Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ely, Cambridgeshire and Athens

For one person, living is cheaper in Athens: $1,775 a month against $2,350 in Ely, Cambridgeshire, rent and utilities included – about $6,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

114

Cost of Living Index in Ely, Cambridgeshire
Learn more

Ely, Cambridgeshire Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Athens
Learn more

Athens Living Index

Jump to prices

Ely, Cambridgeshire

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,350

/mo nomad

Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,350 in Ely, Cambridgeshire versus $1,775 in Athens.

Ely, Cambridgeshire $2,350
Athens $1,775

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,545 in Ely, Cambridgeshire versus $2,721 in Athens.

Ely, Cambridgeshire $3,545
Athens $2,721

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,740 in Ely, Cambridgeshire versus $3,666 in Athens.

Ely, Cambridgeshire $4,740
Athens $3,666

Living in Ely, Cambridgeshire is roughly 32% more expensive than in Athens, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Ely, Cambridgeshire 74% above, Athens 31% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$23.60 £17.70

$16.69 €14.84

41.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$93.9 £70.5

$67.8 €60.3

38.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.23 £9.93

$11.14 €9.91

18.76%

Cappuccino

$5.04 £3.78

$4.03 €3.58

25.06%

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

$2.45 £1.84

$2.77 €2.46

-11.55%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.76 £1.32

$0.55 €0.49

220.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.14 £3.86

$5.74 €5.10

-10.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 £2.48

$5.45 €4.85

-39.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.23 £0.93

$1.82 €1.62

-32.42%

White Bread (500g)

$1.64 £1.23

$1.38 €1.23

18.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 £1.99

$2.80 €2.49

-5.00%

Eggs

$3.51 £2.64

$4.83 €4.30

-27.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.60 £7.95

$15.05 €13.39

-29.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.14 £8.35

$10.63 €9.45

4.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 £12.73

$18.43 €16.39

-7.92%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 £2.99

$2.20 €1.96

81.36%

Banana (1kg)

$1.31 £0.98

$1.90 €1.69

-31.05%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.57 £1.93

$1.37 €1.22

87.59%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.23 £3.17

$2.10 €1.87

101.43%

Potato (1kg)

$1.61 £1.21

$1.08 €0.96

49.07%

Onion (1kg)

$1.62 £1.22

$1.12 €1.00

44.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 £0.86

$1.12 €1.00

1.79%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 £1.11

$0.88 €0.79

68.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$20.82 £15.62

$5.48 €4.88

279.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.68 £8.01

$10.13 €9.01

5.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.17 £1.63

$2.13 €1.89

1.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.76 £2.07

$2.25 €2.00

22.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$5.70 £4.27

$1.36 €1.21

319.12%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.3 £42.25

$29.89 €26.59

88.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.19 £3.14

$4.45 €3.96

-5.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.37 £1.78

$1.02 €0.90

132.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.92 €15.05

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.14 £1.60

$2.25 €2.00

-4.89%

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

$40.3K £30.2K

$28.0K €24.9K

43.83%

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

$41.7K £31.3K

$28.2K €25.1K

47.63%

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

$274 £205

$205 €182

33.80%

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

$16.82 £12.62

$26.65 €23.71

-36.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.97 £24.73

$30.38 €27.02

8.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.38 £32.54

$54.5 €48.47

-20.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.58 £11.69

$25.88 €23.02

-39.80%

Cinema Ticket

$15.96 £11.97

$10.42 €9.27

53.17%

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

$1,716 £1,288

$569 €506

201.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.6K £11.0K

$12.6K €11.2K

16.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$95.5 £71.7

$88.7 €78.9

7.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 £41.57

$40.46 €35.99

36.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$123 £92.6

$105 €93.3

17.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 £78.0

$121 €108

-14.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,130 £848

$741 €659

52.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,029 £772

$655 €582

57.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,860 £1,396

$1,300 €1,156

43.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,753 £1,315

$1,148 €1,021

52.68%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,848 £4,387

$4,014 €3,570

45.70%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,049 £3,788

$3,460 €3,078

45.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,284 £2,464

$1,242 €1,105

164.37%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.62

4.48

3.12%

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

Last update for Ely, Cambridgeshire: October 10, 2026

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ely, Cambridgeshire

$1K 43.8%

Athens

$655 36.9% 36.4% $374

Eating Out

Ely, Cambridgeshire

$338 14.4%

Athens

$268 15.1% 20.7% $70

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ely, Cambridgeshire

$324 13.8%

Athens

$262 14.7% 19.1% $62

Groceries & Markets

Ely, Cambridgeshire

$319 13.6%

Athens

$310 17.5% 2.7% $8.7

Clothing & Footwear

Ely, Cambridgeshire

$170 7.2%

Athens

$160 9% 6% $10

Getting Around

Ely, Cambridgeshire

$95 4.1%

Athens

$45 2.5% 52.8% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Ely, Cambridgeshire

$75 3.2%

Athens

$75 4.2% 0.1% $0

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,130 in Ely, Cambridgeshire and $741 in Athens. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ely, Cambridgeshire pays 164% 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: $94.0 in Ely, Cambridgeshire vs $68.0 in Athens for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $319 vs $310 per month, with Athens cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Ely, Cambridgeshire

🇬🇷 Athens

🕒 Local time

04:36 4:36 AM

06:36 6:36 AM

2 h ahead of Ely, Cambridgeshire

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

20,574

3,090,508 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ely, Cambridgeshire Athens 2,420 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Ely, Cambridgeshire
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

Ely, Cambridgeshire vs Athens: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Athens wins on cost – living expenses run 32% lower than in Ely, Cambridgeshire. 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 164% higher in Ely, Cambridgeshire, 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: $1,130 in Ely, Cambridgeshire versus $741 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 $68.0 versus $94.0 in Ely, Cambridgeshire. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,350 per month in Ely, Cambridgeshire versus $1,775 in Athens – a 32% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,775 in Athens versus $2,350 in Ely, Cambridgeshire, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Athens but tight or insufficient in Ely, Cambridgeshire. 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 $1,775 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Athens hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Ely, Cambridgeshire 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 32% less than in Ely, Cambridgeshire. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.