Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Barlad

For one person, living is cheaper in Barlad: $931 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $15,300 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
47

Cost of Living Index in Barlad
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Barlad Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Barlad

🇷🇴 Romania

$931

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Barlad

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

A single person spends $2,210 per month in Lisbon vs $931 in Barlad, rent included.

Lisbon $2,210
Barlad $931

A couple spends around $3,275 per month in Lisbon vs $1,427 in Barlad, rent included.

Lisbon $3,275
Barlad $1,427

A family of three spends $4,341 per month in Lisbon vs $1,923 in Barlad, rent included.

Lisbon $4,341
Barlad $1,923

Lisbon costs about 137% more than Barlad, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Lisbon sits 62% above the global median, while Barlad is 32% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.95

$8.82 RON 42.39

88.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$41.20 RON 198

49.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$7.22 RON 34.68

57.34%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$2.41 RON 11.57

23.24%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$1.90 RON 9.12

20.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$1.57 RON 7.56

10.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

$2.06 RON 9.88

65.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$2.76 RON 13.24

19.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.29 RON 6.20

-10.08%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$1.10 RON 5.27

73.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$1.25 RON 5.99

20.80%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$2.50 RON 12.02

60.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

$8.35 RON 40.12

54.97%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.98

$5.58 RON 26.80

39.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.95

$9.96 RON 47.88

78.31%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$1.17 RON 5.62

96.58%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$1.41 RON 6.78

22.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$1.25 RON 6.03

48.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$1.77 RON 8.49

46.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$0.78 RON 3.73

133.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$0.84 RON 4.02

134.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$0.94 RON 4.51

56.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.66 RON 3.19

9.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.91

$6.62 RON 31.83

-0.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$5.83 RON 28.04

-3.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.08 RON 5.18

25.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$1.48 RON 7.14

44.59%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

$0.50 RON 2.38

366.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

$22.79 RON 110

96.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$0.75 RON 3.61

413.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$0.71 RON 3.41

50.70%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$6.78 RON 32.58

142.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$1.73 RON 8.33

27.17%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$28.5K RON 136.9K

20.01%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$28.0K RON 134.6K

38.30%

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

$161 €145

$128 RON 617

25.48%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$7.99 RON 38.41

130.41%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$8.27 RON 39.74

295.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.02

$39.27 RON 189

13.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

$20.74 RON 99.7

-7.91%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$8.11 RON 38.99

18.37%

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

$668 €600

$480 RON 2,309

39.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$6,522 RON 31.3K

170.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.6

$55.4 RON 266

84.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.94

$29.13 RON 140

52.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$64.8 RON 311

52.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$81.2 RON 390

52.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

$407 RON 1,957

295.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

$262 RON 1,259

354.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,526

$591 RON 2,842

375.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,808

$408 RON 1,962

393.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,042

$2,023 RON 9,722

287.50%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,110

$1,367 RON 6,570

234.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

6.97

-44.76%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Barlad: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Barlad

$262 28.1% 78% $928

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Barlad

$186 19.9% 31.9% $87

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Barlad

$151 16.2% 37.9% $92

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Barlad

$145 15.5% 31.8% $68

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Barlad

$104 11.1% 37.5% $62

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Barlad

$56 6% 12.9% $8.2

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Barlad

$29 3.1% 54% $34

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,608 in Lisbon versus $407 in Barlad. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $62 in Lisbon versus $41 in Barlad. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $272 vs $186 – making Barlad the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇷🇴 Barlad

🕒 Local time

20:27 8:27 PM

22:27 10:27 PM

2 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

77,518

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1 RON = 0.208 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Barlad 3,100 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
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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 Barlad: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon, $931 in Barlad – Barlad comes out roughly 58% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,315 per month in Lisbon and $1,397 in Barlad. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Barlad, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $407 there versus $1,608 in Lisbon.

Public transport costs about 49% less in Barlad. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $668 per month in Lisbon and $480 in Barlad. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Barlad, where all-in costs run around $931, than in Lisbon at $2,210. In Barlad it covers expenses comfortably, while in Lisbon it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Barlad – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

For expats, Barlad is the easier option financially – housing and daily costs are lower, and overall it costs about 58% less, which matters a lot on a fixed budget or early-career salary.