Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bedford and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Bedford: $2,097 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $1,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

102

Cost of Living Index in Bedford
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Bedford Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Bedford

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,097

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bedford and in Lisbon

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Bedford and in Lisbon actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $2,097 per month in Bedford vs $2,223 in Lisbon, rent included.

Bedford $2,097
Lisbon $2,223

A couple spends around $3,291 per month in Bedford vs $3,271 in Lisbon, rent included.

Bedford $3,291
Lisbon $3,271

A family of three spends $4,486 per month in Bedford vs $4,319 in Lisbon, rent included.

Bedford $4,486
Lisbon $4,319

Bedford is about 6% cheaper than Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Bedford and Lisbon sit above the global median – Bedford by 55%, Lisbon by 65%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.10 £15.08

$16.50 €14.67

21.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$86.6 £65.0

$61.3 €54.5

41.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.65 £7.99

$11.27 €10.03

-5.50%

Cappuccino

$4.59 £3.44

$3.06 €2.72

50.00%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 £1.52

$2.26 €2.01

-10.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 £0.91

$1.73 €1.54

-30.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.45 £4.84

$3.39 €3.02

90.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.84 £4.38

$3.40 €3.02

71.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 £1.28

$1.12 €1.00

51.79%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 £1.10

$1.86 €1.65

-21.51%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 £1.26

$1.53 €1.36

9.80%

Eggs

$3.80 £2.85

$3.96 €3.53

-4.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.09 £6.82

$12.76 €11.35

-28.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.96 £6.72

$7.90 €7.02

13.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.62 £9.47

$16.97 €15.09

-25.63%

Apples (1kg)

$3.26 £2.44

$2.27 €2.02

43.61%

Banana (1kg)

$1.30 £0.98

$1.75 €1.55

-25.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.47 £1.85

$1.85 €1.64

33.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.20 £2.40

$2.57 €2.28

24.51%

Potato (1kg)

$1.32 £0.99

$1.86 €1.65

-29.03%

Onion (1kg)

$1.32 £0.99

$2.02 €1.80

-34.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.03 £0.77

$1.44 €1.28

-28.47%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 £0.97

$0.82 €0.73

58.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.05 £17.29

$6.56 €5.83

251.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.65 £7.99

$5.62 €5.00

89.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.58 £1.94

$1.28 €1.14

101.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.36 £1.77

$2.07 €1.84

14.01%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.56 £1.92

$2.35 €2.09

8.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.99 £3.74

$3.99 €3.55

25.06%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.43 £1.07

$1.09 €0.97

31.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.92 £17.95

$16.64 €14.81

43.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.92 £1.44

$2.28 €2.03

-15.79%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$37.5K £28.1K

$33.7K €30.0K

11.26%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$40.5K £30.4K

$39.3K €35.0K

3.13%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$316 £237

$167 €149

88.71%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$17.63 £13.22

$18.80 €16.72

-6.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.85 £29.90

$33.09 €29.43

20.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.86 £27.66

$46.01 €40.93

-19.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

Cinema Ticket

$15.90 £11.93

$9.84 €8.75

61.59%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$937 £703

$677 €602

38.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.6K £16.2K

$16.9K €15.1K

27.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$23.92 £17.95

$101 €90.1

-76.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.54 £19.16

$45.76 €40.70

-44.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.6 £59.7

$100.0 €88.9

-20.36%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.7 £65.1

$123 €109

-29.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,115 £837

$1,614 €1,436

-30.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$952 £714

$1,197 €1,065

-20.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,353 £1,766

$2,862 €2,545

-17.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,998 £1,499

$1,990 €1,770

0.37%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,170 £2,378

$1,588 €1,412

99.66%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.67

3.85

21.30%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Bedford: October 11, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Bedford

$952 45.4%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9% 25.7% $245

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bedford

$374 17.8%

Lisbon

$219 9.9% 41.3% $154

Eating Out

Bedford

$305 14.5%

Lisbon

$242 10.9% 20.5% $63

Groceries & Markets

Bedford

$279 13.3%

Lisbon

$269 12.1% 3.3% $9.2

Clothing & Footwear

Bedford

$97 4.6%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 71.3% $69

Sport & Entertainment

Bedford

$69 3.3%

Lisbon

$66 3% 4.3% $3

Getting Around

Bedford

$22 * 1.1%

Lisbon

$63 2.8% 182% $41

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,115 in Bedford versus $1,614 in Lisbon. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 100% higher in Bedford, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $87.0 in Bedford versus $61.0 in Lisbon. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $279 vs $269 – making Lisbon the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Bedford

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

09:41 9:41 AM

Same time as Bedford

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

80,000

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bedford Lisbon 1,640 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Bedford
Lisbon

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Bedford vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon costs about 6% more than Bedford, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from clothing. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,146 per month in Bedford and $3,335 in Lisbon. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Bedford, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,097 in Bedford and $2,223 in Lisbon. That's a gap of about 6%.

Kindergarten costs $937 per month in Bedford and $677 in Lisbon. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Bedford, where all-in costs run around $2,097, than in Lisbon at $2,223. In Bedford it covers expenses comfortably, while in Lisbon it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Bedford costs $2,097 versus $2,223 in Lisbon. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Bedford. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Lisbon makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.