Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Basel and Athens

For one person, living is cheaper in Athens: $1,806 a month against $3,548 in Basel, rent and utilities included – about $20,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

170

Cost of Living Index in Basel
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Basel Living Index
87

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index

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Basel

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,548

/mo nomad

Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,806

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Basel and in Athens

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Basel and in Athens actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,548 in Basel versus $1,806 in Athens.

Basel $3,548
Athens $1,806

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,573 in Basel versus $2,731 in Athens.

Basel $5,573
Athens $2,731

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,599 in Basel versus $3,656 in Athens.

Basel $7,599
Athens $3,656

Living in Basel is roughly 96% more expensive than in Athens, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Basel 165% above, Athens 35% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$30.00 CHF 24.95

$16.66 €14.85

80.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$125 CHF 104

$66.2 €59.0

89.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$18.03 CHF 15.00

$11.06 €9.86

63.02%

Cappuccino

$6.54 CHF 5.44

$4.14 €3.69

57.97%

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

$6.48 CHF 5.39

$2.80 €2.50

131.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.77 CHF 4.80

$0.57 €0.51

912.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.22 CHF 7.66

$5.64 €5.03

63.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.42 CHF 7.84

$5.46 €4.86

72.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.20 CHF 1.83

$1.96 €1.74

12.24%

White Bread (500g)

$3.09 CHF 2.57

$1.41 €1.25

119.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.34 CHF 2.77

$2.83 €2.53

18.02%

Eggs

$7.70 CHF 6.40

$5.04 €4.49

52.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$26.14 CHF 21.73

$15.35 €13.68

70.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$27.34 CHF 22.73

$10.34 €9.22

164.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$41.29 CHF 34.33

$18.97 €16.92

117.66%

Apples (1kg)

$3.63 CHF 3.02

$2.17 €1.93

67.28%

Banana (1kg)

$2.27 CHF 1.89

$1.91 €1.70

18.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.03 CHF 2.52

$1.38 €1.23

119.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.70 CHF 3.91

$2.20 €1.96

113.64%

Potato (1kg)

$1.75 CHF 1.46

$1.10 €0.98

59.09%

Onion (1kg)

$1.98 CHF 1.65

$1.13 €1.00

75.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.17 CHF 1.81

$1.10 €0.98

97.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 CHF 1.34

$0.83 €0.74

93.98%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.41 CHF 9.49

$5.60 €4.99

103.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.15 CHF 10.10

$10.19 €9.08

19.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.45 CHF 2.04

$2.18 €1.95

12.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.98 CHF 2.48

$2.45 €2.18

21.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.82 CHF 4.01

$1.38 €1.23

249.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$103 CHF 85.4

$30.87 €27.52

232.75%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.68 CHF 6.39

$4.37 €3.90

75.74%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.70 CHF 3.91

$1.04 €0.93

351.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$82.9 CHF 68.9

$17.11 €15.26

384.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.31 CHF 1.92

$2.31 €2.06

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

$42.0K CHF 34.9K

$28.0K €24.9K

50.07%

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

$39.3K CHF 32.7K

$28.0K €25.0K

40.30%

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

$286 CHF 238

$210 €187

36.37%

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

$46.01 CHF 38.26

$26.70 €23.80

72.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$63.0 CHF 52.4

$30.13 €26.86

109.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$83.2 CHF 69.2

$54.6 €48.68

52.31%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$57.2 CHF 47.54

$26.03 €23.21

119.63%

Cinema Ticket

$22.81 CHF 18.97

$10.78 €9.61

111.60%

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

$2,915 CHF 2,424

$575 €513

406.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$32.5K CHF 27.0K

$13.1K €11.7K

147.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$147 CHF 122

$93.2 €83.1

58.10%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$79.8 CHF 66.4

$40.68 €36.27

96.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$164 CHF 137

$104 €92.8

57.94%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$197 CHF 164

$128 €114

53.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,943 CHF 1,616

$756 €674

157.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,503 CHF 1,250

$652 €582

130.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,544 CHF 2,947

$1,294 €1,153

173.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,822 CHF 2,346

$1,163 €1,037

142.67%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$18.3K CHF 15.2K

$4,008 €3,574

357.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$14.4K CHF 12.0K

$3,452 €3,078

316.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,904 CHF 5,741

$1,243 €1,109

455.29%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.42

4.48

-45.98%

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

Last update for Basel: October 3, 2026

Last update for Athens: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Basel

$1.5K 42.8%

Athens

$652 36.5% 56.6% $851

Groceries & Markets

Basel

$583 16.6%

Athens

$315 17.6% 46% $268

Eating Out

Basel

$487 13.8%

Athens

$269 15% 44.8% $218

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Basel

$395 11.2%

Athens

$267 14.9% 32.5% $128

Clothing & Footwear

Basel

$265 7.5%

Athens

$165 9.2% 37.8% $100

Getting Around

Basel

$153 4.4%

Athens

$46 2.6% 70% $107

Sport & Entertainment

Basel

$129 3.7%

Athens

$76 4.3% 40.9% $53

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,943 in Basel and $756 in Athens. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Basel pays 455% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $125 in Basel vs $66.0 in Athens for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $583 vs $315 per month, with Athens cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Basel

🇬🇷 Athens

🕒 Local time

07:24 7:24 AM

08:24 8:24 AM

1 h ahead of Basel

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

174,491

3,090,508 Capital

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.2 USD

1 CHF = 1.07 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.832 CHF (1 CHF = 1.2 USD). 1 EUR = 0.933 CHF (1 CHF = 1.07 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to CHF in detail →

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Between locations

Basel Athens 1,690 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

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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

Basel vs Athens: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Athens wins on cost – living expenses run 96% lower than in Basel. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Athens the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 455% higher in Basel, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,943 in Basel versus $756 in Athens. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Athens – a meal for two runs $66.0 versus $125 in Basel. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $3,548 per month in Basel versus $1,806 in Athens – a 96% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,806 in Athens versus $3,548 in Basel, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Athens but tight or insufficient in Basel. The gap between the two cities makes Athens the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Athens delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,806 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Athens hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Basel and Athens 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 Athens gentler on the wallet – expenses run 96% less than in Basel. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.