 3.8% 36.9% $28

Getting Around

Athens

$45 2.5%

Sun City

$11 * 0.9% 74.8% $34

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 $395 in Sun City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $68.0 in Athens vs $44.00 in Sun City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $310 vs $219 per month, with Sun City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Athens

🇿🇦 Sun City

🕒 Local time

12:55 12:55 PM

11:55 11:55 AM

1 h behind Athens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

1,556

💱 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 Sun City 7,050 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Athens
Sun City

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 Sun City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sun City wins on cost – living expenses run 41% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Sun City the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $2,662 in Athens and $1,882 in Sun City 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 $395 in Sun City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $569 in Athens versus $246 in Sun City. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Sun City – a meal for two runs $44.00 versus $68.0 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,255 in Sun City versus $1,775 in Athens, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Sun City but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Sun City the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Sun City delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,255 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Sun City hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Athens and Sun City 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 Sun City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 41% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.