Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Jaco Beach and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Jaco Beach: $1,445 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $9,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

70

Cost of Living Index in Jaco Beach
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Jaco Beach Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Jaco Beach

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,445

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,445 in Jaco Beach versus $2,210 in Lisbon.

Jaco Beach $1,445
Lisbon $2,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,296 in Jaco Beach versus $3,275 in Lisbon.

Jaco Beach $2,296
Lisbon $3,275

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,147 in Jaco Beach versus $4,341 in Lisbon.

Jaco Beach $3,147
Lisbon $4,341

Living in Jaco Beach costs roughly 35% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Jaco Beach 6% above, Lisbon 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.32 ₡5,106

$16.65 €14.95

-32.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.14 ₡19.5K

$61.7 €55.5

-30.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.22 ₡4,612

$11.36 €10.20

-10.04%

Cappuccino

$3.99 ₡1,799

$2.97 €2.67

34.34%

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

$2.40 ₡1,085

$2.29 €2.06

4.80%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 ₡844

$1.74 €1.56

7.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 ₡1,441

$3.40 €3.06

-6.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.33 ₡1,954

$3.31 €2.97

30.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.98 ₡892

$1.16 €1.04

70.69%

White Bread (500g)

$2.19 ₡989

$1.91 €1.72

14.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.39 ₡1,078

$1.51 €1.36

58.28%

Eggs

$2.60 ₡1,175

$4.02 €3.61

-35.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.78 ₡4,865

$12.94 €11.62

-16.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.88 ₡4,008

$7.77 €6.98

14.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.11 ₡5,466

$17.76 €15.95

-31.81%

Apples (1kg)

$4.95 ₡2,233

$2.30 €2.07

115.22%

Banana (1kg)

$1.66 ₡748

$1.73 €1.56

-4.05%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.75 ₡2,141

$1.86 €1.67

155.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.42 ₡1,544

$2.59 €2.33

32.05%

Potato (1kg)

$1.50 ₡676

$1.82 €1.64

-17.58%

Onion (1kg)

$1.42 ₡641

$1.97 €1.77

-27.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.99 ₡447

$1.47 €1.32

-32.65%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.99 ₡900

$0.72 €0.65

176.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.01 ₡2,711

$6.58 €5.91

-8.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.81 ₡6,231

$5.61 €5.04

146.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.64 ₡1,192

$1.36 €1.22

94.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 ₡985

$2.14 €1.92

1.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.49 ₡1,125

$3.85 €3.46

-35.32%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.63 ₡735

$1.07 €0.96

52.34%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.53 ₡3,848

$16.46 €14.79

-48.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.57 ₡707

$2.20 €1.98

-28.64%

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

$33.9K ₡15.3M

$34.2K €30.7K

-0.88%

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

$42.6K ₡19.2M

$38.7K €34.8K

10.06%

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

$79.6 ₡35.9K

$161 €145

-50.66%

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

$23.88 ₡10.8K

$18.41 €16.54

29.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.69 ₡21.5K

$32.74 €29.41

45.66%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.0 ₡23.4K

$44.55 €40.02

16.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

Cinema Ticket

$7.72 ₡3,483

$9.60 €8.62

-19.58%

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

$479 ₡216.3K

$668 €600

-28.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,442 ₡3.4M

$17.6K €15.8K

-57.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$25.50 ₡11.5K

$102 €91.6

-75.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.2 ₡25.4K

$44.46 €39.94

26.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 ₡57.3K

$98.5 €88.5

28.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 ₡59.8K

$124 €111

7.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$748 ₡337.6K

$1,608 €1,445

-53.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$526 ₡237.2K

$1,190 €1,069

-55.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,984 ₡895.4K

$2,812 €2,526

-29.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,099 ₡495.8K

$2,013 €1,808

-45.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,042

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,110

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$402 ₡181.3K

$1,575 €1,415

-74.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

3.85

123.90%

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

Last update for Jaco Beach: 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

Jaco Beach

$526 36.4%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8% 126% $664

Groceries & Markets

Jaco Beach

$326 22.6%

Lisbon

$272 12.3% 16.4% $54

Eating Out

Jaco Beach

$211 14.6%

Lisbon

$243 11% 15.1% $32

Clothing & Footwear

Jaco Beach

$154 10.6%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 8.1% $12

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Jaco Beach

$151 10.5%

Lisbon

$212 9.6% 40.5% $61

Sport & Entertainment

Jaco Beach

$67 4.7%

Lisbon

$64 2.9% 5.4% $3.6

Getting Around

Jaco Beach

$11 * 0.7%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 494% $53

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 $748 in Jaco Beach and $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays about 3.9 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $43 in Jaco Beach vs $62 in Lisbon. Groceries flip the comparison at $326 vs $272, with Lisbon cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Jaco Beach

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

07:01 7:01 AM

13:01 1:01 PM

6 h ahead of Jaco Beach

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to CRC – Costa Rican Colón Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 502 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

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

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Jaco Beach Lisbon 8,080 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Jaco Beach
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

Jaco Beach vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Jaco Beach is cheaper overall, especially in transport, eating out, and clothing. The 53% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 74% lower in Jaco Beach. 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: $748 in Jaco Beach versus $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $479 in Jaco Beach versus $668 in Lisbon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Jaco Beach – a meal for two runs $43 versus $62 in Lisbon. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

For families, Jaco Beach 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, Jaco Beach 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.

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