Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santander and Athens

For one person, living is cheaper in Santander: $1,632 a month against $1,775 in Athens, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Santander
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Santander Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index

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Santander

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,632

/mo nomad

Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,632 in Santander versus $1,775 in Athens.

Santander $1,632
Athens $1,775

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,578 in Santander versus $2,721 in Athens.

Santander $2,578
Athens $2,721

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,524 in Santander versus $3,666 in Athens.

Santander $3,524
Athens $3,666

Living in Santander costs roughly 8% less than in Athens, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Santander 21% above, Athens 31% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.42 €14.61

$16.69 €14.84

-1.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$56.6 €50.3

$67.8 €60.3

-16.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.38 €10.12

$11.14 €9.91

2.15%

Cappuccino

$2.47 €2.20

$4.03 €3.58

-38.71%

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

$2.46 €2.19

$2.77 €2.46

-11.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.77 €1.57

$0.55 €0.49

221.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.41 €3.03

$5.74 €5.10

-40.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.80 €3.38

$5.45 €4.85

-30.28%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.82 €1.62

-28.57%

White Bread (500g)

$2.82 €2.51

$1.38 €1.23

104.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.40 €2.14

$2.80 €2.49

-14.29%

Eggs

$3.70 €3.29

$4.83 €4.30

-23.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$22.23 €19.77

$15.05 €13.39

47.71%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.82 €6.96

$10.63 €9.45

-26.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.93 €12.39

$18.43 €16.39

-24.42%

Apples (1kg)

$2.41 €2.14

$2.20 €1.96

9.55%

Banana (1kg)

$2.25 €2.00

$1.90 €1.69

18.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.89 €2.57

$1.37 €1.22

110.95%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.48 €3.09

$2.10 €1.87

65.71%

Potato (1kg)

$1.88 €1.67

$1.08 €0.96

74.07%

Onion (1kg)

$2.52 €2.24

$1.12 €1.00

125.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.12 €1.00

29.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.78 €0.69

$0.88 €0.79

-11.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.72 €6.87

$5.48 €4.88

40.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.65 €5.02

$10.13 €9.01

-44.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 €1.08

$2.13 €1.89

-43.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 €2.03

$2.25 €2.00

1.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.55 €1.38

$1.36 €1.21

13.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.17 €16.16

$29.89 €26.59

-39.21%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.52 €4.91

$4.45 €3.96

24.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.02 €0.90

123.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$38.67 €34.39

$16.92 €15.05

128.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.74 €1.55

$2.25 €2.00

-22.67%

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

$37.5K €33.3K

$28.0K €24.9K

33.75%

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

$30.4K €27.1K

$28.2K €25.1K

7.75%

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

$166 €148

$205 €182

-18.82%

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

$34.79 €30.95

$26.65 €23.71

30.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$37.29 €33.17

$30.38 €27.02

22.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.49 €41.35

$54.5 €48.47

-14.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.73 €17.55

$25.88 €23.02

-23.76%

Cinema Ticket

$9.03 €8.04

$10.42 €9.27

-13.34%

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

$471 €419

$569 €506

-17.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,911 €7,927

$12.6K €11.2K

-29.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$128 €114

$88.7 €78.9

44.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$65.5 €58.3

$40.46 €35.99

61.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.4 €79.5

$105 €93.3

-14.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 €100

$121 €108

-6.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$832 €740

$741 €659

12.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$557 €496

$655 €582

-14.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,471 €1,308

$1,300 €1,156

13.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,113 €990

$1,148 €1,021

-3.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,180 €2,829

$4,014 €3,570

-20.76%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,630 €2,339

$3,460 €3,078

-23.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,863 €1,657

$1,242 €1,105

49.98%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.5

4.48

-21.88%

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

Last update for Santander: October 10, 2026

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Santander

$557 34.2%

Athens

$655 36.9% 17.4% $97

Groceries & Markets

Santander

$315 19.3%

Athens

$310 17.5% 1.6% $5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santander

$238 14.6%

Athens

$262 14.7% 9.8% $23

Eating Out

Santander

$237 14.5%

Athens

$268 15.1% 13.2% $31

Clothing & Footwear

Santander

$178 10.9%

Athens

$160 9% 10.2% $18

Sport & Entertainment

Santander

$65 4%

Athens

$75 4.2% 16.7% $11

Getting Around

Santander

$41 2.5%

Athens

$45 2.5% 8.7% $3.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $832 in Santander and $741 in Athens. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Santander pays 50% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $57.0 in Santander vs $68.0 in Athens. Groceries flip the comparison at $315 vs $310, with Athens cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Santander

🇬🇷 Athens

🕒 Local time

18:01 6:01 PM

19:01 7:01 PM

1 h ahead of Santander

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

172,726

3,090,508 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

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

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Santander
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

Santander vs Athens: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

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

Average pay runs 50% higher in Santander, 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: $832 in Santander versus $741 in Athens. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Santander – a meal for two runs $57.0 versus $68.0 in Athens. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,632 per month in Santander versus $1,775 in Athens – a 9% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,632 in Santander versus $1,775 in Athens, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Santander but tight or insufficient in Athens. The gap between the two cities makes Santander the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Santander delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,632 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Santander hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Santander 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 Santander gentler on the wallet – expenses run 9% less than in Athens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.