Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bergen and Athens

For one person, living is cheaper in Athens: $1,806 a month against $2,844 in Bergen, rent and utilities included – about $12,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

138

Cost of Living Index in Bergen
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Bergen Living Index
87

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index

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Bergen

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,844

/mo nomad

Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,806

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bergen 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 Bergen and in Athens actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,844 in Bergen versus $1,806 in Athens.

Bergen $2,844
Athens $1,806

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,282 in Bergen versus $2,731 in Athens.

Bergen $4,282
Athens $2,731

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,719 in Bergen versus $3,656 in Athens.

Bergen $5,719
Athens $3,656

Living in Bergen is roughly 58% more expensive than in Athens, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Bergen 112% above, Athens 35% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.98 NOK 219

$16.66 €14.87

37.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$135 NOK 1,292

$66.2 €59.1

104.37%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.52 NOK 148

$11.06 €9.87

40.33%

Cappuccino

$5.42 NOK 51.8

$4.14 €3.69

30.92%

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

$5.10 NOK 48.71

$2.80 €2.50

82.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 NOK 42.65

$0.57 €0.51

684.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$12.57 NOK 120

$5.64 €5.03

122.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$10.41 NOK 99.4

$5.46 €4.87

90.66%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.15 NOK 20.57

$1.96 €1.75

9.69%

White Bread (500g)

$3.78 NOK 36.13

$1.41 €1.26

168.09%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.51 NOK 33.54

$2.83 €2.53

24.03%

Eggs

$6.41 NOK 61.3

$5.04 €4.50

27.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.32 NOK 137

$15.35 €13.70

-6.71%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$17.21 NOK 164

$10.34 €9.23

66.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$36.16 NOK 345

$18.97 €16.93

90.62%

Apples (1kg)

$4.12 NOK 39.38

$2.17 €1.93

89.86%

Banana (1kg)

$2.72 NOK 25.95

$1.91 €1.70

42.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.61 NOK 34.44

$1.38 €1.23

161.59%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.39 NOK 51.4

$2.20 €1.96

145.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.52 NOK 24.02

$1.10 €0.98

129.09%

Onion (1kg)

$3.35 NOK 31.97

$1.13 €1.00

196.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.86 NOK 27.34

$1.10 €0.99

160.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 NOK 17.03

$0.83 €0.74

114.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$17.10 NOK 163

$5.60 €4.99

205.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.97 NOK 172

$10.19 €9.09

76.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.59 NOK 34.31

$2.18 €1.95

64.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.21 NOK 40.20

$2.45 €2.19

71.84%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$5.15 NOK 49.21

$1.38 €1.23

273.19%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$86.4 NOK 825

$30.87 €27.55

179.98%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$12.39 NOK 118

$4.37 €3.90

183.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.84 NOK 17.61

$1.04 €0.93

76.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$70.5 NOK 674

$17.11 €15.27

312.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.35 NOK 22.42

$2.31 €2.07

1.73%

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

$48.6K NOK 463.7K

$28.0K €25.0K

73.51%

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

$43.3K NOK 413.9K

$28.0K €25.0K

54.70%

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

$275 NOK 2,623

$210 €187

30.93%

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

$32.93 NOK 314

$26.70 €23.83

23.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$82.9 NOK 791

$30.13 €26.89

175.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.61 NOK 436

$54.6 €48.72

-16.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$41.77 NOK 399

$26.03 €23.23

60.47%

Cinema Ticket

$18.87 NOK 180

$10.78 €9.62

75.05%

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

$238 NOK 2,272

$575 €513

-58.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.0K NOK 114.9K

$13.1K €11.7K

-8.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$107 NOK 1,022

$93.2 €83.1

14.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.6 NOK 522

$40.68 €36.30

34.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 NOK 1,128

$104 €92.9

13.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$162 NOK 1,545

$128 €115

26.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,414 NOK 13.5K

$756 €674

87.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 NOK 10.3K

$652 €582

66.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,348 NOK 22.4K

$1,294 €1,154

81.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,696 NOK 16.2K

$1,163 €1,038

45.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,822 NOK 74.7K

$4,008 €3,577

95.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,769 NOK 45.5K

$3,452 €3,081

38.13%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,527 NOK 43.2K

$1,243 €1,110

264.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.27

4.48

17.63%

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

Last update for Bergen: 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

Bergen

$1.1K 38.3%

Athens

$652 36.5% 39.8% $431

Groceries & Markets

Bergen

$524 18.6%

Athens

$315 17.6% 40% $210

Eating Out

Bergen

$417 14.8%

Athens

$269 15% 35.6% $149

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bergen

$390 13.8%

Athens

$267 14.9% 31.7% $124

Clothing & Footwear

Bergen

$199 7%

Athens

$165 9.2% 17% $34

Getting Around

Bergen

$129 4.6%

Athens

$46 2.6% 64.3% $83

Sport & Entertainment

Bergen

$83 3%

Athens

$76 4.3% 8.6% $7.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,414 in Bergen and $756 in Athens. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bergen pays 264% 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: $135 in Bergen vs $66.0 in Athens for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $524 vs $315 per month, with Athens cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Bergen

🇬🇷 Athens

🕒 Local time

09:10 9:10 AM

10:10 10:10 AM

1 h ahead of Bergen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

292,482

3,090,508 Capital

💱 Currency

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 NOK = 10.47 USD

100 NOK = 9.34 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to NOK – Norwegian Krone Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇴 Norwegian Krone (kr)

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 9.55 NOK (1 NOK = 0.105 USD). 1 EUR = 10.71 NOK (100 NOK = 9.34 EUR).

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

USD to NOK in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bergen Athens 2,810 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Bergen
Athens

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

Bergen vs Athens: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Athens wins on cost – living expenses run 58% lower than in Bergen. 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 264% higher in Bergen, 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: $1,414 in Bergen 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 $135 in Bergen. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,844 per month in Bergen versus $1,806 in Athens – a 58% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,806 in Athens versus $2,844 in Bergen, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Athens but tight or insufficient in Bergen. 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, Bergen 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 58% less than in Bergen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.