Cost of living comparison
compared to
Columbia vs. Athens Cost of Living Summary
Columbia is 18.3% more expensive than Athens.
- Restaurants
-
pay 53.2% more in Columbia
- Groceries
-
pay 32.3% more in Columbia
- Transportation
-
pay 18.8% less in Columbia
- Housing
-
pay 34.0% more in Columbia
- Childcare
-
pay 62.4% more in Columbia
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 1.0% less in Columbia
- Clothing
-
pay 34.0% less in Columbia
The cost of childcare, restaurants, housing, and groceries in Columbia are more expensive than in Athens. Expenses including clothing, transportation, and entertainment and sports are lower in Columbia.
Columbia vs. Athens Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Columbia instead of Athens, you would:
pay 53.2% more for restaurants
|
Athens
|
Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.52
€14.93
|
$17.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.51
€8.96
|
$10.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.48
€2.11
|
$2.45
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.62
€0.53
|
$2.00
|
|
Athens vs. Columbia - Cost of restaurants
pay 32.3% more for groceries
|
Athens
|
Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.39
€1.18
|
$3.40
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.54
€6.42
|
$5.37
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$7.20
€6.13
|
$4.34
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.70
€4.00
|
$2.97
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.85
€4.13
|
$4.08
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.03
€0.88
|
$1.88
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.97
€0.83
|
$0.59
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.71
€0.60
|
$1.36
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.07
€0.91
|
$1.99
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.67
€0.57
|
$0.70
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.57
€0.48
|
$1.16
|
|
Athens vs. Columbia - Cost of groceries
pay 18.8% less for transportation
|
Athens
|
Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$7.94
€6.77
|
$2.89
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$35.04
€29.85
|
?? | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$29,198.27
€24,877.10
|
$37,111.37
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.02
€11.94
|
$11.20
|
|
Athens vs. Columbia - Cost of transportation
pay 34.0% more for housing
|
Athens
|
Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$34.45
€29.35
|
$59.80
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$685.67
€584.20
|
$1,025.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$609.10
€518.96
|
$783.33
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$165.77
€141.24
|
$139.63
|
|
Athens vs. Columbia - Cost of housing
pay 62.4% more for childcare
|
Athens
|
Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$566.82
€482.93
|
$1,200.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$11,581.98
€9,867.92
|
$13,100.00
|
|
Athens vs. Columbia - Cost of childcare
pay 1.0% less for entertainment and sports
|
Athens
|
Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.84
€4.98
|
$4.50
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.12
€3.51
|
$4.60
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$5.84
€4.98
|
$7.00
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$56.30
€47.97
|
$27.22
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$10.51
€8.96
|
$14.50
|
|
Athens vs. Columbia - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 34.0% less for clothing
|
Athens
|
Columbia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$101.47
€86.46
|
$50.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$47.68
€40.62
|
$33.33
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$105.26
€89.68
|
$79.17
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$125.94
€107.30
|
$87.50
|
|
Athens vs. Columbia - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025
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