Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Leicester and Athens

For one person, living is cheaper in Athens: $1,806 a month against $2,165 in Leicester, rent and utilities included – about $4,300 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Leicester outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

106

Cost of Living Index in Leicester
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Leicester Living Index
87

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index

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Leicester

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,165

/mo nomad

Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,806

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,165 in Leicester versus $1,806 in Athens.

Leicester $2,165
Athens $1,806

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,069 in Leicester versus $2,731 in Athens.

Leicester $3,069
Athens $2,731

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,974 in Leicester versus $3,656 in Athens.

Leicester $3,974
Athens $3,656

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

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Leicester 62% above, Athens 35% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.10 £16.70

$16.66 €14.87

32.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.3 £49.31

$66.2 €59.1

-1.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.42 £7.12

$11.06 €9.87

-14.83%

Cappuccino

$4.92 £3.72

$4.14 €3.69

18.84%

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

$2.32 £1.75

$2.80 €2.50

-17.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.32 £1.00

$0.57 €0.51

131.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.66 £5.03

$5.64 €5.03

18.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.33 £4.03

$5.46 €4.87

-2.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 £1.29

$1.96 €1.75

-12.76%

White Bread (500g)

$1.55 £1.17

$1.41 €1.26

9.93%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.17 £1.64

$2.83 €2.53

-23.32%

Eggs

$4.01 £3.03

$5.04 €4.50

-20.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.62 £7.27

$15.35 €13.70

-37.33%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.68 £6.56

$10.34 €9.23

-16.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.27 £10.78

$18.97 €16.93

-24.78%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 £2.22

$2.17 €1.93

35.02%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 £1.10

$1.91 €1.70

-23.56%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.58 £1.95

$1.38 €1.23

86.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.60 £2.72

$2.20 €1.96

63.64%

Potato (1kg)

$1.50 £1.13

$1.10 €0.98

36.36%

Onion (1kg)

$1.55 £1.17

$1.13 €1.00

37.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 £0.87

$1.10 €0.99

4.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 £1.12

$0.83 €0.74

78.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$20.57 £15.54

$5.60 €4.99

267.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.02 £8.32

$10.19 €9.09

8.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.46 £1.86

$2.18 €1.95

12.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.30 £2.49

$2.45 €2.19

34.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.07 £3.08

$1.38 €1.23

194.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$100 £75.7

$30.87 €27.55

224.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.87 £3.68

$4.37 €3.90

11.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.05 £3.06

$1.04 €0.93

289.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.11 €15.27

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.11 £1.59

$2.31 €2.07

-8.66%

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

$38.6K £29.2K

$28.0K €25.0K

38.03%

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

$40.9K £30.9K

$28.0K €25.0K

46.13%

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

$316 £239

$210 €187

50.47%

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

$15.97 £12.07

$26.70 €23.83

-40.19%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.49 £32.86

$30.13 €26.89

44.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.84 £24.06

$54.6 €48.72

-41.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.98 £19.64

$26.03 €23.23

-0.19%

Cinema Ticket

$11.77 £8.90

$10.78 €9.62

9.18%

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

$1,250 £945

$575 €513

117.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$26.3K £19.9K

$13.1K €11.7K

100.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$83.2 £62.9

$93.2 €83.1

-10.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.94 £31.70

$40.68 €36.30

3.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 £81.4

$104 €92.9

3.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 £79.9

$128 €115

-17.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$989 £747

$756 €674

30.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$833 £630

$652 €582

27.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,754 £1,325

$1,294 €1,154

35.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,196 £904

$1,163 €1,038

2.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,921 £3,719

$4,008 €3,577

22.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,475 £2,626

$3,452 €3,081

0.67%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,800 £2,116

$1,243 €1,110

125.24%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.33

4.48

18.97%

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

Last update for Leicester: October 3, 2026

Last update for Athens: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Leicester

$833 38.3%

Athens

$652 36.5% 21.7% $181

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Leicester

$375 17.2%

Athens

$267 14.9% 28.9% $108

Eating Out

Leicester

$323 14.8%

Athens

$269 15% 16.7% $54

Groceries & Markets

Leicester

$295 13.6%

Athens

$315 17.6% 6.7% $20

Clothing & Footwear

Leicester

$152 7%

Athens

$165 9.2% 8.2% $12

Getting Around

Leicester

$142 6.5%

Athens

$46 2.6% 67.5% $96

Sport & Entertainment

Leicester

$55 2.6%

Athens

$76 4.3% 37.5% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $989 in Leicester and $756 in Athens. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Leicester pays 125% 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: $65.0 in Leicester vs $66.0 in Athens for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $295 vs $315 per month, with Leicester cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Leicester

🇬🇷 Athens

🕒 Local time

09:48 9:48 AM

11:48 11:48 AM

2 h ahead of Leicester

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

305,700

3,090,508 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Leicester Athens 2,520 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Leicester
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

Leicester vs Athens: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Athens wins on cost – living expenses run 20% lower than in Leicester. 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 125% higher in Leicester, 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: $989 in Leicester versus $756 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 $66.0 versus $65.0 in Leicester. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,165 per month in Leicester versus $1,806 in Athens – a 20% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,806 in Athens versus $2,165 in Leicester, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Athens but tight or insufficient in Leicester. 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 $1,806 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Athens hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Leicester 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 Leicester. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.