Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Besancon and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Besancon: $1,754 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Lisbon outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

85

Cost of Living Index in Besancon
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Besancon Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Besancon

🇫🇷 France

$1,754

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,754 in Besancon versus $2,210 in Lisbon.

Besancon $1,754
Lisbon $2,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,541 in Besancon versus $3,275 in Lisbon.

Besancon $2,541
Lisbon $3,275

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,328 in Besancon versus $4,341 in Lisbon.

Besancon $3,328
Lisbon $4,341

Living in Besancon costs roughly 21% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Besancon 29% above, Lisbon 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.79 €15.04

$16.65 €14.92

0.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.9 €49.15

$61.7 €55.3

-11.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.06 €9.91

$11.36 €10.18

-2.64%

Cappuccino

$3.00 €2.69

$2.97 €2.66

1.01%

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

$2.32 €2.08

$2.29 €2.05

1.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.58 €1.41

$1.74 €1.56

-9.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.60 €5.92

$3.40 €3.05

94.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.72 €5.13

$3.31 €2.97

72.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.27 €1.14

$1.16 €1.04

9.48%

White Bread (500g)

$1.64 €1.47

$1.91 €1.71

-14.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.14 €1.91

$1.51 €1.36

41.72%

Eggs

$4.54 €4.07

$4.02 €3.60

12.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$20.49 €18.36

$12.94 €11.59

58.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.11 €9.96

$7.77 €6.97

42.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.32 €16.42

$17.76 €15.92

3.15%

Apples (1kg)

$2.67 €2.39

$2.30 €2.06

16.09%

Banana (1kg)

$2.19 €1.96

$1.73 €1.55

26.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.84 €2.55

$1.86 €1.66

52.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.48 €2.22

$2.59 €2.32

-4.25%

Potato (1kg)

$2.44 €2.18

$1.82 €1.63

34.07%

Onion (1kg)

$2.42 €2.17

$1.97 €1.76

22.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.38 €1.23

$1.47 €1.32

-6.12%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.12 €1.00

$0.72 €0.65

55.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.18 €12.71

$6.58 €5.90

115.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.47 €8.49

$5.61 €5.02

68.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.76 €4.27

$1.36 €1.22

250.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.25 €2.91

$2.14 €1.91

51.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.75 €1.57

$2.33 €2.09

-24.89%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$43.76 €39.21

$44.68 €40.04

-2.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.12 €2.79

$3.85 €3.45

-18.96%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.09 €1.87

$1.07 €0.96

95.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.39 €27.23

$16.46 €14.75

84.63%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.08 €1.87

$2.20 €1.97

-5.45%

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

$35.3K €31.6K

$34.2K €30.6K

3.20%

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

$38.5K €34.5K

$38.7K €34.7K

-0.61%

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

$228 €204

$161 €144

41.25%

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

$14.33 €12.84

$18.41 €16.50

-22.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.37 €30.80

$32.74 €29.34

4.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.49 €23.74

$44.55 €39.92

-40.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.74 €17.69

$19.10 €17.11

3.35%

Cinema Ticket

$10.97 €9.83

$9.60 €8.60

14.27%

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

$333 €298

$668 €598

-50.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,365 €6,600

$17.6K €15.8K

-58.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$96.6 €86.5

$102 €91.4

-5.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.88 €34.84

$44.46 €39.85

-12.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.0 €83.3

$98.5 €88.3

-5.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €110

$124 €111

-0.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$658 €590

$1,608 €1,441

-59.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$585 €524

$1,190 €1,066

-50.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$982 €880

$2,812 €2,520

-65.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$807 €723

$2,013 €1,804

-59.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,858 €2,561

$7,839 €7,025

-63.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,234 €2,002

$4,576 €4,100

-51.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,139 €1,917

$1,575 €1,411

35.80%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.62

3.85

-5.97%

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

Last update for Besancon: 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

Besancon

$585 33.4%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8% 103% $605

Groceries & Markets

Besancon

$358 20.4%

Lisbon

$272 12.3% 24% $86

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Besancon

$276 15.8%

Lisbon

$212 9.6% 23.2% $64

Eating Out

Besancon

$264 15%

Lisbon

$243 11% 7.9% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Besancon

$158 9%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 4.9% $7.8

Getting Around

Besancon

$64 3.7%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 1.7% $1.1

Sport & Entertainment

Besancon

$48 2.8%

Lisbon

$64 2.9% 31.6% $15

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $658 in Besancon and $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Besancon pays 36% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $55 in Besancon vs $62 in Lisbon. Groceries flip the comparison at $358 vs $272, with Lisbon cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇫🇷 Besancon

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

09:06 9:06 AM

08:06 8:06 AM

1 h behind Besancon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

119,198

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Besancon Lisbon 1,550 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Besancon
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

Besancon vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Besancon wins on cost – living expenses run 21% lower than in Lisbon. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Besancon the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 36% higher in Besancon, 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: $658 in Besancon versus $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 24% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you’ll spend $1,754 per month in Besancon versus $2,210 in Lisbon – Besancon is about 21% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,754 in Besancon versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Besancon but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Besancon 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, Besancon and Lisbon are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.