Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cahul and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Cahul: $632 a month against $2,202 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $18,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

31

Cost of Living Index in Cahul
Learn more

Cahul Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
Learn more

Lisbon Living Index

Jump to prices

Cahul

🇲🇩 Moldova

$632

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $632 in Cahul versus $2,202 in Lisbon.

Cahul $632
Lisbon $2,202

Estimated couple costs with rent: $926 in Cahul versus $3,274 in Lisbon.

Cahul $926
Lisbon $3,274

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,219 in Cahul versus $4,346 in Lisbon.

Cahul $1,219
Lisbon $4,346

Living in Cahul costs roughly 71% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cahul is 53% below, Lisbon is 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.58 MDL 152

$17.04 €15.15

-49.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.38 MDL 415

$62.3 €55.4

-62.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.32 MDL 183

$11.02 €9.80

-6.35%

Cappuccino

$1.63 MDL 29.00

$3.12 €2.78

-47.76%

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

$1.05 MDL 18.73

$2.27 €2.02

-53.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 MDL 9.60

$1.74 €1.55

-68.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.92 MDL 34.05

$3.42 €3.04

-43.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.77 MDL 31.39

$3.74 €3.33

-52.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.26 MDL 22.46

$1.17 €1.04

7.69%

White Bread (500g)

$0.50 MDL 8.82

$1.86 €1.66

-73.12%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 MDL 27.25

$1.54 €1.37

-0.65%

Eggs

$2.26 MDL 40.21

$4.06 €3.61

-44.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.91 MDL 123

$12.91 €11.49

-46.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.80 MDL 85.2

$7.90 €7.03

-39.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.11 MDL 108

$17.64 €15.69

-65.36%

Apples (1kg)

$1.04 MDL 18.43

$2.26 €2.01

-53.98%

Banana (1kg)

$2.22 MDL 39.41

$1.75 €1.55

26.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.80 MDL 32.03

$1.89 €1.68

-4.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 MDL 41.09

$2.56 €2.27

-9.77%

Potato (1kg)

$0.73 MDL 12.90

$1.85 €1.64

-60.54%

Onion (1kg)

$0.52 MDL 9.23

$1.97 €1.75

-73.60%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.46 MDL 8.20

$1.45 €1.29

-68.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.57 MDL 10.20

$0.77 €0.69

-25.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.38 MDL 60.1

$6.71 €5.97

-49.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.42 MDL 78.5

$5.67 €5.04

-22.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 MDL 24.60

$1.37 €1.22

0.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.01 MDL 35.64

$2.11 €1.88

-4.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.29 MDL 5.19

$2.32 €2.07

-87.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.43 €39.52

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.89 MDL 51.4

$3.95 €3.51

-26.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.26 MDL 4.64

$1.05 €0.93

-75.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.50 MDL 97.7

$17.15 €15.26

-67.93%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.64 MDL 29.07

$2.19 €1.95

-25.11%

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

$34.2K MDL 607.9K

$33.8K €30.0K

1.32%

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

$23.8K MDL 422.7K

$38.3K €34.0K

-37.80%

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

$220 MDL 3,913

$164 €146

34.50%

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

$7.63 MDL 135

$18.48 €16.43

-58.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.10 MDL 197

$32.96 €29.32

-66.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.87 €40.80

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.68 €16.61

Cinema Ticket

$7.47 MDL 133

$9.75 €8.67

-23.38%

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

$111 MDL 1,974

$684 €608

-83.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,144 MDL 91.3K

$17.6K €15.7K

-70.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$45.70 MDL 812

$104 €92.3

-55.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.20 €41.09

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$56.9 MDL 1,011

$99.7 €88.7

-42.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$50.7 MDL 900

$125 €111

-59.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,589 €1,414

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,169 €1,040

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,851 €2,536

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,993 €1,773

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,793 €6,932

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,418 €3,930

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$511 MDL 9,072

$1,600 €1,423

-68.07%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

107.79%

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

Last update for Cahul: October 18, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cahul

$239 37.8%

Lisbon

$215 9.8% 10% $24

Groceries & Markets

Cahul

$165 26.1%

Lisbon

$273 12.4% 65.6% $108

Eating Out

Cahul

$139 21.9%

Lisbon

$247 11.2% 78.5% $109

Clothing & Footwear

Cahul

$69 * 10.9%

Lisbon

$168 7.7% 144% $99

Sport & Entertainment

Cahul

$15 * 2.4%

Lisbon

$65 3% 337% $50

Getting Around

Cahul

$5.4 * 0.9%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 1072% $58

Accommodation & Living

Cahul

- * 0%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.1%

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

Cost Breakdown

Lisbon pays 213% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $23.00 in Cahul vs $62.0 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $165 vs $273 per month, with Cahul cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇩 Cahul

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

13:48 1:48 PM

11:48 11:48 AM

2 h behind Cahul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

39,500

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Moldovan Leu MDL L

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MDL = 5.63 USD

100 MDL = 5.01 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MDL – Moldovan Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇩 Moldovan Leu (L)

Moldovan Leu exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 17.76 MDL (100 MDL = 5.63 USD). 1 EUR = 19.97 MDL (100 MDL = 5.01 EUR).

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

USD to MDL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cahul Lisbon 3,140 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Cahul
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

Cahul vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cahul wins on cost – living expenses run 248% lower than in Lisbon. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Cahul the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 213% lower in Lisbon. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Supermarket bills run roughly 66% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $632 per month in Cahul versus $2,202 in Lisbon – a 248% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $632 in Cahul versus $2,202 in Lisbon, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Cahul but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Cahul the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Cahul delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $632 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Cahul hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Cahul and Lisbon are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Cahul gentler on the wallet – expenses run 248% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.