Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Charlottesville, VA and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Lisbon: $2,210 a month against $3,027 in Charlottesville, VA, rent and utilities included – about $9,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

147

Cost of Living Index in Charlottesville, VA
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Charlottesville, VA Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Charlottesville, VA

🇺🇸 United States

$3,027

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,027 in Charlottesville, VA versus $2,210 in Lisbon.

Charlottesville, VA $3,027
Lisbon $2,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,500 in Charlottesville, VA versus $3,275 in Lisbon.

Charlottesville, VA $4,500
Lisbon $3,275

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,973 in Charlottesville, VA versus $4,341 in Lisbon.

Charlottesville, VA $5,973
Lisbon $4,341

Living in Charlottesville, VA is roughly 37% more expensive than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Charlottesville, VA 122% above, Lisbon 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.93 $19.93

$16.65 €14.91

19.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$98.8 $98.8

$61.7 €55.3

59.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.96 $12.96

$11.36 €10.17

14.08%

Cappuccino

$4.49 $4.49

$2.97 €2.66

51.18%

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

$2.73 $2.73

$2.29 €2.05

19.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.95 $1.95

$1.74 €1.56

12.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.53 $6.53

$3.40 €3.05

92.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.83 $5.83

$3.31 €2.96

76.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 $1.17

$1.16 €1.04

0.86%

White Bread (500g)

$3.68 $3.68

$1.91 €1.71

92.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$6.50 $6.50

$1.51 €1.35

330.46%

Eggs

$5.06 $5.06

$4.02 €3.60

25.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.01 $16.01

$12.94 €11.59

23.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$15.33 $15.33

$7.77 €6.96

97.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.87 $17.87

$17.76 €15.91

0.62%

Apples (1kg)

$6.59 $6.59

$2.30 €2.06

186.52%

Banana (1kg)

$3.83 $3.83

$1.73 €1.55

121.39%

Oranges (1kg)

$7.31 $7.31

$1.86 €1.66

293.01%

Tomato (1kg)

$7.87 $7.87

$2.59 €2.32

203.86%

Potato (1kg)

$6.43 $6.43

$1.82 €1.63

253.30%

Onion (1kg)

$6.43 $6.43

$1.97 €1.76

226.40%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.43 $2.43

$1.47 €1.32

65.31%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.24 $3.24

$0.72 €0.65

350.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.71 $9.71

$6.58 €5.90

47.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.67 $14.67

$5.61 €5.02

161.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 $1.78

$1.36 €1.22

30.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.83 $3.83

$2.14 €1.91

78.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.09

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.01

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.97 $3.97

$3.85 €3.45

3.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.07 $2.07

$1.07 €0.96

93.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$25.31 $25.31

$16.46 €14.74

53.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.04 $1.04

$2.20 €1.97

-52.73%

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

$31.0K $31.0K

$34.2K €30.6K

-9.35%

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

$25.5K $25.5K

$38.7K €34.7K

-34.09%

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

$284 $284

$161 €144

75.95%

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

$52.3 $52.3

$18.41 €16.49

184.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$102 $102

$32.74 €29.32

212.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.9 $55.9

$44.55 €39.90

25.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.58 $7.58

$19.10 €17.10

-60.31%

Cinema Ticket

$16.69 $16.69

$9.60 €8.60

73.85%

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

$1,418 $1,418

$668 €598

112.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$29.9K $29.9K

$17.6K €15.8K

69.90%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$47.68 $47.68

$102 €91.4

-53.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.97 $47.97

$44.46 €39.82

7.89%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.7 $93.7

$98.5 €88.2

-4.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 $122

$124 €111

-1.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,839 $1,839

$1,608 €1,440

14.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,505 $1,505

$1,190 €1,066

26.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,189 $3,189

$2,812 €2,519

13.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,610 $2,610

$2,013 €1,803

29.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,203 $3,203

$7,839 €7,021

-59.14%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,513 $2,513

$4,576 €4,098

-45.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,632 $4,632

$1,575 €1,411

194.09%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.59

3.85

71.17%

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

Last update for Charlottesville, VA: October 26, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Charlottesville, VA

$1.5K 49.7%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8% 20.9% $315

Groceries & Markets

Charlottesville, VA

$524 17.3%

Lisbon

$272 12.3% 48.1% $252

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Charlottesville, VA

$438 14.5%

Lisbon

$212 9.6% 51.5% $226

Eating Out

Charlottesville, VA

$315 10.4%

Lisbon

$243 11% 23% $73

Clothing & Footwear

Charlottesville, VA

$140 4.6%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 18.4% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Charlottesville, VA

$89 3%

Lisbon

$64 2.9% 28.6% $26

Getting Around

Charlottesville, VA

$14 * 0.5%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 342% $49

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 $1,839 in Charlottesville, VA and $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Charlottesville, VA pays about 2.9 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $99 in Charlottesville, VA vs $62 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $524 vs $272 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Charlottesville, VA

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

11:10 11:10 AM

16:10 4:10 PM

5 h ahead of Charlottesville, VA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

43,475

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.896 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Charlottesville, VA Lisbon 5,890 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Charlottesville, VA
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

Charlottesville, VA vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $3,027 in Charlottesville, VA and $2,210 in Lisbon, so Lisbon is about 27% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Charlottesville, VA is about 2.9 times higher, 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: $1,839 in Charlottesville, VA versus $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 92% higher in Charlottesville, VA. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $3,027 per month in Charlottesville, VA versus $2,210 in Lisbon – Lisbon is about 27% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $2,210 in Lisbon versus $3,027 in Charlottesville, VA, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Lisbon but tight or insufficient in Charlottesville, VA. The gap between the two cities makes Lisbon 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.

It comes down to priorities – Lisbon wins on affordability, Charlottesville, VA on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.