Cost of living comparison

compared to

South Korea vs. Athens Cost of Living Summary

South Korea is 4.7% cheaper than Athens.

Restaurants
pay 29.4% less in South Korea
Groceries
pay 88.7% more in South Korea
Transportation
pay 15.0% less in South Korea
Housing
pay 32.4% less in South Korea
Childcare
pay 1.6% less in South Korea
Entertainment and Sports
pay 24.1% less in South Korea
Clothing
pay 19.3% less in South Korea

Expenses including housing, restaurants, entertainment and sports, clothing, transportation, and childcare are lower in South Korea. Notably, groceries is significantly more expensive in South Korea.

South Korea vs. Athens Cost Breakdown

If you lived in South Korea instead of Athens, you would:

pay 29.4% less for restaurants

 
Athens
South Korea
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $17.52
€15.05
$6.72
₩9,907
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$10.51
€9.03
$5.50
₩8,102
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $2.48
€2.13
$1.47
₩2,161

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pay 88.7% more for groceries

 
Athens
South Korea
Bread
1 loaf
$1.39
€1.19
$2.87
₩4,235
Local cheese (8 oz) $7.54
€6.47
$5.63
₩8,290
Milk (1 gallon) $7.20
€6.18
$7.67
₩11,311

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pay 15.0% less for transportation

 
Athens
South Korea
Gasoline (1 gallon) $7.94
€6.82
$4.40
₩6,485
Monthly public transit pass $35.04
€30.09
$47.17
₩69,524
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $29,198.27
€25,075.80
$26,440.41
₩38,967,875

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pay 32.4% less for housing

 
Athens
South Korea
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$34.45
€29.59
$21.68
₩31,958
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $685.67
€588.86
$473.91
₩698,442
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $609.10
€523.10
$357.19
₩526,420

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pay 1.6% less for childcare

 
Athens
South Korea
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $566.82
€486.79
$378.52
₩557,869
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $11,581.98
€9,946.73
$15,055.40
₩22,188,655

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pay 24.1% less for entertainment and sports

 
Athens
South Korea
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $5.84
€5.02
$3.12
₩4,595
Cappuccino in mid-range area $4.12
€3.54
$3.57
₩5,258
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$5.84
€5.02
$3.18
₩4,693

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pay 19.3% less for clothing

 
Athens
South Korea
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$101.47
€87.15
$66.46
₩97,948
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$47.68
€40.95
$50.68
₩74,697
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$105.26
€90.40
$72.74
₩107,204

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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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