Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Grimstad and Athens

For one person, living is cheaper in Athens: $1,775 a month against $2,129 in Grimstad, rent and utilities included – about $4,200 less a year. The total is higher in Grimstad despite lower rent and utilities.

103

Cost of Living Index in Grimstad
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Grimstad Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index

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Grimstad

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,129

/mo nomad

Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,129 in Grimstad versus $1,775 in Athens.

Grimstad $2,129
Athens $1,775

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,634 in Grimstad versus $2,721 in Athens.

Grimstad $3,634
Athens $2,721

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,140 in Grimstad versus $3,666 in Athens.

Grimstad $5,140
Athens $3,666

Living in Grimstad is roughly 20% more expensive than in Athens, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Grimstad 58% above, Athens 31% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.22 NOK 200

$16.69 €14.84

27.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$77.1 NOK 726

$67.8 €60.3

13.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.35 NOK 145

$11.14 €9.91

37.79%

Cappuccino

$4.81 NOK 45.27

$4.03 €3.58

19.35%

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

$4.08 NOK 38.42

$2.77 €2.46

47.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.37 NOK 31.72

$0.55 €0.49

512.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$11.48 NOK 108

$5.74 €5.10

100.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$10.48 NOK 98.7

$5.45 €4.84

92.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.54 NOK 23.91

$1.82 €1.62

39.56%

White Bread (500g)

$3.63 NOK 34.17

$1.38 €1.23

163.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.11 NOK 29.32

$2.80 €2.49

11.07%

Eggs

$3.54 NOK 33.34

$4.83 €4.30

-26.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.95 NOK 122

$15.05 €13.39

-13.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.02 NOK 132

$10.63 €9.45

31.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$24.27 NOK 228

$18.43 €16.39

31.69%

Apples (1kg)

$2.03 NOK 19.15

$2.20 €1.96

-7.73%

Banana (1kg)

$2.36 NOK 22.26

$1.90 €1.69

24.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.44 NOK 32.37

$1.37 €1.22

151.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.28 NOK 40.26

$2.10 €1.87

103.81%

Potato (1kg)

$2.77 NOK 26.06

$1.08 €0.96

156.48%

Onion (1kg)

$2.81 NOK 26.49

$1.12 €1.00

150.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.08 NOK 28.97

$1.12 €1.00

175.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.87 NOK 17.63

$0.88 €0.79

112.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$18.68 NOK 176

$5.48 €4.88

240.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.63 NOK 147

$10.13 €9.01

54.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.42 NOK 32.24

$2.13 €1.89

60.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.17 NOK 39.21

$2.25 €2.00

85.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$5.31 NOK 49.98

$1.36 €1.21

290.44%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$90.9 NOK 855

$29.89 €26.59

203.98%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$11.86 NOK 112

$4.45 €3.96

166.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.85 NOK 17.40

$1.02 €0.90

81.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$69.8 NOK 657

$16.92 €15.05

312.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.33 NOK 21.89

$2.25 €2.00

3.56%

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

$48.5K NOK 456.8K

$28.0K €24.9K

73.10%

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

$43.9K NOK 413.5K

$28.2K €25.1K

55.61%

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

$301 NOK 2,837

$205 €182

47.32%

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

$33.76 NOK 318

$26.65 €23.70

26.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$54.1 NOK 509

$30.38 €27.02

78.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.35 NOK 389

$54.5 €48.46

-24.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.88 €23.02

Cinema Ticket

$15.75 NOK 148

$10.42 €9.27

51.15%

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

$233 NOK 2,191

$569 €506

-59.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.7K NOK 147.6K

$12.6K €11.2K

24.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$95.6 NOK 900

$88.7 €78.9

7.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$52.3 NOK 492

$40.46 €35.99

29.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 NOK 996

$105 €93.3

0.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$157 NOK 1,478

$121 €108

29.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$876 NOK 8,245

$741 €659

18.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$532 NOK 5,006

$655 €582

-18.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,926 NOK 18.1K

$1,300 €1,156

48.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,749 NOK 16.5K

$1,148 €1,021

52.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,591 NOK 43.2K

$4,014 €3,570

14.37%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,358 NOK 31.6K

$3,460 €3,078

-2.95%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,349 NOK 40.9K

$1,242 €1,105

250.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.9

4.48

9.37%

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

Last update for Grimstad: October 11, 2026

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Grimstad

$532 25%

Athens

$655 36.9% 23.1% $123

Groceries & Markets

Grimstad

$435 20.4%

Athens

$310 17.5% 28.6% $125

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Grimstad

$389 18.3%

Athens

$262 14.7% 32.8% $128

Eating Out

Grimstad

$382 17.9%

Athens

$268 15.1% 29.8% $114

Clothing & Footwear

Grimstad

$185 8.7%

Athens

$160 9% 13.4% $25

Getting Around

Grimstad

$133 6.3%

Athens

$45 2.5% 66.3% $88

Sport & Entertainment

Grimstad

$73 3.4%

Athens

$75 4.2% 3.4% $2.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $876 in Grimstad and $741 in Athens. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Grimstad pays 250% 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: $77.0 in Grimstad vs $68.0 in Athens for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $435 vs $310 per month, with Athens cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Grimstad

🇬🇷 Athens

🕒 Local time

16:38 4:38 PM

17:38 5:38 PM

1 h ahead of Grimstad

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

25,093

3,090,508 Capital

💱 Currency

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 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 17, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to NOK in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Grimstad Athens 2,510 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Grimstad
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

Grimstad vs Athens: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Athens wins on cost – living expenses run 20% lower than in Grimstad. 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 250% higher in Grimstad, 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: $876 in Grimstad 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 $77.0 in Grimstad. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,129 per month in Grimstad versus $1,775 in Athens – a 20% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,775 in Athens versus $2,129 in Grimstad, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Athens but tight or insufficient in Grimstad. 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, Grimstad 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 20% less than in Grimstad. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.