Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Auckland

For one person, living is cheaper in Lisbon: $2,210 a month against $2,421 in Auckland, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Auckland
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Auckland Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Auckland

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$2,421

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Auckland

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $2,421 in Auckland.

Lisbon $2,210
Auckland $2,421

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $3,382 in Auckland.

Lisbon $3,275
Auckland $3,382

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $4,343 in Auckland.

Lisbon $4,341
Auckland $4,343

Living in Lisbon costs roughly 9% less than in Auckland, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, Auckland 78% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.96

$14.26 NZ$25.10

16.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$67.0 NZ$118

-7.82%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$9.12 NZ$16.06

24.56%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$3.47 NZ$6.11

-14.41%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$2.04 NZ$3.59

12.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$1.75 NZ$3.07

-0.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

$6.79 NZ$11.95

-49.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$6.78 NZ$11.93

-51.18%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.92 NZ$3.37

-39.58%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$2.17 NZ$3.82

-11.98%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$1.83 NZ$3.23

-17.49%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$6.16 NZ$10.85

-34.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

$8.97 NZ$15.79

44.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.99

$9.99 NZ$17.58

-22.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.96

$17.72 NZ$31.19

0.23%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$2.97 NZ$5.22

-22.56%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$2.08 NZ$3.67

-16.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$3.07 NZ$5.41

-39.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$5.72 NZ$10.06

-54.72%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$2.17 NZ$3.82

-16.13%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$1.54 NZ$2.72

27.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$2.04 NZ$3.60

-27.94%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$1.10 NZ$1.93

-34.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.92

$27.07 NZ$47.64

-75.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$10.21 NZ$17.98

-45.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$2.87 NZ$5.05

-52.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$3.38 NZ$5.95

-36.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

$1.93 NZ$3.40

20.73%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

$123 NZ$216

-63.64%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$2.29 NZ$4.03

68.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$2.02 NZ$3.56

-47.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$32.32 NZ$56.9

-49.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$1.83 NZ$3.23

20.22%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$27.2K NZ$47.9K

25.57%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$22.2K NZ$39.0K

74.83%

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

$161 €145

$184 NZ$325

-12.58%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$26.77 NZ$47.12

-31.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$51.6 NZ$90.7

-36.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.03

$42.05 NZ$74.0

5.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

$18.31 NZ$32.22

4.31%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$12.18 NZ$21.43

-21.18%

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

$668 €600

$1,063 NZ$1,872

-37.21%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$19.5K NZ$34.4K

-9.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.7

$80.3 NZ$141

27.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.95

$39.90 NZ$70.2

11.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$92.7 NZ$163

6.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$113 NZ$198

9.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

$1,271 NZ$2,237

26.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

$1,213 NZ$2,134

-1.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,527

$2,222 NZ$3,911

26.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,809

$1,658 NZ$2,918

21.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,043

$7,413 NZ$13.0K

5.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,111

$5,429 NZ$9,555

-15.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

$2,958 NZ$5,206

-46.75%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

5.37

-28.31%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Auckland: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Auckland

$1.2K 50.1% 1.9% $22

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Auckland

$344 14.2% 26.2% $71

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Auckland

$246 10.2% 1.3% $3.2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Auckland

$263 10.9% 23.7% $50

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Auckland

$147 6.1% 11.7% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Auckland

$66 2.7% 4.2% $2.7

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Auckland

$143 5.9% 126% $80

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $1,271 in Auckland. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Auckland pays 88% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $67 in Auckland for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $344 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇳🇿 Auckland

🕒 Local time

08:48 8:48 AM

21:48 9:48 PM

13 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

1,463,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1 NZD = 0.568 USD

1 NZD = 0.511 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NZD, 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).

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.76 NZD (1 NZD = 0.568 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 NZD (1 NZD = 0.511 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Auckland 19,620 km ≈ 25 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Auckland

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 Auckland: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon wins on cost – living expenses run 9% lower than in Auckland. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Lisbon the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 47% 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 $1,271 in Auckland. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $1,063 in Auckland. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 26% higher in Auckland. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Lisbon gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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 Auckland are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

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