City comparison
Cost of living in Milan vs Athens
One person needs about €2,149 a month in Milan and €1,236 in Athens, rent included — Athens is 42% 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 Athens the way you live in Milan on €3,000, you need
€1,725/ month net
42% less than today (-€1,275)
- Milan today
- Basket €2,149 · left over €851 (28%)
- Athens at the matched salary
- Basket €1,236 · left over €489 (28%)
Local pay context: average tech net pay covers the basket 138% over in Athens (adequate) vs 149% in Milan. Purchasing power index · How we calculate this
🇮🇹 Milan
Italy's business capital: better salaries than Rome, and rents to match.
Monthly budget: €2,149
Sources: Eurostat, Harmonised price indices (2025) · 0 community reports
🇬🇷 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
Should you move to Milan or Athens?
On salary, Milan pays more for tech roles (€3,200 versus €1,700 a month), so the money left over after costs is €1,051 in Milan at the top end.
Rent drives most of the gap: €1,450 in Milan against €700 in Athens. Groceries, transport and utilities move far less between the two.
For remote workers, the nomad index scores Milan at 71 and Athens at 71 — see the full nomad index and our data methodology.