Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Samsun and Athens

For one person, living is cheaper in Samsun: $952 a month against $1,779 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $9,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Samsun
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Samsun Living Index
85

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index

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Samsun

🇹🇷 Turkey

$952

/mo nomad

Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,779

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $952 in Samsun versus $1,779 in Athens.

Samsun $952
Athens $1,779

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,631 in Samsun versus $2,721 in Athens.

Samsun $1,631
Athens $2,721

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,310 in Samsun versus $3,663 in Athens.

Samsun $2,310
Athens $3,663

Living in Samsun costs roughly 47% less than in Athens, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Samsun is 30% below, Athens is 32% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.08 ₺506

$16.83 €14.99

-40.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$59.8 ₺2,997

$66.0 €58.8

-9.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.60 ₺532

$11.21 €9.98

-5.44%

Cappuccino

$4.03 ₺202

$4.08 €3.64

-1.23%

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

$0.82 ₺41.01

$2.77 €2.47

-70.40%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.29 ₺14.41

$0.54 €0.48

-46.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.84 ₺92.1

$5.70 €5.07

-67.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.98 ₺99.5

$6.26 €5.58

-68.37%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 ₺56.1

$1.84 €1.64

-39.13%

White Bread (500g)

$1.95 ₺97.6

$1.43 €1.27

36.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.70 ₺136

$2.67 €2.38

1.12%

Eggs

$2.43 ₺122

$4.95 €4.41

-50.91%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.15 ₺409

$15.09 €13.44

-45.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.52 ₺277

$10.99 €9.79

-49.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$26.85 ₺1,347

$19.77 €17.60

35.81%

Apples (1kg)

$2.38 ₺120

$2.12 €1.89

12.26%

Banana (1kg)

$2.41 ₺121

$1.98 €1.76

21.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.44 ₺72.1

$1.33 €1.18

8.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.07 ₺53.5

$2.16 €1.92

-50.46%

Potato (1kg)

$0.46 ₺22.99

$1.06 €0.94

-56.60%

Onion (1kg)

$0.33 ₺16.71

$1.15 €1.02

-71.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.82 ₺41.01

$1.08 €0.96

-24.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.62 ₺31.11

$0.85 €0.75

-27.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.07 ₺104

$5.46 €4.86

-62.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.22 ₺462

$10.03 €8.93

-8.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 ₺80.6

$2.04 €1.82

-21.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 ₺114

$2.38 €2.12

-4.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.56 ₺28.23

$1.35 €1.20

-58.52%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.97 ₺601

$30.52 €27.18

-60.78%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.03 ₺102

$3.81 €3.39

-46.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.63 ₺31.40

$1.03 €0.92

-38.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.33 ₺318

$16.49 €14.68

-61.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.29 ₺64.5

$2.34 €2.09

-44.87%

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

$39.8K ₺2.0M

$27.8K €24.7K

43.50%

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

$41.1K ₺2.1M

$26.6K €23.7K

54.67%

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

$89.2 ₺4,473

$202 €180

-55.89%

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

$12.53 ₺629

$26.81 €23.87

-53.26%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$12.49 ₺626

$30.49 €27.14

-59.04%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.78 ₺1,544

$54.1 €48.14

-43.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.08 ₺305

$27.40 €24.40

-77.81%

Cinema Ticket

$3.97 ₺199

$10.44 €9.30

-61.97%

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

$249 ₺12.5K

$568 €505

-56.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.2K €13.5K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$24.41 ₺1,224

$90.7 €80.7

-73.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.09 ₺1,509

$39.32 €35.01

-23.47%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.6 ₺3,538

$105 €93.7

-32.94%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$59.0 ₺2,960

$129 €115

-54.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$344 ₺17.2K

$742 €661

-53.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$253 ₺12.7K

$648 €577

-60.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$759 ₺38.1K

$1,271 €1,132

-40.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$592 ₺29.7K

$1,122 €999

-47.23%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$973 ₺48.8K

$3,999 €3,561

-75.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$654 ₺32.8K

$3,281 €2,921

-80.08%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,040 ₺52.1K

$1,245 €1,109

-16.51%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.44

1003.60%

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

Last update for Samsun: November 2, 2026

Last update for Athens: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Samsun

$265 27.8%

Athens

$316 17.8% 19.4% $51

Accommodation & Living

Samsun

$253 26.6%

Athens

$648 36.4% 156% $395

Eating Out

Samsun

$178 18.8%

Athens

$272 15.3% 52.2% $93

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Samsun

$114 12%

Athens

$260 14.6% 127% $145

Clothing & Footwear

Samsun

$83 8.7%

Athens

$164 9.2% 97.8% $81

Sport & Entertainment

Samsun

$39 4.1%

Athens

$75 4.2% 93.5% $36

Getting Around

Samsun

$19 2%

Athens

$45 2.5% 132% $25

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $344 in Samsun and $742 in Athens. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Athens pays 20% 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: $60 in Samsun vs $66 in Athens for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $265 vs $316 per month, with Samsun cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇷 Samsun

🇬🇷 Athens

🕒 Local time

04:30 4:30 AM

03:30 3:30 AM

1 h behind Samsun

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,295,927

3,090,508 Capital

💱 Currency

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 TRY = 1.99 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to TRY – Turkish Lira Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇷 Turkish Lira (₺)

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 50.15 TRY (100 TRY = 1.99 USD). 1 EUR = 56.3 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.89 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to TRY in detail →

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Between locations

Samsun Athens 1,140 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Samsun
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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

Samsun vs Athens: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Samsun wins on cost – living expenses run 47% lower than in Athens. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Samsun the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 17% lower in Samsun. 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: $344 in Samsun versus $742 in Athens. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Samsun – a meal for two runs $60 versus $66 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $952 per month in Samsun versus $1,779 in Athens – Samsun is about 47% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

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.

Expats usually find Samsun gentler on the wallet – expenses run 47% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.