Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Cruz de Tenerife and Athens

For one person, living is cheaper in Athens: $1,806 a month against $1,920 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Santa Cruz de Tenerife outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

94

Cost of Living Index in Santa Cruz de Tenerife
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Santa Cruz de Tenerife Living Index
87

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index

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Santa Cruz de Tenerife

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,920

/mo nomad

Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,806

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,920 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife versus $1,806 in Athens.

Santa Cruz de Tenerife $1,920
Athens $1,806

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,849 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife versus $2,731 in Athens.

Santa Cruz de Tenerife $2,849
Athens $2,731

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,777 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife versus $3,656 in Athens.

Santa Cruz de Tenerife $3,777
Athens $3,656

Living in Santa Cruz de Tenerife is roughly 6% more expensive than in Athens, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Santa Cruz de Tenerife 43% above, Athens 35% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.06 €17.90

$16.66 €14.87

20.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.9 €55.2

$66.2 €59.1

-6.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.40 €10.18

$11.06 €9.87

3.07%

Cappuccino

$2.00 €1.78

$4.14 €3.69

-51.69%

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

$1.90 €1.69

$2.80 €2.50

-32.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.30 €1.16

$0.57 €0.51

128.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.87 €2.56

$5.64 €5.03

-49.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.30 €2.95

$5.46 €4.87

-39.56%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.96 €1.75

-30.10%

White Bread (500g)

$2.47 €2.21

$1.41 €1.26

75.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.59 €1.42

$2.83 €2.53

-43.82%

Eggs

$4.19 €3.74

$5.04 €4.50

-16.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.69 €17.57

$15.35 €13.70

28.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.90 €8.84

$10.34 €9.23

-4.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.92 €15.99

$18.97 €16.93

-5.54%

Apples (1kg)

$2.78 €2.48

$2.17 €1.93

28.11%

Banana (1kg)

$2.41 €2.15

$1.91 €1.70

26.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.24 €2.00

$1.38 €1.23

62.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.52 €2.24

$2.20 €1.96

14.55%

Potato (1kg)

$2.13 €1.90

$1.10 €0.98

93.64%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.13 €1.00

74.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.69 €1.51

$1.10 €0.99

53.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.91 €0.81

$0.83 €0.74

9.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.71 €5.09

$5.60 €4.99

1.96%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.67 €6.85

$10.19 €9.09

-24.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.68 €1.50

$2.18 €1.95

-22.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 €1.56

$2.45 €2.19

-28.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.38 €1.23

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$42.25 €37.70

$30.87 €27.55

36.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.11 €3.67

$4.37 €3.90

-5.95%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.73 €1.54

$1.04 €0.93

66.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.93 €15.11

$17.11 €15.27

-1.05%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.74 €1.55

$2.31 €2.07

-24.68%

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

$34.8K €31.0K

$28.0K €25.0K

24.24%

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

$29.4K €26.3K

$28.0K €25.0K

5.09%

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

$127 €113

$210 €187

-39.53%

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

$23.02 €20.54

$26.70 €23.83

-13.78%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.10 €31.32

$30.13 €26.89

16.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.67

$54.6 €48.72

-0.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.52 €10.28

$26.03 €23.23

-55.74%

Cinema Ticket

$10.09 €9.01

$10.78 €9.62

-6.40%

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

$405 €362

$575 €513

-29.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,015 €4,476

$13.1K €11.7K

-61.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$94.3 €84.1

$93.2 €83.1

1.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.88 €37.37

$40.68 €36.30

2.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.9 €82.0

$104 €92.9

-11.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$111 €99.3

$128 €115

-13.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,138 €1,016

$756 €674

50.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$882 €787

$652 €582

35.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,705 €1,522

$1,294 €1,154

31.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,255 €1,120

$1,163 €1,038

7.95%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,834 €3,421

$4,008 €3,577

-4.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,170 €1,936

$3,452 €3,081

-37.15%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,864 €1,663

$1,243 €1,110

49.90%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.56

4.48

-20.54%

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

Last update for Santa Cruz de Tenerife: 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

Santa Cruz de Tenerife

$882 45.6%

Athens

$652 36.5% 26% $230

Groceries & Markets

Santa Cruz de Tenerife

$329 17%

Athens

$315 17.6% 4.4% $14

Eating Out

Santa Cruz de Tenerife

$252 13%

Athens

$269 15% 6.5% $16

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santa Cruz de Tenerife

$185 9.6%

Athens

$267 14.9% 44.1% $82

Clothing & Footwear

Santa Cruz de Tenerife

$153 7.9%

Athens

$165 9.2% 7.9% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Santa Cruz de Tenerife

$75 3.9%

Athens

$76 4.3% 1.9% $1.4

Getting Around

Santa Cruz de Tenerife

$61 3.1%

Athens

$46 2.6% 24.1% $15

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,138 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife and $756 in Athens. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Santa Cruz de Tenerife pays 50% 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: $62.0 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife vs $66.0 in Athens. Groceries flip the comparison at $329 vs $315, with Athens cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Santa Cruz de Tenerife

🇬🇷 Athens

🕒 Local time

04:02 4:02 AM

06:02 6:02 AM

2 h ahead of Santa Cruz de Tenerife

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

209,395

3,090,508 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Santa Cruz de Tenerife Athens 3,830 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

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Santa Cruz de Tenerife
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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

Santa Cruz de Tenerife vs Athens: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Athens wins on cost – living expenses run 6% lower than in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. 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 50% higher in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, 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: $1,138 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife 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 $62.0 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,920 per month in Santa Cruz de Tenerife versus $1,806 in Athens – a 6% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,806 in Athens versus $1,920 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Athens but tight or insufficient in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. 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, Santa Cruz de Tenerife 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 6% less than in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.