Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Alga

For one person, living is cheaper in Alga: $847 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $16,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
42

Cost of Living Index in Alga
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Alga Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Alga

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan

$847

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Alga

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Lisbon and in Alga actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $847 in Alga.

Lisbon $2,210
Alga $847

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $1,363 in Alga.

Lisbon $3,275
Alga $1,363

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $1,878 in Alga.

Lisbon $4,341
Alga $1,878

Living in Lisbon is roughly 161% more expensive than in Alga, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Alga is 38% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.95

$8.86 ₸4,035

87.92%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$35.51 ₸16.2K

73.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$6.76 ₸3,081

68.05%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$2.39 ₸1,088

24.27%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$1.19 ₸540

92.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.51 ₸231

241.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

$1.39 ₸632

144.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$1.98 ₸902

67.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.20 ₸549

-3.33%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$0.40 ₸181

377.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$1.51 ₸689

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$1.80 ₸821

123.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

$10.16 ₸4,626

27.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.98

$5.59 ₸2,545

39.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.95

$8.22 ₸3,746

116.06%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$1.69 ₸769

36.09%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$2.19 ₸999

-21.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$2.44 ₸1,112

-23.77%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$2.27 ₸1,036

14.10%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$0.61 ₸280

198.36%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$0.44 ₸201

347.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.21 ₸550

21.49%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.96 ₸437

-25.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.91

$2.37 ₸1,078

177.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$7.93 ₸3,614

-29.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.24 ₸563

9.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$1.97 ₸896

8.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

$0.22 ₸98.4

959.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

$14.92 ₸6,797

199.46%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$1.12 ₸510

243.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$0.77 ₸349

38.96%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$5.76 ₸2,622

185.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$0.56 ₸254

292.86%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$26.6K ₸12.1M

28.77%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$28.0K ₸12.8M

38.12%

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

$161 €145

$61.1 ₸27.8K

163.78%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$9.94 ₸4,529

85.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$16.32 ₸7,433

100.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.02

$43.08 ₸19.6K

3.41%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$5.30 ₸2,412

81.13%

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

$668 €600

$126 ₸57.2K

431.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$4,779 ₸2.2M

268.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.6

$65.2 ₸29.7K

56.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.94

$39.13 ₸17.8K

13.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$87.5 ₸39.9K

12.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$92.4 ₸42.1K

33.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

$299 ₸136.1K

438.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

$220 ₸100.0K

441.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,526

$599 ₸272.7K

369.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,808

$431 ₸196.1K

367.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,042

$1,081 ₸492.3K

625.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,110

$975 ₸444.2K

369.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

19.25

-80.00%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Alga: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Alga

$220 25.9% 81.5% $970

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Alga

$200 23.6% 26.5% $72

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Alga

$138 16.2% 43.3% $105

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Alga

$87 10.3% 58.9% $125

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Alga

$128 15.1% 22.9% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Alga

$54 6.3% 15.8% $10

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Alga

$21 2.5% 67.2% $42

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $299 in Alga. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $36 in Alga for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $200 per month, with Alga cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇰🇿 Alga

🕒 Local time

16:46 4:46 PM

21:46 9:46 PM

5 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Kazakhstani Tenge KZT ₸

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1,000 KZT = 2.2 USD

1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KZT, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

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

Kazakhstani Tenge exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 455 KZT (1,000 KZT = 2.2 USD). 1 EUR = 507 KZT (1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Alga 6,750 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

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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

Lisbon vs Alga: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Alga wins on cost – living expenses run 62% lower than in Lisbon. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Alga the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You’d need roughly $3,315 in Lisbon and $1,270 in Alga 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: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $299 in Alga. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $2,210 per month in Lisbon versus $847 in Alga – a 161% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Alga runs roughly 67% less than in Lisbon. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your budget.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Alga 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.

Expats usually find Alga gentler on the wallet – expenses run 62% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.