Country topic
Cost of living in Greece
Prices overall in Greece were about 0.60 of United States prices in 2025 at market exchange rates (World Bank price level index 59.54, with the United States at 100). That is a whole-economy comparison, not a household budget, and it does not show how rents differ between Athens, Thessaloniki and the islands. [Cost of living C1] Two adverts we found in Athens’s Pangrati district asked €1,150 a month for a renovated 73 m² two-bedroom flat near Varnava Square (with a lift, air conditioning, fibre-optic internet, natural-gas heating and pets allowed) and €1,200 for a renovated 66 m² one-bedroom penthouse described as luxury. Both come from one agent, so these are two asking rents, not an average or a quote. Neither states a deposit. [C2] [C3]
What we found
The research, with its sources.
Research information, not advice. Rules change, so check the source before you act on one.
- Prices overall in Greece were about 0.60 of United States prices in 2025 at market exchange rates (World Bank price level index 59.54, with the United States at 100). That is a whole-economy comparison, not a household budget, and it does not show how rents differ between Athens, Thessaloniki and the islands. [Cost of living C1]
- Two adverts we found in Athens’s Pangrati district asked €1,150 a month for a renovated 73 m² two-bedroom flat near Varnava Square (with a lift, air conditioning, fibre-optic internet, natural-gas heating and pets allowed) and €1,200 for a renovated 66 m² one-bedroom penthouse described as luxury. Both come from one agent, so these are two asking rents, not an average or a quote. Neither states a deposit. [C2] [C3]
- At the European Central Bank reference rates of 15 October 2026, €1,150 to €1,200 is about $1,289 to $1,345, C$1,831 to C$1,911, A$1,865 to A$1,946 or NZ$2,301 to NZ$2,401. These conversions are rounded and the ECB says its rates are for information only. [C2] [C3] [C4]
- One advert for a furnished 59 m² one-bedroom flat in central Thessaloniki, next to public transport, asked €800 a month, about €350 to €400 less than the two Athens adverts. It said it was available from 16 September 2026, so it may be gone. We found no dated rent for Chania or elsewhere in Crete, so rents there are unknown. [C5]
- Athens’s transport authority (OASA) charges €1.20 for a 90-minute ticket on buses, trams, the metro and the suburban railway. The 30-day pass for the urban network costs €27 at the full price, or €45 if it also covers the airport. The two-way airport metro ticket is €16. [C6]
- Greece had 44.68 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people in 2024, a measure of coverage, not of price. One Athens advert lists fibre-optic internet, but we found no dated internet price or speed test, so what you would pay for home internet is unknown; ask the landlord for the contract or a speed test. [C7] [C2]
- The visa needs insurance for the whole visa period that covers repatriation, emergency medical care and hospital care. Work From Greece, a state-backed promotion portal, says people from outside the EU need private health insurance because they are not entitled to the public system. We found no official statement on whether a permit holder can join the public system, and no dated price for private cover, so both are unknown. Self-employed people in Greece pay a health contribution of €65.68 to €78.81 a month inside the insurance categories. [C8] [C9] [C10]
- Fixed costs we can price are small beside the income test: the digital nomad visa asks for about €3,500 a month net, so to be safe have more than €3,600, and Work From Greece’s checklist lists a €75 visa fee plus a €150 administrative fee per applicant. We found no dated 2026 price for building costs and heating, groceries, eating out, deposits, agency fees or incidentals, so those are unknown, not zero, and no complete monthly budget can be given. [C8] [C11]
The Fernshore Index
How the Index grades the cost of living.
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.
Cost of living
54 of 100Mixed
Price level 0.595 of United States prices (2025).
Source: Price level index (GDP), Greece. Checked 15 October 2026.
The country
More on Greece.
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Questions about Cost of living in Greece.
How do prices in Greece compare with the US?
The World Bank puts Greece’s overall price level at about 0.60 of US prices in 2025 (59.54, with the US at 100). That is a whole-economy comparison, not a household budget, and rents differ between Athens, Thessaloniki and the islands.
How much does it cost to rent in Athens?
Two adverts in Pangrati asked €1,150 for a 73 m² two-bedroom flat and €1,200 for a 66 m² one-bedroom penthouse, both from one agent. At 15 October 2026 ECB rates that is about $1,289 to $1,345. They are two asking rents, not an average or a quote.
Is Thessaloniki cheaper than Athens?
One furnished 59 m² one-bedroom advert in central Thessaloniki asked €800 a month, about €350 to €400 less than the two Athens adverts. One advert is not an average, it may be gone, and we have no rent figures for other Greek cities.
How much does public transport cost in Athens?
OASA’s 90-minute ticket costs €1.20 on buses, trams, the metro and the suburban railway. The 30-day urban pass is €27 at the full price, or €45 if it also covers the airport. The two-way airport metro ticket is €16.
How much does health insurance cost in Greece?
We found no dated price for private cover, so it is unknown. The visa needs insurance covering repatriation, emergency medical care and hospital care, and a state-backed portal says non-EU arrivals need private cover. Self-employed people pay a health contribution of €65.68 to €78.81 a month.
Sources
Where each figure comes from.
Every figure on this page links to the page we read, with the date we checked it.
- [GR 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.
- [Cost of living 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 16 October 2026.
- [C2] Renovated flat in Varnava Square, Pangrati (advert W-04BIKQ), Engel & Völkers Athens (private estate agent, not official). Checked 15 October 2026. Asking rent on one advert; availability unconfirmed.
- [C3] Luxury renovated penthouse, Pangrati (advert W-049NUD), Engel & Völkers Athens (private estate agent, not official). Checked 15 October 2026. Asking rent on one advert, upper end; availability unconfirmed.
- [C4] Euro reference rates, 15 October 2026, European Central Bank. Checked 15 October 2026. Units of each currency per 1 euro; reference rates for information only.
- [C5] High-standard apartment in the city centre, Thessaloniki (advert W-048LNU), Engel & Völkers Thessaloniki (private estate agent, not official). Checked 15 October 2026. Asking rent on one advert; available from 16 September 2026, so it may be gone.
- [C6] Prices of products (tickets and passes), OASA (Athens Urban Transport Organisation). Checked 15 October 2026. 90-minute ticket 1.20 euros; 30-day pass for the urban network 27 euros full price; 30-day pass that includes the airport 45 euros.
- [C7] 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 16 October 2026.
- [C8] Work From Greece: digital nomad visa checklist (PDF), Work From Greece (Marketing Greece initiative, backed by the Greek state; a promotion portal, not the visa authority). Checked 15 October 2026. Document list and the 75 euro visa fee plus 150 euro administrative fee, per family member; dated May 2023 in its URL, so confirm with your consulate.
- [C9] Work From Greece: frequently asked questions, Work From Greece (Marketing Greece initiative, backed by the Greek state; a promotion portal, not the visa authority). Checked 15 October 2026. Plain-language summary: 3,500 euros a month after taxes, +20% and +15%, apply at the consulate in your country of main residence; private source for process only.
- [C10] Freelancers and self-employed: insurance categories for 2026, e-EFKA (Greek social security institute). Checked 15 October 2026. Six categories from 1 January 2026, pension plus health, 250.77 to 675.87 euros a month; the choice binds for the year (Greek-language page).
- [C11] Migration Code, article 68: digital nomads (visa and Z.1 status), TaxHeaven (private Greek legal database; reproduces the law as in force, not an official site), Law 5038/2023 art. 68. Checked 15 October 2026. Statute text: 12-month national visa from the consulate, 3,500 euros a month (net where it comes from employment or services), plus 20% for a spouse and 15% for each child, 75 euro visa fee, two-year I.8 permit applied for before the visa ends.