City comparison
Cost of living in Athens vs Málaga
One person needs about €1,236 a month in Athens and €1,380 in Málaga, rent included — Athens is 12% cheaper overall.
Salary you'd need to keep the same lifestyle
Enter your current net monthly pay. We scale it by the full cost basket — rent, groceries, transport, utilities, eating out and internet.
To live in Málaga the way you live in Athens on €3,000, you need
€3,350/ month net
12% more than today (+€350)
- Athens today
- Basket €1,236 · left over €1,764 (59%)
- Málaga at the matched salary
- Basket €1,380 · left over €1,970 (59%)
Local pay context: average tech net pay covers the basket 152% over in Málaga (adequate) vs 138% in Athens. Purchasing power index · How we calculate this
🇬🇷 Athens
Cheapest euro-zone big city here, with the widest gap between local pay and expat pay.
Monthly budget: €1,236
Sources: ELSTAT + Eurostat, HICP & household budget survey (2025) · 164 community reports
🇪🇸 Málaga
The current favourite of remote workers: 300 sunny days, fast fibre, and Barcelona living for 40% less.
Monthly budget: €1,380
Sources: INE Spain + Eurostat, HICP & provincial rent index (2025) · 286 community reports
Should you move to Athens or Málaga?
On salary, Málaga pays more for tech roles (€2,100 versus €1,700 a month), so the money left over after costs is €720 in Málaga at the top end.
Rent drives most of the gap: €700 in Athens against €850 in Málaga. Groceries, transport and utilities move far less between the two.
For remote workers, the nomad index scores Athens at 71 and Málaga at 88 — see the full nomad index and our data methodology.