Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hillcrest and Athens

For one person, living is cheaper in Hillcrest: $1,084 a month against $1,775 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $8,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

53

Cost of Living Index in Hillcrest
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Hillcrest Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index

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Hillcrest

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,084

/mo nomad

Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,084 in Hillcrest versus $1,775 in Athens.

Hillcrest $1,084
Athens $1,775

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,681 in Hillcrest versus $2,721 in Athens.

Hillcrest $1,681
Athens $2,721

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,279 in Hillcrest versus $3,666 in Athens.

Hillcrest $2,279
Athens $3,666

Living in Hillcrest costs roughly 39% less than in Athens, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Hillcrest is 20% below, Athens is 31% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.59 R 125

$16.69 €14.84

-54.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$38.42 R 633

$67.8 €60.3

-43.32%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.87 R 96.8

$11.14 €9.91

-47.31%

Cappuccino

$2.74 R 45.17

$4.03 €3.58

-32.01%

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

$1.08 R 17.77

$2.77 €2.46

-61.01%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 R 13.64

$0.55 €0.49

50.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.38 R 39.22

$5.74 €5.10

-58.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 R 41.26

$5.45 €4.85

-54.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.23 R 20.34

$1.82 €1.62

-32.42%

White Bread (500g)

$0.91 R 15.06

$1.38 €1.23

-34.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.36

$2.80 €2.49

-47.14%

Eggs

$2.42 R 39.88

$4.83 €4.30

-49.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.19 R 135

$15.05 €13.39

-45.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.14 R 84.8

$10.63 €9.45

-51.65%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.05 R 116

$18.43 €16.39

-61.75%

Apples (1kg)

$1.29 R 21.23

$2.20 €1.96

-41.36%

Banana (1kg)

$1.85 R 30.55

$1.90 €1.69

-2.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.90 R 31.34

$1.37 €1.22

38.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.46

$2.10 €1.87

-20.48%

Potato (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.43

$1.08 €0.96

37.04%

Onion (1kg)

$1.44 R 23.79

$1.12 €1.00

28.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.20 R 19.73

$1.12 €1.00

7.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 R 19.01

$0.88 €0.79

30.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.54 R 58.4

$5.48 €4.88

-35.40%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.92 R 81.1

$10.13 €9.01

-51.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.83

$2.13 €1.89

-34.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 R 30.21

$2.25 €2.00

-18.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.46 R 24.09

$1.36 €1.21

7.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.89 €26.59

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.40 R 6.66

$4.45 €3.96

-91.01%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 R 11.69

$1.02 €0.90

-30.39%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.55 R 124

$16.92 €15.05

-55.38%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 R 25.06

$2.25 €2.00

-32.44%

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

$35.3K R 580.9K

$28.0K €24.9K

25.79%

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

$30.8K R 506.8K

$28.2K €25.1K

8.97%

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

$143 R 2,362

$205 €182

-29.93%

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

$35.68 R 588

$26.65 €23.71

33.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.15 R 645

$30.38 €27.02

28.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.67 R 522

$54.5 €48.47

-41.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.82 R 178

$25.88 €23.02

-58.19%

Cinema Ticket

$7.05 R 116

$10.42 €9.27

-32.34%

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

$308 R 5,078

$569 €506

-45.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,586 R 125.0K

$12.6K €11.2K

-39.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 R 888

$88.7 €78.9

-39.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.76 R 490

$40.46 €35.99

-26.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.3 R 1,620

$105 €93.3

-6.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$83.9 R 1,382

$121 €108

-30.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$397 R 6,544

$741 €659

-46.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$366 R 6,029

$655 €582

-44.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$730 R 12.0K

$1,300 €1,156

-43.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$734 R 12.1K

$1,148 €1,021

-36.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$882 R 14.5K

$4,014 €3,570

-78.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$659 R 10.9K

$3,460 €3,078

-80.95%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,242 €1,105

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.78

4.48

162.95%

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

Last update for Hillcrest: 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

Hillcrest

$366 33.8%

Athens

$655 36.9% 78.9% $289

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hillcrest

$218 20.1%

Athens

$262 14.7% 19.9% $43

Groceries & Markets

Hillcrest

$188 17.4%

Athens

$310 17.5% 64.7% $122

Eating Out

Hillcrest

$136 12.5%

Athens

$268 15.1% 97.5% $132

Clothing & Footwear

Hillcrest

$120 11%

Athens

$160 9% 33.7% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Hillcrest

$46 4.2%

Athens

$75 4.2% 64.5% $30

Getting Around

Hillcrest

$9.8 * 0.9%

Athens

$45 2.5% 358% $35

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $397 in Hillcrest and $741 in Athens. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $38.00 in Hillcrest vs $68.0 in Athens for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $188 vs $310 per month, with Hillcrest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Hillcrest

🇬🇷 Athens

🕒 Local time

06:24 6:24 AM

07:24 7:24 AM

1 h ahead of Hillcrest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,090,508 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Hillcrest Athens 7,570 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Hillcrest
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

Hillcrest vs Athens: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Hillcrest wins on cost – living expenses run 64% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Hillcrest the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $1,625 in Hillcrest and $2,662 in Athens to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $397 in Hillcrest versus $741 in Athens. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $308 in Hillcrest versus $569 in Athens. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Hillcrest – a meal for two runs $38.00 versus $68.0 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,084 in Hillcrest versus $1,775 in Athens, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Hillcrest but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Hillcrest the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Hillcrest delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,084 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Hillcrest hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Hillcrest 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 Hillcrest gentler on the wallet – expenses run 64% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.