Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Croydon and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Lisbon: $2,210 a month against $2,932 in Croydon, rent and utilities included – about $8,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

140

Cost of Living Index in Croydon
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Croydon Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Croydon

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,932

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,932 per month in Croydon vs $2,210 in Lisbon, rent included.

Croydon $2,932
Lisbon $2,210

A couple spends around $3,998 per month in Croydon vs $3,275 in Lisbon, rent included.

Croydon $3,998
Lisbon $3,275

A family of three spends $5,065 per month in Croydon vs $4,341 in Lisbon, rent included.

Croydon $5,065
Lisbon $4,341

Croydon costs about 33% more than Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Croydon and Lisbon sit above the global median – Croydon by 115%, Lisbon by 62%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.18 £15.07

$16.65 €14.92

21.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$72.2 £53.9

$61.7 €55.3

16.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.65 £7.21

$11.36 €10.18

-15.05%

Cappuccino

$5.10 £3.81

$2.97 €2.66

71.72%

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

$2.73 £2.04

$2.29 €2.05

19.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.47 £1.10

$1.74 €1.56

-15.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.08 £4.54

$3.40 €3.05

78.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.14 £4.58

$3.31 €2.97

85.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.60 £1.20

$1.16 €1.04

37.93%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 £1.05

$1.91 €1.71

-26.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.69 £2.01

$1.51 €1.36

78.15%

Eggs

$3.98 £2.97

$4.02 €3.60

-1.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.46 £7.82

$12.94 €11.59

-19.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.15 £6.09

$7.77 €6.97

4.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.41 £10.02

$17.76 €15.92

-24.49%

Apples (1kg)

$2.38 £1.78

$2.30 €2.06

3.48%

Banana (1kg)

$1.25 £0.93

$1.73 €1.55

-27.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.05 £2.28

$1.86 €1.66

63.98%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 £1.57

$2.59 €2.32

-18.92%

Potato (1kg)

$3.12 £2.33

$1.82 €1.63

71.43%

Onion (1kg)

$1.84 £1.37

$1.97 €1.76

-6.60%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 £1.11

$1.47 €1.32

0.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 £1.12

$0.72 €0.65

108.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.45 £17.52

$6.58 €5.90

256.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.27 £9.92

$5.61 €5.02

136.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.35 £1.75

$1.36 €1.22

72.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 £2.05

$2.14 €1.91

28.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.30 £1.72

$2.33 €2.09

-1.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$134 £99.9

$44.68 €40.04

199.40%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.59 £4.92

$3.85 €3.45

71.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$54.0 £40.32

$16.46 €14.75

227.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.01 £1.50

$2.20 €1.97

-8.64%

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

$39.0K £29.1K

$34.2K €30.6K

13.93%

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

$41.4K £30.9K

$38.7K €34.7K

6.93%

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

$316 £236

$161 €144

95.97%

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

$29.89 £22.33

$18.41 €16.50

62.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.53 £29.53

$32.74 €29.34

20.74%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.99 £27.63

$44.55 €39.92

-16.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.15 £15.05

$19.10 €17.11

5.50%

Cinema Ticket

$12.03 £8.99

$9.60 €8.60

25.31%

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

$1,692 £1,264

$668 €598

153.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.7K £17.7K

$17.6K €15.8K

34.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$65.9 £49.19

$102 €91.4

-35.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.74 £36.41

$44.46 €39.85

9.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.9 £70.1

$98.5 €88.3

-4.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$150 £112

$124 €111

20.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,014 £1,505

$1,608 €1,441

25.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,572 £1,174

$1,190 €1,066

32.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,814 £2,102

$2,812 €2,520

0.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,186 £1,633

$2,013 €1,804

8.60%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,032 £6,000

$7,839 €7,025

2.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,784 £4,321

$4,576 €4,100

26.41%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,462 £3,334

$1,575 €1,411

183.33%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.06

3.85

31.43%

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

Last update for Croydon: October 25, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Croydon

$1.6K 53.6%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8% 24.3% $382

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Croydon

$385 13.1%

Lisbon

$212 9.6% 44.9% $173

Eating Out

Croydon

$311 10.6%

Lisbon

$243 11% 22% $69

Groceries & Markets

Croydon

$292 10%

Lisbon

$272 12.3% 6.7% $20

Clothing & Footwear

Croydon

$161 5.5%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 3% $4.8

Getting Around

Croydon

$150 * 5.1%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 57.7% $86

Sport & Entertainment

Croydon

$61 2.1%

Lisbon

$64 2.9% 4.4% $2.7

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,014 in Croydon versus $1,608 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 in Croydon are about 2.8 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $72 in Croydon versus $62 in Lisbon. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $292 vs $272 – making Lisbon the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Croydon

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

09:51 9:51 AM

Same time as Croydon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

173,314

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 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 November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.747 GBP (1 GBP = 1.34 USD). 1 EUR = 0.834 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Croydon Lisbon 1,570 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Croydon
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

Croydon vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Croydon is pricier by about 33%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,398 per month in Croydon and $3,315 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: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,608 there versus $2,014 in Croydon.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,932 in Croydon and $2,210 in Lisbon. That makes Lisbon about 25% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 67% less in Lisbon. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Families tend to lean toward Lisbon – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Lisbon. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Croydon makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.