Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cotonou and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Cotonou: $897 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $15,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

43

Cost of Living Index in Cotonou
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Cotonou Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Cotonou

🇧🇯 Benin

$897

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $897 in Cotonou versus $2,210 in Lisbon.

Cotonou $897
Lisbon $2,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,428 in Cotonou versus $3,275 in Lisbon.

Cotonou $1,428
Lisbon $3,275

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,958 in Cotonou versus $4,341 in Lisbon.

Cotonou $1,958
Lisbon $4,341

Living in Cotonou costs roughly 59% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cotonou is 34% below, Lisbon is 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.18 F CFA 3,050

$16.65 €14.96

-68.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.68 F CFA 21.0K

$61.7 €55.5

-42.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.39 F CFA 5,528

$11.36 €10.20

-17.34%

Cappuccino

$5.25 F CFA 3,094

$2.97 €2.67

76.77%

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

$1.00 F CFA 590

$2.29 €2.06

-56.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.89 F CFA 523

$1.74 €1.56

-48.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.87 F CFA 511

$3.40 €3.06

-74.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.59 F CFA 1,526

$3.31 €2.97

-21.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.10 F CFA 1,824

$1.16 €1.04

167.24%

White Bread (500g)

$1.23 F CFA 726

$1.91 €1.72

-35.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.88 F CFA 1,108

$1.51 €1.36

24.50%

Eggs

$2.74 F CFA 1,614

$4.02 €3.61

-31.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.25 F CFA 5,450

$12.94 €11.62

-28.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.43 F CFA 3,197

$7.77 €6.99

-30.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$5.04 F CFA 2,967

$17.76 €15.96

-71.62%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 F CFA 2,352

$2.30 €2.07

73.48%

Banana (1kg)

$1.78 F CFA 1,046

$1.73 €1.56

2.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.33 F CFA 781

$1.86 €1.67

-28.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.71 F CFA 1,596

$2.59 €2.33

4.63%

Potato (1kg)

$1.27 F CFA 747

$1.82 €1.64

-30.22%

Onion (1kg)

$1.68 F CFA 989

$1.97 €1.77

-14.72%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.43 F CFA 253

$1.47 €1.32

-70.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 F CFA 672

$0.72 €0.65

58.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.37 F CFA 1,982

$6.58 €5.92

-48.78%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.30 F CFA 2,531

$5.61 €5.04

-23.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.17 F CFA 690

$1.36 €1.22

-13.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.86 F CFA 1,095

$2.14 €1.92

-13.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.30 F CFA 766

$2.33 €2.10

-44.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.38 F CFA 810

$3.85 €3.46

-64.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.32 F CFA 778

$1.07 €0.96

23.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.18 F CFA 696

$2.20 €1.98

-46.36%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

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

$23.5K F CFA 13.8M

$38.7K €34.8K

-39.29%

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

$145 F CFA 85.3K

$161 €145

-10.15%

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

$33.52 F CFA 19.7K

$18.41 €16.54

82.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$49.06 F CFA 28.9K

$32.74 €29.41

49.85%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$47.60 F CFA 28.0K

$44.55 €40.03

6.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.36 F CFA 1,979

$19.10 €17.16

-82.41%

Cinema Ticket

$8.58 F CFA 5,056

$9.60 €8.62

-10.62%

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

$131 F CFA 77.1K

$668 €600

-80.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,544 F CFA 3.3M

$17.6K €15.8K

-68.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$25.39 F CFA 15.0K

$102 €91.7

-75.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.95

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$33.44 F CFA 19.7K

$98.5 €88.5

-66.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$67.9 F CFA 40.0K

$124 €111

-45.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$176 F CFA 103.6K

$1,608 €1,445

-89.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$163 F CFA 95.9K

$1,190 €1,069

-86.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$600 F CFA 353.5K

$2,812 €2,527

-78.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$412 F CFA 242.9K

$2,013 €1,809

-79.51%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,043

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,111

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$251 F CFA 147.6K

$1,575 €1,415

-84.09%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

3.90%

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

Last update for Cotonou: October 26, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cotonou

$227 25.4%

Lisbon

$212 9.6% 6.6% $15

Groceries & Markets

Cotonou

$222 24.8%

Lisbon

$272 12.3% 22.7% $50

Accommodation & Living

Cotonou

$163 18.2%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8% 631% $1K

Eating Out

Cotonou

$150 16.7%

Lisbon

$243 11% 62.1% $93

Sport & Entertainment

Cotonou

$65 7.2%

Lisbon

$64 2.9% 1.6% $1

Clothing & Footwear

Cotonou

$57 * 6.4%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 191% $109

Getting Around

Cotonou

$13 * 1.5%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 380% $50

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 $176 in Cotonou and $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays about 6.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $36 in Cotonou vs $62 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $222 vs $272 per month, with Cotonou cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇯 Cotonou

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

15:58 3:58 PM

14:58 2:58 PM

1 h behind Cotonou

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

780,000

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

West African CFA Franc XOF Fr

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 XOF = 1.7 USD

1,000 XOF = 1.53 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to XOF – West African CFA Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🌐 West African CFA Franc (Fr)

West African CFA Franc exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 589 XOF (1,000 XOF = 1.7 USD). 1 EUR = 656 XOF (1,000 XOF = 1.53 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

USD to XOF in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cotonou Lisbon 3,780 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Cotonou
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

Cotonou vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cotonou is cheaper overall, especially in clothing, eating out, and groceries. The 146% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 84% lower in Cotonou. 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: $176 in Cotonou versus $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 23% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $897 per month in Cotonou versus $2,210 in Lisbon – a 146% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $897 in Cotonou versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Cotonou but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Cotonou 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 – Cotonou wins on affordability, Lisbon on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.