Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Harstad and Athens

For one person, living is cheaper in Athens: $1,771 a month against $2,553 in Harstad, rent and utilities included – about $9,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

124

Cost of Living Index in Harstad
Learn more

Harstad Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Athens
Learn more

Athens Living Index

Jump to prices

Harstad

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,553

/mo nomad

Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,771

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,553 in Harstad versus $1,771 in Athens.

Harstad $2,553
Athens $1,771

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,807 in Harstad versus $2,736 in Athens.

Harstad $3,807
Athens $2,736

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,061 in Harstad versus $3,701 in Athens.

Harstad $5,061
Athens $3,701

Living in Harstad is roughly 44% more expensive than in Athens, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Harstad 88% above, Athens 31% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.18 NOK 133

$16.83 €14.97

-15.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$103 NOK 969

$68.2 €60.7

50.88%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.83 NOK 149

$11.43 €10.17

38.50%

Cappuccino

$6.29 NOK 59.2

$4.06 €3.61

54.93%

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

$3.63 NOK 34.15

$2.74 €2.44

32.48%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.14 NOK 29.58

$0.53 €0.47

492.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$12.57 NOK 118

$5.69 €5.06

120.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$13.53 NOK 127

$5.68 €5.06

138.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.46 NOK 23.20

$1.85 €1.64

32.97%

White Bread (500g)

$3.25 NOK 30.60

$1.44 €1.28

125.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.22 NOK 30.27

$2.82 €2.51

14.18%

Eggs

$4.31 NOK 40.61

$4.86 €4.32

-11.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.71 NOK 101

$15.27 €13.58

-29.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.37 NOK 135

$10.36 €9.21

38.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$41.47 NOK 390

$19.10 €16.99

117.12%

Apples (1kg)

$4.15 NOK 39.10

$2.22 €1.98

86.94%

Banana (1kg)

$2.85 NOK 26.81

$1.92 €1.71

48.44%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.69 NOK 34.75

$1.41 €1.25

161.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.65 NOK 43.74

$2.04 €1.82

127.94%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 NOK 19.36

$1.05 €0.93

96.19%

Onion (1kg)

$2.04 NOK 19.21

$1.17 €1.04

74.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.98 NOK 28.02

$1.08 €0.96

175.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.34 NOK 22.00

$0.84 €0.75

178.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$16.03 NOK 151

$5.49 €4.89

191.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.88 NOK 149

$10.17 €9.05

56.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.82 NOK 35.99

$2.13 €1.90

79.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.89 NOK 46.04

$2.28 €2.03

114.47%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$6.09 NOK 57.3

$1.37 €1.22

344.53%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$81.8 NOK 770

$29.71 €26.43

175.46%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$15.86 NOK 149

$4.39 €3.90

261.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.86 NOK 17.47

$1.00 €0.89

86.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$55.0 NOK 517

$16.63 €14.79

230.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.29 NOK 21.60

$2.38 €2.11

-3.78%

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

$36.4K NOK 343.0K

$28.4K €25.3K

28.29%

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

$30.9K NOK 291.0K

$27.2K €24.2K

13.59%

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

$167 NOK 1,568

$203 €181

-18.12%

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

$33.30 NOK 313

$26.79 €23.83

24.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$77.4 NOK 729

$30.16 €26.82

156.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.78 NOK 459

$53.7 €47.74

-9.13%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$37.22 NOK 350

$26.40 €23.48

40.98%

Cinema Ticket

$17.10 NOK 161

$10.59 €9.42

61.47%

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

$237 NOK 2,231

$566 €504

-58.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,116 NOK 48.2K

$12.9K €11.4K

-60.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$67.4 NOK 635

$89.1 €79.3

-24.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.87 NOK 328

$40.48 €36.01

-13.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 NOK 1,111

$104 €92.3

13.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$161 NOK 1,513

$124 €111

29.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,335 NOK 12.6K

$729 €648

83.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,035 NOK 9,740

$647 €576

59.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,281 NOK 21.5K

$1,328 €1,181

71.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,526 NOK 14.4K

$1,169 €1,040

30.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,018 NOK 56.6K

$4,024 €3,579

49.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,991 NOK 37.6K

$3,483 €3,098

14.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,383 NOK 31.8K

$1,240 €1,103

172.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

11.61%

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

Last update for Harstad: October 17, 2026

Last update for Athens: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Harstad

$1K 40.5%

Athens

$647 36.5% 37.4% $387

Groceries & Markets

Harstad

$502 19.7%

Athens

$312 17.6% 37.8% $190

Eating Out

Harstad

$353 13.8%

Athens

$271 15.3% 23.4% $83

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Harstad

$277 10.9%

Athens

$260 14.7% 6.1% $17

Clothing & Footwear

Harstad

$171 6.7%

Athens

$161 9.1% 6.2% $11

Getting Around

Harstad

$131 5.1%

Athens

$45 2.5% 66.1% $87

Sport & Entertainment

Harstad

$83 3.3%

Athens

$75 4.2% 9.8% $8.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,335 in Harstad and $729 in Athens. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Harstad pays 173% 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: $103 in Harstad vs $68.0 in Athens for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $502 vs $312 per month, with Athens cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Harstad

🇬🇷 Athens

🕒 Local time

19:40 7:40 PM

20:40 8:40 PM

1 h ahead of Harstad

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

25,119

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 20, 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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to NOK in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Harstad Athens 3,460 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Harstad
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

Harstad vs Athens: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Athens wins on cost – living expenses run 44% lower than in Harstad. 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 173% higher in Harstad, 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: $1,335 in Harstad versus $729 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 $103 in Harstad. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,553 per month in Harstad versus $1,771 in Athens – a 44% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,771 in Athens versus $2,553 in Harstad, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Athens but tight or insufficient in Harstad. 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 $1,771 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Athens hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Harstad 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 44% less than in Harstad. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.