Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Changchun and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Changchun: $904 a month against $2,202 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $15,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

44

Cost of Living Index in Changchun
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Changchun Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Changchun

🇨🇳 China

$904

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $904 in Changchun versus $2,202 in Lisbon.

Changchun $904
Lisbon $2,202

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,324 in Changchun versus $3,274 in Lisbon.

Changchun $1,324
Lisbon $3,274

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,743 in Changchun versus $4,346 in Lisbon.

Changchun $1,743
Lisbon $4,346

Living in Changchun costs roughly 59% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Changchun is 33% below, Lisbon is 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.02 ¥20.17

$17.04 €15.21

-82.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.15 ¥148

$62.3 €55.6

-64.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.19 ¥34.59

$11.02 €9.83

-52.90%

Cappuccino

$2.40 ¥15.98

$3.12 €2.79

-23.08%

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

$0.47 ¥3.14

$2.27 €2.02

-79.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 ¥2.09

$1.74 €1.56

-82.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.21 ¥8.10

$3.42 €3.06

-64.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.91 ¥12.71

$3.74 €3.34

-48.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.90 ¥12.67

$1.17 €1.05

62.39%

White Bread (500g)

$1.22 ¥8.14

$1.86 €1.66

-34.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.44 ¥9.63

$1.54 €1.38

-6.49%

Eggs

$1.81 ¥12.09

$4.06 €3.63

-55.42%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$34.55 ¥230

$12.91 €11.53

167.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.71 ¥38.06

$7.90 €7.05

-27.72%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.36 ¥69.1

$17.64 €15.75

-41.27%

Apples (1kg)

$1.72 ¥11.48

$2.26 €2.02

-23.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 ¥9.69

$1.75 €1.56

-17.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.80 ¥12.02

$1.89 €1.69

-4.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.89 ¥12.63

$2.56 €2.28

-26.17%

Potato (1kg)

$0.89 ¥5.94

$1.85 €1.65

-51.89%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.58 ¥3.88

$1.45 €1.29

-60.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.47 ¥9.77

$0.77 €0.69

90.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.78 ¥25.21

$6.71 €5.99

-43.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$21.06 ¥140

$5.67 €5.06

271.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.92 ¥6.11

$1.37 €1.22

-32.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.10 ¥7.35

$2.11 €1.89

-47.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.44 ¥2.91

$2.32 €2.07

-81.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.43 €39.65

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.24 ¥8.24

$3.95 €3.52

-68.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.31 ¥2.08

$1.05 €0.94

-70.48%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ¥20.13

$17.15 €15.31

-82.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 ¥8.56

$2.19 €1.96

-41.55%

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

$19.3K ¥129.0K

$33.8K €30.2K

-42.75%

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

$17.8K ¥118.6K

$38.3K €34.2K

-53.53%

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

$76.7 ¥511

$164 €146

-53.20%

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

$4.43 ¥29.56

$18.48 €16.49

-76.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$14.76 ¥98.4

$32.96 €29.42

-55.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.44 ¥250

$45.87 €40.93

-18.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.13 ¥27.52

$18.68 €16.67

-77.89%

Cinema Ticket

$6.64 ¥44.31

$9.75 €8.70

-31.90%

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

$553 ¥3,692

$684 €611

-19.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.9K ¥145.8K

$17.6K €15.7K

23.98%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$73.7 ¥492

$104 €92.6

-28.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.44 ¥296

$46.20 €41.23

-3.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$60.2 ¥401

$99.7 €89.0

-39.65%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$69.7 ¥465

$125 €111

-44.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$216 ¥1,443

$1,589 €1,418

-86.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$246 ¥1,644

$1,169 €1,043

-78.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$576 ¥3,839

$2,851 €2,544

-79.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$308 ¥2,052

$1,993 €1,779

-84.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,668 ¥11.1K

$7,793 €6,955

-78.59%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,006 ¥6,711

$4,418 €3,943

-77.23%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$961 ¥6,408

$1,600 €1,428

-39.96%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.37

3.85

13.51%

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

Last update for Changchun: October 20, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Changchun

$313 * 34.6%

Lisbon

$273 12.4% 12.7% $40

Accommodation & Living

Changchun

$246 27.3%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.1% 374% $923

Clothing & Footwear

Changchun

$112 12.4%

Lisbon

$168 7.7% 50.9% $57

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Changchun

$96 10.6%

Lisbon

$215 9.8% 125% $119

Eating Out

Changchun

$82 9%

Lisbon

$247 11.2% 204% $166

Sport & Entertainment

Changchun

$51 5.6%

Lisbon

$65 3% 28.9% $15

Getting Around

Changchun

$4.5 * 0.5%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 1286% $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 $216 in Changchun and $1,589 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 67% 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: $22.00 in Changchun vs $62.0 in Lisbon. Groceries flip the comparison at $313 vs $273, with Lisbon cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Changchun

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

23:03 11:03 PM

15:03 3:03 PM

8 h behind Changchun

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,066,906

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 25, 2026: 1 USD = 6.67 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.5 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 25, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

Lowest

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Between locations

Changchun Lisbon 9,760 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Changchun
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

Changchun vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Changchun is cheaper overall, especially in clothing, eating out, and leisure. The 144% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 67% 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $216 in Changchun versus $1,589 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $553 in Changchun versus $684 in Lisbon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Changchun – a meal for two runs $22.00 versus $62.0 in Lisbon. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $904 in Changchun versus $2,202 in Lisbon, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Changchun but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Changchun the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Changchun is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Lisbon, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Changchun 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 Changchun gentler on the wallet – expenses run 144% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.