Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kos and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Kos: $1,506 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Lisbon outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

73

Cost of Living Index in Kos
Learn more

Kos Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
Learn more

Lisbon Living Index

Jump to prices

Kos

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,506

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,506 in Kos versus $2,210 in Lisbon.

Kos $1,506
Lisbon $2,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,265 in Kos versus $3,275 in Lisbon.

Kos $2,265
Lisbon $3,275

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,024 in Kos versus $4,341 in Lisbon.

Kos $3,024
Lisbon $4,341

Living in Kos costs roughly 32% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Kos 11% above, Lisbon 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.93 €12.51

$16.65 €14.95

-16.34%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.4 €59.7

$61.7 €55.5

7.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.25 €10.10

$11.36 €10.20

-0.97%

Cappuccino

$4.01 €3.61

$2.97 €2.67

35.02%

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

$3.09 €2.77

$2.29 €2.06

34.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.11 €0.99

$1.74 €1.56

-36.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.34 €3.90

$3.40 €3.06

27.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.53 €5.87

$3.31 €2.97

97.28%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.42 €2.17

$1.16 €1.04

108.62%

White Bread (500g)

$1.62 €1.46

$1.91 €1.72

-15.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.61 €2.34

$1.51 €1.36

72.85%

Eggs

$4.61 €4.14

$4.02 €3.61

14.68%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.08 €11.75

$12.94 €11.62

1.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.17 €9.13

$7.77 €6.98

30.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.05 €13.52

$17.76 €15.95

-15.26%

Apples (1kg)

$2.20 €1.97

$2.30 €2.07

-4.35%

Banana (1kg)

$2.00 €1.80

$1.73 €1.56

15.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.86 €1.67

-26.88%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.04 €1.83

$2.59 €2.33

-21.24%

Potato (1kg)

$1.13 €1.01

$1.82 €1.64

-37.91%

Onion (1kg)

$1.14 €1.02

$1.97 €1.77

-42.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 €0.98

$1.47 €1.32

-25.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.84 €0.76

$0.72 €0.65

16.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.39 €4.84

$6.58 €5.91

-18.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.76 €6.07

$5.61 €5.04

20.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.01 €1.81

$1.36 €1.22

47.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.56 €2.30

$2.14 €1.92

19.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.83 €1.64

$2.33 €2.10

-21.46%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$49.85 €44.78

$44.68 €40.14

11.57%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.09 €3.67

$3.85 €3.46

6.23%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.13 €1.02

$1.07 €0.96

5.61%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.47 €14.80

$16.46 €14.79

0.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.09 €1.88

$2.20 €1.98

-5.00%

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

$28.0K €25.1K

$34.2K €30.7K

-18.22%

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

$25.1K €22.6K

$38.7K €34.8K

-35.15%

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

$201 €181

$161 €145

24.97%

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

$22.92 €20.59

$18.41 €16.54

24.50%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.73 €31.20

$32.74 €29.41

6.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.6 €45.49

$44.55 €40.02

13.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.52 €25.62

$19.10 €17.16

49.32%

Cinema Ticket

$8.80 €7.90

$9.60 €8.62

-8.33%

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

$417 €375

$668 €600

-37.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,025 €8,107

$17.6K €15.8K

-48.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.0 €79.9

$102 €91.6

-12.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.15 €36.07

$44.46 €39.94

-9.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.5 €83.1

$98.5 €88.5

-6.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €110

$124 €111

-0.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$610 €548

$1,608 €1,445

-62.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$420 €377

$1,190 €1,069

-64.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$715 €642

$2,812 €2,526

-74.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$587 €527

$2,013 €1,808

-70.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,594 €2,330

$7,839 €7,042

-66.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,012 €1,807

$4,576 €4,110

-56.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$902 €810

$1,575 €1,415

-42.74%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.48

3.85

16.36%

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

Last update for Kos: October 27, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kos

$420 27.9%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8% 183% $770

Groceries & Markets

Kos

$292 19.4%

Lisbon

$272 12.3% 6.7% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kos

$259 17.2%

Lisbon

$212 9.6% 18% $47

Eating Out

Kos

$245 16.3%

Lisbon

$243 11% 0.9% $2.3

Clothing & Footwear

Kos

$155 10.3%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 7.1% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Kos

$68 4.5%

Lisbon

$64 2.9% 6.6% $4.5

Getting Around

Kos

$67 4.4%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 5.6% $3.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $610 in Kos and $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 75% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $66 in Kos vs $62 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $292 vs $272 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Kos

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

23:49 11:49 PM

21:49 9:49 PM

2 h behind Kos

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

30,947

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Kos Lisbon 3,170 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Kos
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

Kos vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kos wins on cost – living expenses run 32% lower than in Lisbon. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Kos the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 43% lower in Kos. 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: $610 in Kos versus $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Lisbon – a meal for two runs $62 versus $66 in Kos. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,506 per month in Kos versus $2,210 in Lisbon – Kos is about 32% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Kos is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.

Safety-wise, Kos and Lisbon are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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