Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lexington, KY and Lisbon

For one person, living costs are similar in Lexington, KY and in Lisbon: $2,209 and $2,223 a month, rent and utilities included.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lexington, KY
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Lexington, KY Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Lexington, KY

🇺🇸 United States

$2,209

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,209 in Lexington, KY versus $2,223 in Lisbon.

Lexington, KY $2,209
Lisbon $2,223

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,249 in Lexington, KY versus $3,271 in Lisbon.

Lexington, KY $3,249
Lisbon $3,271

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,289 in Lexington, KY versus $4,319 in Lisbon.

Lexington, KY $4,289
Lisbon $4,319

Living in Lexington, KY costs roughly 1% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lexington, KY 64% above, Lisbon 65% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.82 $12.82

$16.50 €14.67

-22.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.6 $57.6

$61.3 €54.5

-6.04%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.78 $8.78

$11.27 €10.03

-22.09%

Cappuccino

$5.00 $5.00

$3.06 €2.72

63.40%

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

$2.48 $2.48

$2.26 €2.01

9.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 $2.14

$1.73 €1.54

23.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.05 $5.05

$3.39 €3.02

48.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.98 $5.98

$3.40 €3.02

75.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.78 $0.78

$1.12 €1.00

-30.36%

White Bread (500g)

$2.79 $2.79

$1.86 €1.65

50.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.10 $4.10

$1.53 €1.36

167.97%

Eggs

$3.69 $3.69

$3.96 €3.53

-6.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.40 $10.40

$12.76 €11.35

-18.50%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.34 $10.34

$7.90 €7.02

30.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.40 $14.40

$16.97 €15.09

-15.14%

Apples (1kg)

$5.31 $5.31

$2.27 €2.02

133.92%

Banana (1kg)

$1.54 $1.54

$1.75 €1.55

-12.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.52 $5.52

$1.85 €1.64

198.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.37 $4.37

$2.57 €2.28

70.04%

Potato (1kg)

$4.24 $4.24

$1.86 €1.65

127.96%

Onion (1kg)

$3.21 $3.21

$2.02 €1.80

58.91%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.15 $2.15

$1.44 €1.28

49.31%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.13 $3.13

$0.82 €0.73

281.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.68 $8.68

$6.56 €5.83

32.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.87 $12.87

$5.62 €5.00

129.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.68 $2.68

$1.28 €1.14

109.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.30 $4.30

$2.07 €1.84

107.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.98 $0.98

$2.35 €2.09

-58.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.52 $30.52

$44.18 €39.30

-30.92%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.91 $4.91

$3.99 €3.55

23.06%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.64 €14.81

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.00 $1.00

$2.28 €2.03

-56.14%

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

$36.0K $36.0K

$33.7K €30.0K

6.84%

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

$25.9K $25.9K

$39.3K €35.0K

-34.18%

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

$191 $191

$167 €149

13.79%

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

$105 $105

$18.80 €16.72

460.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$74.9 $74.9

$33.09 €29.43

126.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.65 $38.65

$46.01 €40.93

-16.00%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.41 $29.41

$19.19 €17.07

53.26%

Cinema Ticket

$14.86 $14.86

$9.84 €8.75

51.02%

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

$2,261 $2,261

$677 €602

233.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.8K $24.8K

$16.9K €15.1K

46.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.9 $50.9

$101 €90.1

-49.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.06 $31.06

$45.76 €40.70

-32.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 $118

$100.0 €88.9

17.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$152 $152

$123 €109

23.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,141 $1,141

$1,614 €1,436

-29.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$942 $942

$1,197 €1,065

-21.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,028 $2,028

$2,862 €2,545

-29.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,565 $1,565

$1,990 €1,770

-21.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,066 $2,066

$7,577 €6,740

-72.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,100 $2,100

$4,307 €3,831

-51.23%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,968 $3,968

$1,588 €1,412

149.92%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.82

3.85

77.14%

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

Last update for Lexington, KY: 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

Lexington, KY

$942 42.6%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9% 27.1% $256

Groceries & Markets

Lexington, KY

$386 17.5%

Lisbon

$269 12.1% 30.2% $116

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lexington, KY

$371 16.8%

Lisbon

$219 9.9% 40.8% $151

Eating Out

Lexington, KY

$245 11.1%

Lisbon

$242 10.9% 0.9% $2.3

Clothing & Footwear

Lexington, KY

$158 7.2%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 5.2% $8.2

Sport & Entertainment

Lexington, KY

$68 3.1%

Lisbon

$66 3% 3.9% $2.7

Getting Around

Lexington, KY

$39 * 1.8%

Lisbon

$63 2.8% 60.2% $24

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 $1,141 in Lexington, KY and $1,614 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lexington, KY pays 150% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $58.0 in Lexington, KY vs $61.0 in Lisbon. Groceries flip the comparison at $386 vs $269, with Lisbon cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Lexington, KY

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

12:45 12:45 PM

17:45 5:45 PM

5 h ahead of Lexington, KY

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

322,570

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lexington, KY Lisbon 6,370 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Lexington, KY
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

Lexington, KY vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lexington, KY wins on cost – living expenses run 1% lower than in Lisbon. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Lexington, KY the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 150% higher in Lexington, KY, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,141 in Lexington, KY versus $1,614 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Lexington, KY – a meal for two runs $58.0 versus $61.0 in Lisbon. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,209 per month in Lexington, KY versus $2,223 in Lisbon – a 1% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $2,209 in Lexington, KY versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lexington, KY but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Lexington, KY the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Lexington, KY delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $2,209 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Lexington, KY hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Lexington, KY 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 Lexington, KY gentler on the wallet – expenses run 1% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.