Cost of living comparison
Athens is 32.9% cheaper than Chicago.
- Restaurants
-
pay 40.0% less in Athens
- Groceries
-
pay 30.9% less in Athens
- Transportation
-
pay 2.0% more in Athens
- Housing
-
pay 39.9% less in Athens
- Childcare
-
pay 78.0% less in Athens
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 39.4% less in Athens
- Clothing
-
pay 4.4% less in Athens
Expenses including childcare, restaurants, housing, entertainment and sports, groceries, and clothing are lower in Athens.
If you lived in Athens instead of Chicago, you would:
pay 40.0% less for restaurants
|
Chicago
|
Athens
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$25.00
|
$16.08
€14.73
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.34
|
$9.65
€8.84
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.02
|
$2.06
€1.89
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.44
|
$0.55
€0.50
|
|
pay 30.9% less for groceries
|
Chicago
|
Athens
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.19
|
$1.27
€1.17
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.87
|
$6.59
€6.04
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.94
|
$6.29
€5.76
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.75
|
$4.50
€4.12
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.63
|
$4.89
€4.48
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.44
|
$0.93
€0.85
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.90
|
$0.89
€0.82
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.19
|
$0.60
€0.55
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.27
|
$0.93
€0.85
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.16
|
$0.57
€0.52
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.37
|
$0.53
€0.48
|
|
pay 2.0% more for transportation
|
Chicago
|
Athens
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.16
|
$7.64
€7.00
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$75.00
|
$30.01
€27.49
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$31,965.00
|
$30,384.48
€27,833.55
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.43
|
$12.86
€11.78
|
|
pay 39.9% less for housing
|
Chicago
|
Athens
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$58.52
|
$32.55
€29.82
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,360.96
|
$634.68
€581.40
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,512.92
|
$557.32
€510.53
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$126.63
|
$153.41
€140.53
|
|
pay 78.0% less for childcare
|
Chicago
|
Athens
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,475.00
|
$463.20
€424.31
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$42,300.00
|
$10,722.29
€9,822.10
|
|
pay 39.4% less for entertainment and sports
|
Chicago
|
Athens
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$7.50
|
$5.36
€4.91
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.30
|
$3.71
€3.40
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$17.00
|
$4.88
€4.47
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$72.00
|
$49.36
€45.22
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$15.00
|
$9.65
€8.84
|
|
pay 4.4% less for clothing
|
Chicago
|
Athens
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$64.98
|
$86.11
€78.89
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$51.67
|
$38.32
€35.11
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$97.00
|
$93.75
€85.88
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$146.00
|
$115.38
€105.70
|
|
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