Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kos and Thessaloniki

For one person, living is cheaper in Kos: $1,506 a month against $1,660 in Thessaloniki, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

73

Cost of Living Index in Kos
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Kos Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Thessaloniki
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Thessaloniki Living Index

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Kos

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,506

/mo nomad

Thessaloniki

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,660

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Kos and in Thessaloniki

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Kos and in Thessaloniki actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,506 in Kos versus $1,660 in Thessaloniki.

Kos $1,506
Thessaloniki $1,660

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,265 in Kos versus $2,529 in Thessaloniki.

Kos $2,265
Thessaloniki $2,529

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,024 in Kos versus $3,398 in Thessaloniki.

Kos $3,024
Thessaloniki $3,398

Living in Kos costs roughly 9% less than in Thessaloniki, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Kos 11% above, Thessaloniki 22% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.93 €12.51

$16.83 €15.12

-17.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.4 €59.7

$66.9 €60.1

-0.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.25 €10.10

$11.04 €9.92

1.90%

Cappuccino

$4.01 €3.61

$4.29 €3.85

-6.53%

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

$3.09 €2.77

$2.85 €2.56

8.42%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.11 €0.99

$0.75 €0.68

48.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.34 €3.90

$5.49 €4.93

-20.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.53 €5.87

Milk (1 liter)

$2.42 €2.17

$1.72 €1.54

40.70%

White Bread (500g)

$1.62 €1.46

$1.71 €1.54

-5.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.61 €2.34

$3.69 €3.32

-29.27%

Eggs

$4.61 €4.14

$5.52 €4.96

-16.49%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.08 €11.75

$13.99 €12.57

-6.50%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.17 €9.13

$11.20 €10.06

-9.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.05 €13.52

$18.82 €16.90

-20.03%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 €1.97

$2.49 €2.24

-11.65%

Banana (1kg)

$2.00 €1.80

$2.14 €1.93

-6.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.36 €1.22

$2.16 €1.94

-37.04%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.04 €1.83

$2.75 €2.47

-25.82%

Potato (1kg)

$1.13 €1.01

$1.28 €1.15

-11.72%

Onion (1kg)

$1.14 €1.02

$1.23 €1.11

-7.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 €0.98

$1.53 €1.37

-28.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.84 €0.76

$0.89 €0.80

-5.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.39 €4.84

$5.48 €4.93

-1.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.76 €6.07

$10.00 €8.99

-32.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.01 €1.81

$2.08 €1.87

-3.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.56 €2.30

$3.25 €2.92

-21.23%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.83 €1.64

$0.66 €0.59

177.27%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$49.85 €44.78

$18.02 €16.19

176.64%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.09 €3.67

$4.14 €3.72

-1.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.13 €1.02

$1.10 €0.99

2.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.47 €14.80

$16.48 €14.80

-0.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.09 €1.88

$2.38 €2.13

-12.18%

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

$28.0K €25.1K

$27.9K €25.0K

0.36%

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

$25.1K €22.6K

$27.4K €24.6K

-8.47%

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

$201 €181

$210 €189

-4.05%

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

$22.92 €20.59

$23.21 €20.85

-1.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.73 €31.20

$30.46 €27.37

14.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.6 €45.49

$52.1 €46.82

-2.86%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.52 €25.62

$16.26 €14.61

75.40%

Cinema Ticket

$8.80 €7.90

$10.45 €9.38

-15.79%

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

$417 €375

$481 €432

-13.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,025 €8,107

$8,979 €8,066

0.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.0 €79.9

$97.4 €87.5

-8.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.15 €36.07

$45.50 €40.87

-11.76%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.5 €83.1

$124 €111

-25.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €110

$130 €117

-5.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$610 €548

$623 €560

-2.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$420 €377

$507 €455

-17.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$715 €642

$1,096 €985

-34.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$587 €527

$823 €739

-28.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,594 €2,330

$3,708 €3,331

-30.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,012 €1,807

$2,866 €2,575

-29.81%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$902 €810

$1,176 €1,056

-23.30%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

5.34

-16.10%

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

Last update for Kos: October 27, 2026

Last update for Thessaloniki: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kos

$420 27.9%

Thessaloniki

$507 30.5% 20.6% $87

Groceries & Markets

Kos

$292 19.4%

Thessaloniki

$333 20.1% 14.1% $41

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kos

$259 17.2%

Thessaloniki

$264 15.9% 1.7% $4.5

Eating Out

Kos

$245 16.3%

Thessaloniki

$274 16.5% 11.9% $29

Clothing & Footwear

Kos

$155 10.3%

Thessaloniki

$178 10.8% 15.2% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Kos

$68 4.5%

Thessaloniki

$73 4.4% 7% $4.8

Getting Around

Kos

$67 4.4%

Thessaloniki

$30 1.8% 54.7% $37

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $610 in Kos and $623 in Thessaloniki. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Thessaloniki pays 30% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $66 in Kos vs $67 in Thessaloniki for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $292 vs $333 per month, with Kos cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Kos

🇬🇷 Thessaloniki

🕒 Local time

23:47 11:47 PM

Same time as Kos

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

30,947

790,824

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Kos Thessaloniki 560 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

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Kos
Thessaloniki

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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

Kos vs Thessaloniki: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kos wins on cost – living expenses run 9% lower than in Thessaloniki. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Kos the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 23% lower in Kos. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $610 in Kos versus $623 in Thessaloniki. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $417 in Kos versus $481 in Thessaloniki. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

A monthly transit pass in Thessaloniki runs roughly 64% less than in Kos. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Kos is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Kos and Thessaloniki are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Kos wins on affordability, Thessaloniki on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.