Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Arrecife

For one person, living is cheaper in Arrecife: $1,549 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $7,900 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
75

Cost of Living Index in Arrecife
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Arrecife Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Arrecife

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,549

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Arrecife

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 Arrecife actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $1,549 in Arrecife.

Lisbon $2,210
Arrecife $1,549

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $2,279 in Arrecife.

Lisbon $3,275
Arrecife $2,279

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $3,009 in Arrecife.

Lisbon $4,341
Arrecife $3,009

Living in Lisbon is roughly 43% more expensive than in Arrecife, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, Arrecife 14% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.92

$11.07 €9.92

50.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.3

$45.64 €40.90

35.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.18

$9.23 €8.27

23.08%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.66

$2.51 €2.25

18.33%

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

$2.29 €2.05

$2.18 €1.95

5.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$1.67 €1.50

4.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.05

$3.15 €2.82

7.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$3.58 €3.21

-7.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.10 €0.99

5.45%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.71

$1.50 €1.34

27.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$1.29 €1.15

17.05%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.60

$3.57 €3.20

12.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.59

$12.28 €11.01

5.37%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.97

$7.07 €6.34

9.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.92

$13.84 €12.40

28.32%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.06

$2.63 €2.36

-12.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$2.52 €2.26

-31.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$2.28 €2.04

-18.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.32

$2.58 €2.31

0.39%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$1.83 €1.64

-0.55%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$2.41 €2.16

-18.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.79 €1.60

-17.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.83 €0.74

-13.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.90

$4.39 €3.93

49.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.02

$6.68 €5.99

-16.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.61 €1.45

-15.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$2.70 €2.42

-20.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.09

$1.87 €1.68

24.60%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.04

$32.75 €29.35

36.43%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.45

$3.40 €3.04

13.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$2.31 €2.07

-53.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.75

$22.58 €20.23

-27.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.97

$1.59 €1.42

38.36%

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

$34.2K €30.6K

$30.3K €27.2K

12.70%

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

$38.7K €34.7K

$32.2K €28.8K

20.35%

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

$161 €144

$114 €102

41.37%

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

$18.41 €16.50

$19.30 €17.29

-4.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.34

$28.47 €25.51

15.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €39.92

$44.63 €39.99

-0.18%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.11

$15.64 €14.02

22.12%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.60

$8.07 €7.23

18.96%

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

$668 €598

$467 €419

42.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$6,521 €5,844

170.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.4

$86.6 €77.6

17.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.85

$34.05 €30.51

30.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.3

$89.7 €80.3

9.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

-0.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,441

$846 €758

90.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,066

$673 €603

76.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,520

$1,407 €1,260

99.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,804

$1,023 €916

96.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,025

$3,328 €2,982

135.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,100

$2,237 €2,004

104.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,411

$1,683 €1,508

-6.44%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

3.15

22.22%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Arrecife: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Arrecife

$673 43.4% 43.5% $517

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Arrecife

$264 17% 3.2% $8.6

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Arrecife

$185 11.9% 23.9% $58

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Arrecife

$162 10.5% 23.8% $51

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Arrecife

$150 9.7% 9.3% $16

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Arrecife

$61 3.9% 4.7% $3

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Arrecife

$55 3.6% 12.7% $8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $846 in Arrecife. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Arrecife pays 7% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $46 in Arrecife for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $264 per month, with Arrecife cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇪🇸 Arrecife

🕒 Local time

01:42 1:42 AM

Same time as Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

64,826

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Arrecife 1,160 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

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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 Arrecife: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $1,549 in Arrecife, so Arrecife is about 30% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 6% lower in Lisbon. 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: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $846 in Arrecife. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Arrecife – a meal for two runs $46 versus $62 in Lisbon. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $2,210 per month in Lisbon versus $1,549 in Arrecife – Arrecife is about 30% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,549 in Arrecife versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Arrecife but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Arrecife the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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

Expats usually find Arrecife gentler on the wallet – expenses run 30% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.