Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lerwick and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Lisbon: $2,202 a month against $2,368 in Lerwick, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

114

Cost of Living Index in Lerwick
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Lerwick Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Lerwick

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,368

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,368 in Lerwick versus $2,202 in Lisbon.

Lerwick $2,368
Lisbon $2,202

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,415 in Lerwick versus $3,274 in Lisbon.

Lerwick $3,415
Lisbon $3,274

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,462 in Lerwick versus $4,346 in Lisbon.

Lerwick $4,462
Lisbon $4,346

Living in Lerwick is roughly 8% more expensive than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lerwick 75% above, Lisbon 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.15 £15.11

$17.04 €15.15

18.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$98.5 £73.9

$62.3 €55.4

58.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.35 £7.76

$11.02 €9.80

-6.08%

Cappuccino

$5.40 £4.05

$3.12 €2.78

73.08%

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

$2.25 £1.69

$2.27 €2.02

-0.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.64 £1.23

$1.74 €1.55

-5.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.45 £4.84

$3.42 €3.04

88.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.86 £4.40

$3.74 €3.33

56.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.55 £1.16

$1.17 €1.04

32.48%

White Bread (500g)

$1.69 £1.27

$1.86 €1.66

-9.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.21 £1.66

$1.54 €1.37

43.51%

Eggs

$4.02 £3.02

$4.06 €3.61

-0.99%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.37 £7.03

$12.91 €11.49

-27.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.57 £6.43

$7.90 €7.03

8.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.44 £10.84

$17.64 €15.69

-18.14%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 £2.27

$2.26 €2.01

34.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.51 £1.13

$1.75 €1.55

-13.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.76 £2.07

$1.89 €1.68

46.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.28 £2.46

$2.56 €2.27

28.12%

Potato (1kg)

$1.83 £1.37

$1.85 €1.64

-1.08%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 £1.28

$1.97 €1.75

-13.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.26 £0.95

$1.45 €1.29

-13.10%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 £1.16

$0.77 €0.69

101.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$24.02 £18.02

$6.71 €5.97

257.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.48 £7.86

$5.67 €5.04

84.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.00 £2.25

$1.37 €1.22

118.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.27 £2.46

$2.11 €1.88

54.98%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.07 £2.30

$2.32 €2.07

32.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$83.1 £62.3

$44.43 €39.52

86.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.23 £3.18

$3.95 €3.51

7.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.35 £1.76

$1.05 €0.93

123.81%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.03 £18.03

$17.15 €15.26

40.12%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.34 £1.75

$2.19 €1.95

6.85%

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

$38.9K £29.2K

$33.8K €30.0K

15.08%

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

$34.5K £25.9K

$38.3K €34.0K

-9.92%

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

$309 £232

$164 €146

88.92%

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

$19.33 £14.50

$18.48 €16.43

4.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$45.26 £33.95

$32.96 €29.32

37.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.8 £39.61

$45.87 €40.80

15.09%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.68 €16.61

Cinema Ticket

$13.32 £9.99

$9.75 €8.67

36.62%

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

$1,392 £1,045

$684 €608

103.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.5K £18.4K

$17.6K €15.7K

38.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 £66.5

$104 €92.3

-14.53%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.6 £37.93

$46.20 €41.09

9.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.1 £66.8

$99.7 €88.7

-10.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$110 £82.8

$125 €111

-11.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,112 £834

$1,589 €1,414

-30.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,036 £777

$1,169 €1,040

-11.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,395 £1,797

$2,851 €2,536

-15.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,523 £1,143

$1,993 €1,773

-23.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,646 £3,486

$7,793 €6,932

-40.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,438 £2,579

$4,418 €3,930

-22.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,600 €1,423

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.09

3.85

32.21%

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

Last update for Lerwick: October 18, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lerwick

$1K 43.7%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.1% 12.9% $133

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lerwick

$374 15.8%

Lisbon

$215 9.8% 42.5% $159

Eating Out

Lerwick

$317 13.4%

Lisbon

$247 11.2% 21.8% $69

Groceries & Markets

Lerwick

$298 12.6%

Lisbon

$273 12.4% 8.5% $25

Clothing & Footwear

Lerwick

$152 6.4%

Lisbon

$168 7.7% 10.5% $16

Getting Around

Lerwick

$111 4.7%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 43.5% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Lerwick

$79 3.4%

Lisbon

$65 3% 17.7% $14

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,112 in Lerwick and $1,589 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $99.0 in Lerwick vs $62.0 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $298 vs $273 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Lerwick

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

17:23 5:23 PM

Same time as Lerwick

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

7,000

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 22, 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 22, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to GBP in detail →

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Between locations

Lerwick Lisbon 2,450 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Lerwick
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

Lerwick vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and transport. The 8% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $3,552 in Lerwick and $3,302 in Lisbon to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,112 in Lerwick versus $1,589 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,368 per month in Lerwick versus $2,202 in Lisbon – a 8% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Lisbon runs roughly 87% less than in Lerwick. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $2,202 in Lisbon versus $2,368 in Lerwick, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Lisbon but tight or insufficient in Lerwick. The gap between the two cities makes Lisbon the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Lisbon is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Lerwick, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Lerwick 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.

Expats usually find Lisbon gentler on the wallet – expenses run 8% less than in Lerwick. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.