Fernshore
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Country research

Greece

Prices overall are about 0.60 of United States prices at market exchange rates (2025), and fixed broadband is 44.7 subscriptions per 100 people (2024). English proficiency is high (EF 2025: 592, 20th), and the Migration Code has a route for people who work remotely for clients abroad and a residence permit for people living on their own means. [C1] [K2] [F1] [K1] [R1]

Capital
Athens
Currency
Euro
Language
Greek
Time zone
Europe/Athens
Settings
By the sea, In a city, In a small town, In the countryside, In the mountains [G1] [G2] [G3] [G4]
Weather
Four seasons, Mild, never too hot [W1] [W2] [W3] [W4]

The Fernshore Index

How it grades, factor by factor.

Each grade is against a published measure, with its source and the date we checked it. It is research information, not advice. Where we have no figure, the row says Unknown.

Cities

Cities in Greece.

Each city page shows which figures are its own and which are the country's.

Topics

The detail on Greece.

Guides

Greece, by passport.

Each guide is written for citizens of one country.

For your situation

Greece for different circumstances.

Compare

Side by side with another country.

The same measures for both places, with no ranking.

Questions about Greece.

How do prices in Greece compare with the United States?

Prices overall in Greece are about 0.60 of United States prices at market exchange rates (World Bank price level index, 2025). That is an economy-wide average, not a budget for one household, and it does not show what rent, food or any single item costs.

Price level index (GDP), Greece, World Bank. Checked 15 October 2026

Read the long answer

How much income do I need for Greece's digital nomad visa?

The Migration Code sets a net monthly income for one person, plus 20% for a spouse or partner and 15% for each child. To be safe, show more than €3,600 alone, more than €4,300 for two or more than €4,800 for three. It is for remote work for employers or clients outside Greece.

Law 5038/2023 (Migration Code), Article 68: digital nomads (permit type Z.1), Hellenic Republic, Migration Code (consolidated text on Taxheaven, a private legal portal; official Gazette text not opened); Ministerial decision 225679/2024: amount and proof of sufficient means (Government Gazette B 5223, 17 September 2024), Ministry of Migration and Asylum (published in the Government Gazette; copy hosted on migration.gov.gr); Digital nomad visa: frequently asked questions, Work From Greece (Marketing Greece, a tourism-industry body, under the auspices of the Hellenic Government). Checked 15 October 2026

Read the long answer

Can I live in Greece for longer than 90 days, and can I work there?

Australian, Canadian, New Zealand and US passports are exempt from a short-stay visa for up to 90 days in any 180. Longer needs a national visa. The digital nomad visa runs up to 12 months and bars work for Greek employers; the means-based I.8 permit runs 3 years, renewable, with no right to work.

Regulation (EU) 2018/1806, Annex II: countries whose nationals are exempt from a visa for up to 90 days in any 180 (Official Journal text of 28 November 2018, later amended), European Union (copy hosted by the European Commission, Migration and Home Affairs); Law 5038/2023 (Migration Code), Article 68: digital nomads (permit type Z.1), Hellenic Republic, Migration Code (consolidated text on Taxheaven, a private legal portal; official Gazette text not opened); Law 5038/2023 (Migration Code), Article 163 paragraph 8: residence permits for third-country nationals with sufficient means (type I.8), Hellenic Republic, Migration Code (consolidated text on Taxheaven, a private legal portal; official Gazette text not opened). Checked 15 October 2026

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Will I pay tax in Greece on income from abroad?

You are Greek tax resident if your main home or centre of ties is in Greece, or after more than 183 days in any 12 months, and then taxed on worldwide income, on a scale of 9% to 44%. US citizens still file US returns. Reliefs exist but may not fit remote work. Ask an adviser.

Income Tax Code, article 4: tax residence, TaxHeaven (private Greek legal database; reproduces the law as in force, not an official site), Law 4172/2013 art. 4; Taxation of non-Greek-sourced income obtained by Greek tax residents (as recorded by the Atlas Tax Map), Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE); Income Tax Code, article 15: tax rates, TaxHeaven (private Greek legal database; reproduces the law as in force, not an official site), Law 4172/2013 art. 15 as amended; US citizens abroad: filing requirements, Internal Revenue Service. Checked 15 October 2026

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What is the weather like in Greece?

It depends where. Average daily highs run from 13.5 °C (January) to 33.4 °C (August) in Athens, 9.6 to 32.3 °C in Thessaloniki and 14.3 to 31.4 °C in Chania (HNMS, 1991-2020). Fernshore counts 5, 5 and 6 comfortable months (highs of 18 to 30 °C) in those three cities.

Climate normals 1991-2020, Ellinikon (Athens), Hellenic National Meteorological Service (HNMS); Climate normals 1991-2020, Thessaloniki, Hellenic National Meteorological Service (HNMS); Climate normals 1991-2020, Chania (Souda), Hellenic National Meteorological Service (HNMS). Checked 15 October 2026

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Is English widely spoken in Greece, and is the internet good enough to work remotely?

EF scores Greece 592 for English in 2025, 20th (a test-taker index, not a measure of daily life). Fixed broadband is 44.7 subscriptions per 100 people (2024), a national count that shows no speeds, so quality at an address is unknown. Check it before you sign a lease.

EF English Proficiency Index 2025: Greece, EF Education First (private test-taker index); Fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people, Greece, International Telecommunication Union, via the World Bank. Checked 15 October 2026

Read the long answer

Sources

Where each figure comes from.

Every figure on this page links to the page we read, with the date we checked it.

  1. [C1] Price level index (GDP), Greece, World Bank. Checked 15 October 2026. 2025: 59.54 (United States = 100), read from the World Bank API on 15 October 2026.
  2. [K2] Fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people, Greece, International Telecommunication Union, via the World Bank. Checked 15 October 2026. 2024: 44.68 per 100 people, read from the World Bank API on 15 October 2026.
  3. [F1] EF English Proficiency Index 2025: Greece, EF Education First (private test-taker index). Checked 15 October 2026. Score 592 (down 10 on the previous score), global rank 20; the page lists Athens 616 and Thessaloniki 611; the 2026 edition was not found on 15 October 2026.
  4. [K1] Law 5038/2023 (Migration Code), Article 68: digital nomads (permit type Z.1), Hellenic Republic, Migration Code (consolidated text on Taxheaven, a private legal portal; official Gazette text not opened). Checked 15 October 2026. National visa for up to 12 months for third-country nationals who work remotely for employers or clients outside Greece; sufficient means EUR 3,500 a month net, plus 20% for a spouse or partner and 15% for each child; visa fee EUR 75; no work for Greek employers; a 2-year type I.8 permit can follow. Greek text; carries the scheme first created by Law 4825/2021.
  5. [R1] Law 5038/2023 (Migration Code), Article 163 paragraph 8: residence permits for third-country nationals with sufficient means (type I.8), Hellenic Republic, Migration Code (consolidated text on Taxheaven, a private legal portal; official Gazette text not opened). Checked 15 October 2026. Permit lasts 3 years and renews for equal periods; family members may join; no right to dependent work or independent economic activity. Greek text.
  6. [G1] Geography of Greece, Wikipedia (secondary). Checked 15 October 2026. 'A mostly mountainous, peninsular mainland' and 'a large number of islands', the largest being Crete; surrounded by the Aegean, Ionian and Cretan seas.
  7. [G2] 2021 Census results of population and housing: resident population by region, regional unit and municipality, Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT). Checked 15 October 2026. Release of 17 March 2023. ELSTAT's own site refused connections on 15 October 2026, so the PDF was read from the Internet Archive copy of 4 January 2026. Athens municipality 643,452; of the 331 municipality rows read, 177 have fewer than 20,000 residents (counted from the table).
  8. [G3] Rural population (% of total population), Greece, World Bank, World Development Indicators. Checked 15 October 2026. 2025: 20.8% of the population is rural (national definitions), read from the World Bank API on 15 October 2026.
  9. [G4] Agricultural land (% of land area), Greece, World Bank, World Development Indicators. Checked 15 October 2026. 2024: 38.9% of land area, read from the World Bank API on 15 October 2026.
  10. [W1] Climate normals 1991-2020, Ellinikon (Athens), Hellenic National Meteorological Service (HNMS). Checked 15 October 2026. HNMS climatic data portal (https://www.emy.gr/en/climatic-data), normal values for the period 1991-2020, read from the portal's data service on 15 October 2026 (data created 17 March 2026). The service labels the monthly mean of daily highs 'max'; the service gives no monthly rain totals, so the rain test was checked against the older HNMS city page (period 1955-2010, http://newportal.hnms.gr/emy/en/climatology/climatology_city), where every month with a comfortable high has under 150 mm. Station Ellinikon (HNMS), id 72, 37.89 N, 23.74 E, 46 m. Monthly mean daily highs 13.5 (January) to 33.4 (August); June is 30.3 and July 33.2. HNMS lists no other long-record Athens-area station on this portal (Elefsina is an automatic station without published normals).
  11. [W2] Climate normals 1991-2020, Heraklion, Hellenic National Meteorological Service (HNMS). Checked 15 October 2026. HNMS climatic data portal (https://www.emy.gr/en/climatic-data), normal values for the period 1991-2020, read from the portal's data service on 15 October 2026 (data created 17 March 2026). The service labels the monthly mean of daily highs 'max'; the service gives no monthly rain totals, so the rain test was checked against the older HNMS city page (period 1955-2010, http://newportal.hnms.gr/emy/en/climatology/climatology_city), where every month with a comfortable high has under 150 mm. Station Irakleio, id 69, 35.34 N, 25.18 E, 39 m. Monthly mean daily highs 15.4 (January) to 29.4 (July). Used only for the 'mild' weather type; Heraklion is not listed as a city.
  12. [W3] Climate normals 1991-2020, Thessaloniki, Hellenic National Meteorological Service (HNMS). Checked 15 October 2026. HNMS climatic data portal (https://www.emy.gr/en/climatic-data), normal values for the period 1991-2020, read from the portal's data service on 15 October 2026 (data created 17 March 2026). The service labels the monthly mean of daily highs 'max'; the service gives no monthly rain totals, so the rain test was checked against the older HNMS city page (period 1955-2010, http://newportal.hnms.gr/emy/en/climatology/climatology_city), where every month with a comfortable high has under 150 mm. Station Thessaloniki (airport), id 36, 40.53 N, 22.97 E, 3 m. Monthly mean daily highs 9.6 (January) to 32.3 (July).
  13. [W4] Climate normals 1991-2020, Chania (Souda), Hellenic National Meteorological Service (HNMS). Checked 15 October 2026. HNMS climatic data portal (https://www.emy.gr/en/climatic-data), normal values for the period 1991-2020, read from the portal's data service on 15 October 2026 (data created 17 March 2026). The service labels the monthly mean of daily highs 'max'; the service gives no monthly rain totals, so the rain test was checked against the older HNMS city page (period 1955-2010, http://newportal.hnms.gr/emy/en/climatology/climatology_city), where every month with a comfortable high has under 150 mm. Station Souda, id 34, 35.53 N, 24.15 E, 147 m. Monthly mean daily highs 14.3 (January) to 31.4 (July).
  14. [S1] Global Peace Index 2026, overall rank, Institute for Economics and Peace. Checked 15 October 2026. Greece ranks 53rd of 163 countries, score 1.828 (ranking table, report PDF opened 15 October 2026).
  15. [H1] UHC service coverage index (SDG 3.8.1), World Health Organization. Checked 15 October 2026. Greece: 77 out of 100 (2023), read from the WHO Global Health Observatory data service (indicator UHC_INDEX_REPORTED) on 15 October 2026.
  16. [K3] Digital nomad visa: frequently asked questions, Work From Greece (Marketing Greece, a tourism-industry body, under the auspices of the Hellenic Government). Checked 15 October 2026. Plain-English summary for non-EU applicants: visa up to a year, apply at the Greek consulate of main residence, no right to work for a Greek company. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs pages (mfa.gr) refused automated access, so this is the page the Ministry points to; not an official legal text.
  17. [R2] Law 5038/2023 (Migration Code), Articles 143 to 145: long-term resident status (type M1), Hellenic Republic, Migration Code (consolidated text on Taxheaven, a private legal portal; official Gazette text not opened). Checked 15 October 2026. Five years of lawful, continuous residence, income above the minimum wage plus 10% for dependants, full health insurance and a Greek language and history test; the status is permanent (Article 145 paragraph 7). Article 143 paragraph 2 excludes study, protection and diplomatic permits and does not name the sufficient-means permit. Greek text.
  18. [R3] Ministerial decision 225679/2024: amount and proof of sufficient means (Government Gazette B 5223, 17 September 2024), Ministry of Migration and Asylum (published in the Government Gazette; copy hosted on migration.gov.gr). Checked 15 October 2026. For the type I.8 permit (Article 163 paragraph 8, a and b) and for digital nomads: at least EUR 3,500 a month, plus 20% for a spouse and 15% for each child, shown by a foreign pension, a bank account or own funds with a lawful origin, without working in Greece. Greek text.
  19. [V1] Residence permit for financially independent persons, Ministry of Migration and Asylum. Checked 15 October 2026. The page only lists two clarifying circulars (23 June 2022 and 7 November 2022, both written under earlier law); it confirms the permit exists but gives no requirements. Used for the permit's existence only.

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