Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Athens

For one person, living is cheaper in Athens: $1,806 a month against $4,086 in London, rent and utilities included – about $27,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

196

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index
87

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,086

/mo nomad

Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,806

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $4,086 in London versus $1,806 in Athens.

London $4,086
Athens $1,806

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,816 in London versus $2,731 in Athens.

London $5,816
Athens $2,731

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,546 in London versus $3,656 in Athens.

London $7,546
Athens $3,656

Living in London is roughly 126% more expensive than in Athens, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: London 205% above, Athens 35% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.62 £20.12

$16.66 €14.85

59.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$108 £81.3

$66.2 €59.0

62.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.39 £7.86

$11.06 €9.86

-6.06%

Cappuccino

$5.79 £4.38

$4.14 €3.69

39.86%

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

$3.01 £2.27

$2.80 €2.50

7.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 £1.63

$0.57 €0.51

277.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.35 £7.07

$5.64 €5.03

65.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.84 £5.93

$5.46 €4.86

43.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.79 £1.35

$1.96 €1.74

-8.67%

White Bread (500g)

$2.06 £1.56

$1.41 €1.25

46.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 £1.74

$2.83 €2.53

-18.37%

Eggs

$5.05 £3.82

$5.04 €4.49

0.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.57 £9.50

$15.35 €13.68

-18.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.66 £8.05

$10.34 €9.22

3.09%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.13 £12.95

$18.97 €16.92

-9.70%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 £2.29

$2.17 €1.93

39.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 £1.07

$1.91 €1.70

-26.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.05 £2.31

$1.38 €1.23

121.01%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.38 £2.56

$2.20 €1.96

53.64%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 £1.26

$1.10 €0.98

51.82%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 £1.31

$1.13 €1.00

53.10%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.41 £1.07

$1.10 €0.98

28.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 £1.35

$0.83 €0.74

115.66%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.22 £17.55

$5.60 €4.99

314.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.99 £9.82

$10.19 €9.08

27.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.18 £2.41

$2.18 €1.95

45.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 £3.34

$2.45 €2.18

80.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.87 £2.93

$1.38 €1.23

180.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$250 £189

$30.87 €27.52

710.01%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.71 £4.31

$4.37 €3.90

30.66%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 £2.51

$1.04 €0.93

220.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$57.9 £43.77

$17.11 €15.26

238.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 £1.54

$2.31 €2.06

-11.69%

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

$37.5K £28.4K

$28.0K €24.9K

34.18%

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

$40.9K £30.9K

$28.0K €25.0K

45.98%

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

$376 £284

$210 €187

79.30%

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

$17.88 £13.51

$26.70 €23.80

-33.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.01 £30.25

$30.13 €26.86

32.79%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.2 £46.23

$54.6 €48.68

12.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.07 £15.93

$26.03 €23.21

-19.05%

Cinema Ticket

$17.95 £13.57

$10.78 €9.61

66.51%

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

$2,865 £2,166

$575 €513

398.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.7K

$13.1K €11.7K

169.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$116 £87.7

$93.2 €83.1

24.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.1 £40.88

$40.68 €36.27

32.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 £95.7

$104 €92.8

21.69%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 £120

$128 €114

24.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,853 £2,157

$756 €674

277.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,301 £1,740

$652 €582

252.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,201 £3,932

$1,294 €1,153

302.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,723 £2,814

$1,163 €1,037

220.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$19.0K £14.4K

$4,008 €3,574

374.25%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,881 £5,957

$3,452 €3,078

128.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,818 £3,642

$1,243 €1,109

287.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.65

4.48

3.79%

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

Last update for London: October 4, 2026

Last update for Athens: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.3K 56.5%

Athens

$652 36.5% 71.7% $1.6K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$434 10.7%

Athens

$267 14.9% 38.6% $167

Eating Out

London

$397 9.7%

Athens

$269 15% 32.2% $128

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.6%

Athens

$315 17.6% 9.9% $35

Getting Around

London

$288 7.1%

Athens

$46 2.6% 84% $242

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5%

Athens

$165 9.2% 19.7% $40

Sport & Entertainment

London

$97 2.4%

Athens

$76 4.3% 21.5% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,853 in London and $756 in Athens. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

London pays 288% 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: $108 in London vs $66.0 in Athens for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $349 vs $315 per month, with Athens cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇬🇷 Athens

🕒 Local time

01:31 1:31 AM

03:31 3:31 AM

2 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

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

London Athens 2,390 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

London
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

London vs Athens: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Athens wins on cost – living expenses run 126% lower than in London. 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 288% higher in London, 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: $2,853 in London 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 $108 in London. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $4,086 per month in London versus $1,806 in Athens – a 126% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,806 in Athens versus $4,086 in London, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Athens but tight or insufficient in London. 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, London 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 126% less than in London. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.