Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Edinburgh and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Lisbon: $2,223 a month against $2,617 in Edinburgh, rent and utilities included – about $4,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

127

Cost of Living Index in Edinburgh
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Edinburgh Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Edinburgh

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,617

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,617 per month in Edinburgh vs $2,223 in Lisbon, rent included.

Edinburgh $2,617
Lisbon $2,223

A couple spends around $3,956 per month in Edinburgh vs $3,271 in Lisbon, rent included.

Edinburgh $3,956
Lisbon $3,271

A family of three spends $5,295 per month in Edinburgh vs $4,319 in Lisbon, rent included.

Edinburgh $5,295
Lisbon $4,319

Edinburgh costs about 18% more than Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Edinburgh and Lisbon sit above the global median – Edinburgh by 94%, Lisbon by 65%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$23.64 £17.73

$16.50 €14.67

43.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$104 £78.2

$61.3 €54.5

70.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.48 £7.86

$11.27 €10.03

-7.01%

Cappuccino

$5.08 £3.81

$3.06 €2.72

66.01%

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

$2.50 £1.87

$2.26 €2.01

10.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 £1.61

$1.73 €1.54

24.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.06 £6.04

$3.39 €3.02

137.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.13 £6.10

$3.40 €3.02

139.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.68 £1.26

$1.12 €1.00

50.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.29 £1.71

$1.86 €1.65

23.12%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.25 £1.69

$1.53 €1.36

47.06%

Eggs

$5.05 £3.79

$3.96 €3.53

27.53%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.05 £6.79

$12.76 €11.35

-29.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.49 £7.12

$7.90 €7.02

20.13%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.12 £12.10

$16.97 €15.09

-5.01%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 £2.29

$2.27 €2.02

34.36%

Banana (1kg)

$1.93 £1.45

$1.75 €1.55

10.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.36 £2.52

$1.85 €1.64

81.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.68 £2.76

$2.57 €2.28

43.19%

Potato (1kg)

$2.07 £1.55

$1.86 €1.65

11.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.54 £1.16

$2.02 €1.80

-23.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 £0.94

$1.44 €1.28

-13.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.94 £1.45

$0.82 €0.73

136.59%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.67 £17.76

$6.56 €5.83

260.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.13 £8.35

$5.62 €5.00

98.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.22 £2.42

$1.28 €1.14

151.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.19 £2.40

$2.07 €1.84

54.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.20 £2.40

$2.35 €2.09

36.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$96.7 £72.6

$44.18 €39.30

118.92%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.18 £3.89

$3.99 €3.55

29.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.86 £1.40

$1.09 €0.97

70.64%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.69 £21.52

$16.64 €14.81

72.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.14 £1.60

$2.28 €2.03

-6.14%

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

$38.6K £29.0K

$33.7K €30.0K

14.75%

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

$41.2K £30.9K

$39.3K €35.0K

4.75%

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

$330 £248

$167 €149

97.06%

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

$16.39 £12.30

$18.80 €16.72

-12.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.15 £31.63

$33.09 €29.43

27.38%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.13 £33.11

$46.01 €40.93

-4.09%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.04 £17.28

$19.19 €17.07

20.06%

Cinema Ticket

$14.30 £10.73

$9.84 €8.75

45.33%

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

$1,759 £1,319

$677 €602

159.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.4K £19.0K

$16.9K €15.1K

49.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.6 £60.4

$101 €90.1

-20.44%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.45 £37.10

$45.76 €40.70

8.06%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 £79.2

$100.0 €88.9

5.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$115 £86.0

$123 €109

-6.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,611 £1,209

$1,614 €1,436

-0.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,185 £889

$1,197 €1,065

-1.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,738 £2,054

$2,862 €2,545

-4.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,106 £1,580

$1,990 €1,770

5.82%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,632 £4,976

$7,577 €6,740

-12.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,609 £3,458

$4,307 €3,831

7.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,522 £2,642

$1,588 €1,412

121.80%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.77

3.85

23.90%

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

Last update for Edinburgh: October 11, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Edinburgh

$1.2K 45.3%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9% 1.1% $12

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Edinburgh

$389 14.9%

Lisbon

$219 9.9% 43.5% $169

Eating Out

Edinburgh

$357 13.6%

Lisbon

$242 10.9% 32.1% $114

Groceries & Markets

Edinburgh

$333 12.7%

Lisbon

$269 12.1% 19.1% $63

Clothing & Footwear

Edinburgh

$158 6%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 5.6% $8.8

Getting Around

Edinburgh

$124 4.7%

Lisbon

$63 2.8% 49.2% $61

Sport & Entertainment

Edinburgh

$73 2.8%

Lisbon

$66 3% 9.7% $7

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,611 in Edinburgh versus $1,614 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 run about 122% higher in Edinburgh, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $104 in Edinburgh versus $61.0 in Lisbon. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $333 vs $269 – making Lisbon the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Edinburgh

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

11:08 11:08 AM

Same time as Edinburgh

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

488,050

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 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 October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Edinburgh Lisbon 1,970 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Edinburgh
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

Edinburgh vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Edinburgh is pricier by about 18%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,925 per month in Edinburgh and $3,335 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. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $104 in Edinburgh and $61.0 in Lisbon. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,617 in Edinburgh and $2,223 in Lisbon. That's a gap of about 18%.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Lisbon, where all-in costs run around $2,223, than in Edinburgh at $2,617. In Lisbon it covers expenses comfortably, while in Edinburgh it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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