Cost of living comparison
compared to
McAllen vs. Athens Cost of Living Summary
McAllen is 17.8% more expensive than Athens.
- Restaurants
-
pay 50.3% more in McAllen
- Groceries
-
pay 35.5% more in McAllen
- Transportation
-
pay 31.7% less in McAllen
- Housing
-
pay 29.6% more in McAllen
- Childcare
-
pay 58.8% more in McAllen
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 6.6% more in McAllen
- Clothing
-
pay 24.5% less in McAllen
The cost of childcare, restaurants, groceries, housing, and entertainment and sports in McAllen are more expensive than in Athens. Expenses including transportation and clothing are lower in McAllen.
McAllen vs. Athens Cost Breakdown
If you lived in McAllen instead of Athens, you would:
pay 50.3% more for restaurants
|
Athens
|
McAllen
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.52
€14.93
|
$18.50
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.51
€8.96
|
$10.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.48
€2.11
|
$2.55
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.62
€0.53
|
$1.85
|
|
Athens vs. McAllen - Cost of restaurants
pay 35.5% more for groceries
|
Athens
|
McAllen
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.39
€1.18
|
$3.06
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.54
€6.42
|
$4.80
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$7.20
€6.13
|
$3.46
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.70
€4.00
|
$3.23
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.85
€4.13
|
$4.35
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.03
€0.88
|
$2.04
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.97
€0.83
|
$0.64
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.71
€0.60
|
$1.55
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.07
€0.91
|
$1.12
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.67
€0.57
|
$1.18
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.57
€0.48
|
$1.33
|
|
Athens vs. McAllen - Cost of groceries
pay 31.7% less for transportation
|
Athens
|
McAllen
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$7.94
€6.77
|
$2.76
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$35.04
€29.85
|
?? | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$29,198.27
€24,877.10
|
$28,489.50
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.02
€11.94
|
$10.17
|
|
Athens vs. McAllen - Cost of transportation
pay 29.6% more for housing
|
Athens
|
McAllen
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$34.45
€29.35
|
$72.00
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$685.67
€584.20
|
$812.50
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$609.10
€518.96
|
$690.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$165.77
€141.24
|
$128.31
|
|
Athens vs. McAllen - Cost of housing
pay 58.8% more for childcare
|
Athens
|
McAllen
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$566.82
€482.93
|
$900.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$11,581.98
€9,867.92
|
?? | |
Athens vs. McAllen - Cost of childcare
pay 6.6% more for entertainment and sports
|
Athens
|
McAllen
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.84
€4.98
|
$5.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.12
€3.51
|
$4.44
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$5.84
€4.98
|
$8.50
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$56.30
€47.97
|
$45.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$10.51
€8.96
|
$12.00
|
|
Athens vs. McAllen - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 24.5% less for clothing
|
Athens
|
McAllen
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$101.47
€86.46
|
$63.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$47.68
€40.62
|
$44.50
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$105.26
€89.68
|
$75.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$125.94
€107.30
|
$95.00
|
|
Athens vs. McAllen - 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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