City comparison
Cost of living in Seoul vs Athens
One person needs about €1,639 a month in Seoul and €1,236 in Athens, rent included — Athens is 25% 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 Seoul on €3,000, you need
€2,262/ month net
25% less than today (-€738)
- Seoul today
- Basket €1,639 · left over €1,361 (45%)
- Athens at the matched salary
- Basket €1,236 · left over €1,026 (45%)
Local pay context: average tech net pay covers the basket 138% over in Athens (adequate) vs 207% in Seoul. Purchasing power index · How we calculate this
🇰🇷 Seoul
Fast everything, plus jeonse deposits that catch foreigners off guard.
Monthly budget: €1,639
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 Seoul or Athens?
On salary, Seoul pays more for tech roles (€3,400 versus €1,700 a month), so the money left over after costs is €1,761 in Seoul at the top end.
Rent drives most of the gap: €1,050 in Seoul against €700 in Athens. Groceries, transport and utilities move far less between the two.
For remote workers, the nomad index scores Seoul at 71 and Athens at 71 — see the full nomad index and our data methodology.