Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Scarborough and Athens

For one person, living is cheaper in Athens: $1,775 a month against $2,133 in Scarborough, rent and utilities included – about $4,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

103

Cost of Living Index in Scarborough
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Scarborough Living Index
86

Cost of Living Index in Athens
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Athens Living Index

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Scarborough

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,133

/mo nomad

Athens

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,775

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,133 in Scarborough versus $1,775 in Athens.

Scarborough $2,133
Athens $1,775

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,068 in Scarborough versus $2,721 in Athens.

Scarborough $3,068
Athens $2,721

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,002 in Scarborough versus $3,666 in Athens.

Scarborough $4,002
Athens $3,666

Living in Scarborough 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: Scarborough 58% above, Athens 31% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.76 £11.07

$16.69 €14.84

-11.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.4 £52.0

$67.8 €60.3

2.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.68 £8.76

$11.14 €9.91

4.85%

Cappuccino

$3.37 £2.53

$4.03 €3.58

-16.38%

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

$2.08 £1.56

$2.77 €2.46

-24.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.99 £0.74

$0.55 €0.49

80.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.76 £3.57

$5.74 €5.10

-17.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.34 £3.25

$5.45 €4.85

-20.37%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.22 £0.91

$1.82 €1.62

-32.97%

White Bread (500g)

$1.35 £1.02

$1.38 €1.23

-2.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.07 £0.81

$2.80 €2.49

-61.79%

Eggs

$3.57 £2.68

$4.83 €4.30

-26.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.78 £5.84

$15.05 €13.39

-48.31%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.28 £5.46

$10.63 €9.45

-31.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.08 £10.57

$18.43 €16.39

-23.60%

Apples (1kg)

$3.22 £2.41

$2.20 €1.96

46.36%

Banana (1kg)

$2.07 £1.55

$1.90 €1.69

8.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 £1.99

$1.37 €1.22

93.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 £1.56

$2.10 €1.87

-0.95%

Potato (1kg)

$1.75 £1.31

$1.08 €0.96

62.04%

Onion (1kg)

$1.60 £1.20

$1.12 €1.00

42.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 £0.86

$1.12 €1.00

2.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 £1.48

$0.88 €0.79

125.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.60 £16.95

$5.48 €4.88

312.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.06 £6.80

$10.13 €9.01

-10.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.55 £2.67

$2.13 €1.89

66.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.64 £2.73

$2.25 €2.00

61.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.35 £2.51

$1.36 €1.21

146.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$87.0 £65.3

$29.89 €26.59

191.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.45 £4.09

$4.45 €3.96

22.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$5.05 £3.79

$1.02 €0.90

395.10%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.92 £24.70

$16.92 €15.05

94.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.94 £1.45

$2.25 €2.00

-13.78%

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

$35.7K £26.7K

$28.0K €24.9K

27.20%

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

$39.0K £29.2K

$28.2K €25.1K

37.99%

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

$356 £267

$205 €182

73.88%

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

$25.73 £19.30

$26.65 €23.71

-3.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.36 £25.02

$30.38 €27.02

9.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.9 £48.70

$54.5 €48.47

19.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.72 £9.54

$25.88 €23.02

-50.85%

Cinema Ticket

$10.57 £7.93

$10.42 €9.27

1.44%

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

$1,742 £1,307

$569 €506

206.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.7K £11.0K

$12.6K €11.2K

16.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$66.7 £50.0

$88.7 €78.9

-24.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.45 £26.59

$40.46 €35.99

-12.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 £79.2

$105 €93.3

0.61%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$114 £85.6

$121 €108

-5.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$867 £651

$741 €659

17.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$842 £632

$655 €582

28.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,535 £1,152

$1,300 €1,156

18.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,332 £999

$1,148 €1,021

16.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,014 €3,570

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,460 €3,078

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$914 £686

$1,242 €1,105

-26.39%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.53

4.48

23.44%

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

Last update for Scarborough: October 12, 2026

Last update for Athens: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Scarborough

$842 39.5%

Athens

$655 36.9% 22.3% $188

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Scarborough

$415 19.5%

Athens

$262 14.7% 36.9% $153

Groceries & Markets

Scarborough

$276 12.9%

Athens

$310 17.5% 12.6% $35

Eating Out

Scarborough

$238 11.2%

Athens

$268 15.1% 12.5% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Scarborough

$145 6.8%

Athens

$160 9% 10.4% $15

Getting Around

Scarborough

$131 6.2%

Athens

$45 2.5% 65.8% $86

Sport & Entertainment

Scarborough

$86 4%

Athens

$75 4.2% 12.5% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $867 in Scarborough and $741 in Athens. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Athens pays 36% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $69.0 in Scarborough vs $68.0 in Athens. Groceries flip the comparison at $276 vs $310, with Scarborough cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Scarborough

🇬🇷 Athens

🕒 Local time

09:40 9:40 AM

11:40 11:40 AM

2 h ahead of Scarborough

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

61,749

3,090,508 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Scarborough Athens 2,570 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Scarborough
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

Scarborough vs Athens: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Athens wins on cost – living expenses run 20% lower than in Scarborough. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Athens the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 36% lower in Athens. 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: $867 in Scarborough versus $741 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 $68.0 versus $69.0 in Scarborough. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,133 per month in Scarborough versus $1,775 in Athens – a 20% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,775 in Athens versus $2,133 in Scarborough, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Athens but tight or insufficient in Scarborough. 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 $1,775 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Athens hard to pass up.

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