Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Birmingham and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Lisbon: $2,223 a month against $2,479 in Birmingham, rent and utilities included – about $3,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

121

Cost of Living Index in Birmingham
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Birmingham Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Birmingham

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,479

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,479 per month in Birmingham vs $2,223 in Lisbon, rent included.

Birmingham $2,479
Lisbon $2,223

A couple spends around $3,626 per month in Birmingham vs $3,271 in Lisbon, rent included.

Birmingham $3,626
Lisbon $3,271

A family of three spends $4,773 per month in Birmingham vs $4,319 in Lisbon, rent included.

Birmingham $4,773
Lisbon $4,319

Birmingham costs about 12% more than Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Birmingham and Lisbon sit above the global median – Birmingham by 84%, Lisbon by 65%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.89 £15.67

$16.50 €14.67

26.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$98.4 £73.9

$61.3 €54.5

60.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 £7.13

$11.27 €10.03

-15.71%

Cappuccino

$5.09 £3.82

$3.06 €2.72

66.34%

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

$2.55 £1.91

$2.26 €2.01

12.83%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 £1.42

$1.73 €1.54

9.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.24 £5.43

$3.39 €3.02

113.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.69 £5.02

$3.40 €3.02

96.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.83 £1.38

$1.12 €1.00

63.39%

White Bread (500g)

$1.85 £1.39

$1.86 €1.65

-0.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.58 £1.94

$1.53 €1.36

68.63%

Eggs

$3.83 £2.87

$3.96 €3.53

-3.28%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.48 £7.11

$12.76 €11.35

-25.71%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.56 £6.42

$7.90 €7.02

8.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.13 £11.35

$16.97 €15.09

-10.84%

Apples (1kg)

$2.57 £1.93

$2.27 €2.02

13.22%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 £1.30

$1.75 €1.55

-1.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.46 £1.85

$1.85 €1.64

32.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.56 £2.67

$2.57 €2.28

38.52%

Potato (1kg)

$1.64 £1.23

$1.86 €1.65

-11.83%

Onion (1kg)

$1.77 £1.33

$2.02 €1.80

-12.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.37 £1.03

$1.44 €1.28

-4.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.57 £1.18

$0.82 €0.73

91.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$21.97 £16.48

$6.56 €5.83

234.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.92 £8.94

$5.62 €5.00

112.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.58 £2.68

$1.28 €1.14

179.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.23 £2.42

$2.07 €1.84

56.04%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.88 £2.91

$2.35 €2.09

65.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$91.3 £68.5

$44.18 €39.30

106.63%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.11 £3.83

$3.99 €3.55

28.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.36 £1.77

$1.09 €0.97

116.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.21 £18.16

$16.64 €14.81

45.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.16 £1.62

$2.28 €2.03

-5.26%

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

$38.5K £28.9K

$33.7K €30.0K

14.48%

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

$41.0K £30.8K

$39.3K €35.0K

4.36%

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

$325 £244

$167 €149

93.93%

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

$21.05 £15.80

$18.80 €16.72

11.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.24 £35.44

$33.09 €29.43

42.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.20 £28.66

$46.01 €40.93

-16.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.76 £22.33

$19.19 €17.07

55.08%

Cinema Ticket

$15.94 £11.96

$9.84 €8.75

61.99%

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

$1,572 £1,179

$677 €602

132.10%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.7K £17.8K

$16.9K €15.1K

39.97%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 £78.4

$101 €90.1

3.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.83 £36.63

$45.76 €40.70

6.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 £88.7

$100.0 €88.9

18.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$146 £109

$123 €109

18.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,368 £1,027

$1,614 €1,436

-15.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,070 £802

$1,197 €1,065

-10.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,096 £1,572

$2,862 €2,545

-26.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,660 £1,245

$1,990 €1,770

-16.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,400 £4,052

$7,577 €6,740

-28.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,215 £3,162

$4,307 €3,831

-2.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,467 £3,351

$1,588 €1,412

181.35%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.09

3.85

32.21%

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

Last update for Birmingham: October 12, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Birmingham

$1.1K 43.1%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9% 11.9% $127

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Birmingham

$393 15.9%

Lisbon

$219 9.9% 44.2% $174

Eating Out

Birmingham

$324 13.1%

Lisbon

$242 10.9% 25.3% $82

Groceries & Markets

Birmingham

$311 12.6%

Lisbon

$269 12.1% 13.4% $42

Clothing & Footwear

Birmingham

$188 7.6%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 11.4% $21

Getting Around

Birmingham

$124 5%

Lisbon

$63 2.8% 49.1% $61

Sport & Entertainment

Birmingham

$70 2.8%

Lisbon

$66 3% 6.3% $4.4

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,368 in Birmingham 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 181% higher in Birmingham, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $98.0 in Birmingham versus $61.0 in Lisbon. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $311 vs $269 – making Lisbon the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Birmingham

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

09:03 9:03 AM

Same time as Birmingham

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,036,878

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 19, 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 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Birmingham Lisbon 1,630 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Birmingham
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

Birmingham vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,479 in Birmingham, $2,223 in Lisbon – roughly 12% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,719 per month in Birmingham 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 Lisbon, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $1,572 per month in Birmingham and $677 in Lisbon. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 15% more in Birmingham, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Lisbon, where all-in costs run around $2,223, than in Birmingham at $2,479. In Lisbon it covers expenses comfortably, while in Birmingham it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Lisbon has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $2,223 in Lisbon to $2,479 in Birmingham. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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