Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Edinburgh and Athens

For one person, living is cheaper in Athens: $1,806 a month against $2,625 in Edinburgh, rent and utilities included – about $9,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

127

Cost of Living Index in Edinburgh
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Edinburgh Living Index
87

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index

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Edinburgh

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,625

/mo nomad

Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,806

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,625 in Edinburgh versus $1,806 in Athens.

Edinburgh $2,625
Athens $1,806

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,915 in Edinburgh versus $2,731 in Athens.

Edinburgh $3,915
Athens $2,731

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,205 in Edinburgh versus $3,656 in Athens.

Edinburgh $5,205
Athens $3,656

Living in Edinburgh is roughly 45% more expensive than in Athens, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Edinburgh 96% above, Athens 35% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.18 £18.28

$16.66 €14.85

45.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$106 £80.0

$66.2 €59.0

59.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.45 £7.90

$11.06 €9.86

-5.52%

Cappuccino

$5.24 £3.96

$4.14 €3.69

26.57%

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

$2.48 £1.88

$2.80 €2.50

-11.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.16 £1.63

$0.57 €0.51

278.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.95 £6.01

$5.64 €5.03

40.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.09 £6.12

$5.46 €4.86

48.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 £1.28

$1.96 €1.74

-13.27%

White Bread (500g)

$2.34 £1.77

$1.41 €1.25

65.96%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.33 £1.76

$2.83 €2.53

-17.67%

Eggs

$5.17 £3.91

$5.04 €4.49

2.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.33 £7.05

$15.35 €13.68

-39.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.42 £7.12

$10.34 €9.22

-8.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.77 £11.92

$18.97 €16.92

-16.87%

Apples (1kg)

$3.06 £2.32

$2.17 €1.93

41.01%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 £1.48

$1.91 €1.70

2.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.34 £2.53

$1.38 €1.23

142.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.61 £2.73

$2.20 €1.96

64.09%

Potato (1kg)

$2.01 £1.52

$1.10 €0.98

82.73%

Onion (1kg)

$1.52 £1.15

$1.13 €1.00

34.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.27 £0.96

$1.10 €0.98

15.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.83 £1.39

$0.83 €0.74

120.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.49 £17.76

$5.60 €4.99

319.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.05 £8.35

$10.19 €9.08

8.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.23 £2.44

$2.18 €1.95

48.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.21 £2.43

$2.45 €2.18

31.02%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.10 £2.34

$1.38 €1.23

124.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$95.8 £72.4

$30.87 €27.52

210.24%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.23 £3.95

$4.37 €3.90

19.68%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.89 £1.43

$1.04 €0.93

81.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.39 £21.46

$17.11 €15.26

65.93%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.07 £1.57

$2.31 €2.06

-10.39%

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

$37.9K £28.6K

$28.0K €24.9K

35.29%

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

$39.7K £30.0K

$28.0K €25.0K

41.74%

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

$324 £245

$210 €187

54.67%

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

$16.36 £12.37

$26.70 €23.80

-38.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.13 £32.61

$30.13 €26.86

43.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.93 £33.96

$54.6 €48.68

-17.71%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.12 £17.48

$26.03 €23.21

-11.18%

Cinema Ticket

$14.35 £10.85

$10.78 €9.61

33.12%

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

$1,783 £1,348

$575 €513

210.18%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.1K £19.0K

$13.1K €11.7K

91.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$81.8 £61.8

$93.2 €83.1

-12.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.85 £37.68

$40.68 €36.27

22.54%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 £81.0

$104 €92.8

2.99%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 £88.8

$128 €114

-8.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,623 £1,227

$756 €674

114.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,180 £892

$652 €582

80.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,741 £2,072

$1,294 €1,153

111.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,084 £1,576

$1,163 €1,037

79.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,661 £5,035

$4,008 €3,574

66.18%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,622 £3,493

$3,452 €3,078

33.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,603 £2,724

$1,243 €1,109

189.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.77

4.48

6.47%

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

Last update for Edinburgh: October 5, 2026

Last update for Athens: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Edinburgh

$1.2K 45.1%

Athens

$652 36.5% 44.7% $528

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Edinburgh

$384 14.7%

Athens

$267 14.9% 30.6% $117

Eating Out

Edinburgh

$362 13.9%

Athens

$269 15% 25.8% $93

Groceries & Markets

Edinburgh

$332 12.7%

Athens

$315 17.6% 5.2% $17

Clothing & Footwear

Edinburgh

$160 6.1%

Athens

$165 9.2% 2.8% $4.5

Getting Around

Edinburgh

$123 4.7%

Athens

$46 2.6% 62.6% $77

Sport & Entertainment

Edinburgh

$74 2.8%

Athens

$76 4.3% 3.4% $2.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,623 in Edinburgh and $756 in Athens. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Edinburgh pays 190% 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: $106 in Edinburgh vs $66.0 in Athens for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $332 vs $315 per month, with Athens cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Edinburgh

🇬🇷 Athens

🕒 Local time

06:06 6:06 AM

08:06 8:06 AM

2 h ahead of Edinburgh

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

488,050

3,090,508 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

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

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Edinburgh Athens 2,820 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Edinburgh
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

Edinburgh vs Athens: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Athens wins on cost – living expenses run 45% lower than in Edinburgh. 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 190% higher in Edinburgh, 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: $1,623 in Edinburgh 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 $106 in Edinburgh. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,625 per month in Edinburgh versus $1,806 in Athens – a 45% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,806 in Athens versus $2,625 in Edinburgh, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Athens but tight or insufficient in Edinburgh. 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, Edinburgh 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 45% less than in Edinburgh. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.