Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Benoni and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Benoni: $1,067 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $13,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

51

Cost of Living Index in Benoni
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Benoni Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Benoni

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,067

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Benoni 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 Benoni and in Lisbon actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,067 in Benoni versus $2,210 in Lisbon.

Benoni $1,067
Lisbon $2,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,318 in Benoni versus $3,275 in Lisbon.

Benoni $1,318
Lisbon $3,275

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,568 in Benoni versus $4,341 in Lisbon.

Benoni $1,568
Lisbon $4,341

Living in Benoni costs roughly 52% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Benoni is 22% below, Lisbon is 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.86 R 164

$16.65 €14.92

-40.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.05 R 615

$61.7 €55.3

-39.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.55 R 92.2

$11.36 €10.18

-51.14%

Cappuccino

$2.17 R 36.00

$2.97 €2.66

-26.94%

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

$1.14 R 18.91

$2.29 €2.05

-50.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.84 R 14.00

$1.74 €1.56

-51.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.37 R 39.31

$3.40 €3.05

-30.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 R 45.65

$3.31 €2.97

-16.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.21 R 20.09

$1.16 €1.04

4.31%

White Bread (500g)

$1.12 R 18.55

$1.91 €1.71

-41.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.79 R 29.65

$1.51 €1.36

18.54%

Eggs

$2.49 R 41.28

$4.02 €3.60

-38.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.18 R 136

$12.94 €11.59

-36.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.85 R 80.5

$7.77 €6.97

-37.58%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.12 R 118

$17.76 €15.92

-59.91%

Apples (1kg)

$1.74 R 28.86

$2.30 €2.06

-24.35%

Banana (1kg)

$1.60 R 26.57

$1.73 €1.55

-7.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.77 R 29.47

$1.86 €1.66

-4.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.56 R 25.98

$2.59 €2.32

-39.77%

Potato (1kg)

$1.07 R 17.77

$1.82 €1.63

-41.21%

Onion (1kg)

$1.17 R 19.48

$1.97 €1.76

-40.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.22 R 20.21

$1.47 €1.32

-17.01%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 R 21.54

$0.72 €0.65

80.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.52 R 58.5

$6.58 €5.90

-46.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.97 R 82.6

$5.61 €5.02

-11.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.51 R 25.12

$1.36 €1.22

11.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.98 R 32.94

$2.14 €1.91

-7.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.09

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.04

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.29 R 4.77

$3.85 €3.45

-92.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.93 R 15.47

$1.07 €0.96

-13.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$14.37 R 239

$16.46 €14.75

-12.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 R 25.46

$2.20 €1.97

-30.45%

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

$35.4K R 588.6K

$34.2K €30.6K

3.64%

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

$34.4K R 572.0K

$38.7K €34.7K

-11.07%

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

$197 R 3,275

$161 €144

22.28%

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

$39.26 R 652

$18.41 €16.50

113.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$37.82 R 628

$32.74 €29.34

15.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$17.81 R 296

$44.55 €39.92

-60.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.11

Cinema Ticket

$7.15 R 119

$9.60 €8.60

-25.52%

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

$246 R 4,085

$668 €598

-63.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,379 R 89.3K

$17.6K €15.8K

-69.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.1 R 865

$102 €91.4

-48.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.79 R 528

$44.46 €39.85

-28.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.2 R 1,515

$98.5 €88.3

-7.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$82.3 R 1,368

$124 €111

-33.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$393 R 6,526

$1,608 €1,441

-75.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$302 R 5,020

$1,190 €1,066

-74.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$489 R 8,131

$2,812 €2,520

-82.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,804

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,025

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,100

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,000 R 33.2K

$1,575 €1,411

26.97%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.91

3.85

183.38%

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

Last update for Benoni: October 25, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Benoni

$302 28.3%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8% 294% $888

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Benoni

$274 25.7%

Lisbon

$212 9.6% 22.6% $62

Groceries & Markets

Benoni

$191 17.9%

Lisbon

$272 12.3% 42.5% $81

Eating Out

Benoni

$147 13.8%

Lisbon

$243 11% 65.3% $96

Clothing & Footwear

Benoni

$116 10.9%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 43.2% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Benoni

$32 3%

Lisbon

$64 2.9% 98.5% $32

Getting Around

Benoni

$4.9 * 0.5%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 1179% $58

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $393 in Benoni and $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Benoni pays 27% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $37 in Benoni vs $62 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $191 vs $272 per month, with Benoni cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Benoni

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

07:25 7:25 AM

05:25 5:25 AM

2 h behind Benoni

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

158,777

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.02 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 16.61 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.02 USD). 1 EUR = 18.49 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Benoni Lisbon 8,200 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Benoni
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

Benoni vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,067 in Benoni and $2,210 in Lisbon, so Benoni is about 52% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 27% higher in Benoni, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $393 in Benoni versus $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 42% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,067 per month in Benoni versus $2,210 in Lisbon – Benoni is about 52% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,067 in Benoni versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Benoni but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Benoni the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Benoni and Lisbon are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.