Cost of accommodation in Greece
When you move to the country, the first question is, “Where to live?”. Traditionally, you have two accommodation options: rent or buy a property, when the latter may bring you a Greece residence permit.
Monthly rent starts at €350 for an apartment with one bedroom outside the city centre. The approximate rental cost for different types of apartments is the following:
- €350 — an apartment with 1 bedroom outside of the city centre;
- €410 — an apartment with 1 bedroom in the city centre;
- €650 — an apartment with 3 bedrooms outside of the city centre;
- €712 — an apartment with 3 bedrooms in the city centre.
This is an average value; you can find an apartment outside the city centre for €280 per month, and you also can find an apartment for about €1,300 per month. In fact, the price depends on your needs.
Prices for purchasing real estate start at €1,762 per m² for an apartment outside the city centre, and the medium price for an apartment in the centre is €2,062 per m². The maximum value is €3,000 per m² for apartments outside the city centre and €3,500 per m² in the city centre.
Utility services are about €209 per month for an 85 m² apartment; the maximum value is €389. Unlimited Internet service with 60 Mbps is around €31 per month; the maximum is €50.
Examples of real estate in Greece
Cost of food in Greece
Even if you prefer homemade food, you need to try Greek national cuisine. The gourmets recommend visiting restaurants: Tudor Hall with the view of the Acropolis, authentic Greek restaurant Lithos Tavern and Michelin-star restaurant Funky Gourmet.
Medium costs in the restaurants are:
- €12 — a meal in an inexpensive restaurant;
- €45 — a meal for two people in a mid-range restaurant;
- €7 — a meal in a Mcdonald's.
A cappuccino costs €3, and a bottle of Coke or Pepsi — €1.76. A 0,33 bottle of water costs €0.5, and beer is around €4.
If you prefer home-prepared meals, welcome to the supermarket and let’s check your shopping list.
Average prices on groceries in Greece
| Cost | Product |
| €1.4 | 1 litre of milk |
| €1.06 | Loaf of white bread |
| €1.92 | 1 kg of rice |
| €3.48 | 12 eggs |
| €9.91 | 1 kg of cheese |
| €7.71 | 1 kg of chicken filets |
| €10.3 | 1 kg of beef |
| €1.68 | 1 kg of apples |
| €1.70 | 1 kg of banana |
| €1.20 | 1 kg of oranges |
| €1.73 | 1 kg of tomato |
| €0.98 | 1 kg of potato |
| €0.88 | 1 kg of onion |
| €0.84 | 1 head of lettuce |
These prices are also medium: you can find a bottle of milk for €1 and €2, the maximum cost of red meat is €14, and a dozen eggs can be bought for €6. The exact amount of prices depends on the region, brand and store.
Prices in the drink department are the following:
- 1.5 litre of water for €0.78;
- a bottle of wine for €7;
- 0.5 litre of domestic beer for €1.47;
- 0.33 litre of imported beer for €2.11.
In general, imported groceries cost more than local, but there are a lot of local markets in Greece, where you can find not only perfect food but much pleasure in exploring the local culture.
Cost of clothing in Greece
Greece is a warm country, and locals mostly prefer a casual style. So, you will only need a few clothes if you want to live here and will not need warm apparel.
According to the sales volume, the most popular clothing shops in Greece are Zara, H&M, Bershka, Stradivarius and so on. You can find all the necessary dresses in the shopping centres.
Let's make a basic wardrobe:
- €70,95 — a pair of jeans;
- €32 — a summer dress;
- €75 — a pair of Nike running shoes;
- €91 — a pair of men's business shoes.
Large shopping centres in Greece are The Mall Athens, The Golden Hall, The Athens Metro Mall, The Mela Shopping centre, Talos Plaza, Mare West, and Mediterranean Cosmos.
Education in Greece
Greece sends more students abroad to study per capita than any other European country. However, in Greece, you can get a basic education.
The Greek educational system is divided into primary, secondary and tertiary.
Primary education is divided into kindergarten and primary school. Education in Greece, including preschool, primary and lower secondary education, is compulsory.
Kindergarten or preschool for 1 child would cost €350 per month. International primary school costs €7,543 per year.
The list of best international schools in Greece:
- Byron College.
- St Lawrence College.
- Pierce.
- St Catherine's British School.
- International School of Piraeus.
- International School of Athens.
- DES Schools.
- Campion School.
- ACS Athens.
- Verita International School.
Public universities are free for Greek and EU students. Tuition fees for international students start at €1,500 per year for undergraduate studies and €1,500—2,000 for master’s degrees.
The QS World University Ranking includes the following Greek universities in its top 1,500:
- National Technical University of Athens.
- University of Crete.
- National and Kapodistrian University of Athens.
- Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.
- University of Patras.
- Athens University of Economics and Business.
Cost of medicine and insurance in Greece
The Greek healthcare system has two elements: compulsory social insurance and private healthcare. Greece healthcare system: public and private sectors guide
There are 130 hospitals and 200 primary health care centres. Foreigners with residency can use free healthcare benefits. But private institutions have newer equipment and shorter waiting times.
The best hospitals in Greece are AHEPA University Hospital, Children’s Hospital Agia Sofia, Aiginiteio University Hospital, Corfu General Clinic, Mediterraneo Hospital, Santorini Hospital, and General Hospital of Kefalonia.
The private clinic cost of visiting is around €60—150.
Insurance is vital because it opens access to the medicine service and helps save money for unexpected events. Medical insurance per person is around €300 a year. A significant condition for choosing insurance is the minimum coverage of €30,000 for medical expenses.
Cost of sports and leisure in Greece
The most popular sports in Greece are football and basketball. Greeks also love athletics, handball, sailing, swimming, volleyball, water polo and weight lifting. Greece has around 60 stadiums.
The average monthly fee for a fitness club is €38; for example, renting a tennis court for 1 hour is around €19.
In Greece, you also can entertain yourself for free. Visiting beaches, hiking and nature walks, exploring neighbourhoods, visiting numerous religious sites, and enjoying the streets and architecture of Greek cities cost nothing.
Organised activities, such as visiting excursions or museums, cost around €20—100 per excursion or €10—25 per ticket in a museum. A ticket to the cinema costs about €8.
So, the minimal monthly cost for entertainment in Greece starts from zero, and the maximum grows to infinity.
Top-rated places of interest in Greece are the following:
- Acropolis, Athens — the symbol of Western civilization dating from the 5th century BC.
- Acropolis Museum, Athens — the most visited attraction in Athens, an ultra-modern building with great ancient treasures inside.
- Santorini — the most dramatic Greek island with cubic buildings is very popular for weddings and honeymoons.
- Mykonos — an island with classy seafood restaurants and a whitewashed church, Paraportiani.
- Delphi — UNESCO World Heritage site, there are a lot of ruins of temples, theatres, and stadiums dating between the 8th century BC and the 2nd century AD.
- Crete is one of Greece's most popular vacation destinations, with many archaeological sites, the best of which is the Palace of Knossos.
- Corfu — UNESCO World Heritage site with 16th-century fortress.
- Meteora Monasteries — rocky monstrous with Byzantine frescoes and icons.
- Rhodes Town is famous for its fortification system and streets of the old town.
- Zakynthos — you need to see a Shipwreck beach and Blue Caves here.
Cost of transport in Greece
Transport is a first necessity and the opportunity to see the country from all sides.
In Greece, you can use public transport or rent a car for independent travel. For island explorations, you need to use a ferry.
So, let’s observe the prices on transport in Greece:
- €1.2 — a one-way ticket for local transport;
- €30 — a monthly pass;
- €5—20 — a short ferry ride per person;
- €15—40 — a long ferry ride per person;
- €3.5 — taxi start;
- €1 — 1 km on the taxi;
- €12 — 1-hour waiting for a taxi;
- €2.07 — 1 litre of gasoline;
- €21,000 — price for new car Volkswagen Golf or Toyota Corolla.
Average salaries in Greece
It is curious to see not only the average monthly salary in Greece is €2,430 per month, while the minimum wage is €620 per month.
The average yearly salary is €29,200, but the median is €16,235. So, we can conclude that most workers get around €1,352 per month.
Prices in different regions of Greece
The level of life in Greece is not consistent. The cost of living in Athens is higher than in Heracleion, while Larissa is cheaper than both.
Comparison of expenses in different cities of Greece
| City | Monthly costs for a single person, without rent | Monthly costs for a family, without rent | Monthly rent: 1‑bedroom apartment outside the city centre | Monthly rent: 3‑bedroom apartment in the city centre |
| Athens | €2,713 | €801 | €475 | €917 |
| Thessaloniki | €2,590 | €782 | €362 | €766 |
| Heraklion | €2,592 | €732 | €331 | €754 |
| Corfu | €2,497 | €710 | €329 | €728 |
| Larissa | €2,353 | €717 | €238 | €502 |
How to move to Greece
There is a program called Greece Golden Visa, which allows you to live in the country legally. This type of visa allows you to get residency in Greece in exchange for investments in the country’s economy.
There are 6 options for participation in the program; the differences are in the way of investments and amount.
The most popular option is purchasing real estate. The amount of investments for this option starts at €250,000, and the obtaining period is 6 months. The minimum threshold will grow to €500,000 in August 2023 for 36 municipalities of Greece.
So, you can get a residence permit 5 months after enrollment in the program. You can live permanently in the county. This residence permit is valid for 5 years; you can renew it or apply for permanent residence.
This program fits not only single investors, but you can add your family members — a spouse, your or only your spouse’s children under 21 years and parents.
Instead of conclusion
- The monthly cost of living in Greece for one person is €730 without costs on rent, and the monthly cost for a family of four is €2,470.
- The cheapest city in Greece is Larissa: for a family of four, you spend €2,353 per month, for a single person — €717.
- The most expensive city in Greece is Athens: for a family of four, you spend €2,713 per month, for a single person — €801.
- Through the Golden Visa program, you can get a Greek residence permit in 6 months with investments in the country's economy €250,000+.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, the average monthly living expenses for a single person in Greece are €730 without costs on rent, and the monthly cost for a family of four is €2,470. The average monthly living expenses for a single person in the USA are $3,189, and the average cost for a family of four is $7,095.
It depends on your usual standard of living and location in Greece. It is more expensive in Athens and cheaper to live in Heraklion. But the average monthly living expenses for a single person in Greece are €730 without costs on rent, and the monthly cost for a family of four is €2,470.
It depends on your goals. If you want to have the possibility to live and travel across Europe without a visa, it is a good idea.
