Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Bentota

For one person, living is cheaper in Bentota: $772 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $17,300 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
37

Cost of Living Index in Bentota
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Bentota Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Bentota

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$772

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Bentota

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $772 in Bentota.

Lisbon $2,210
Bentota $772

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $888 in Bentota.

Lisbon $3,275
Bentota $888

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $1,005 in Bentota.

Lisbon $4,341
Bentota $1,005

Living in Lisbon is roughly 186% more expensive than in Bentota, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Bentota is 43% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.95

$3.80 LKR 1,264

338.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$12.01 LKR 3,992

414.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$7.52 LKR 2,500

51.06%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$2.39 LKR 795

24.27%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$0.72 LKR 241

218.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.27 LKR 89.9

544.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

$2.24 LKR 744

51.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$3.00 LKR 996

10.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.62 LKR 539

-28.40%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$0.53 LKR 176

260.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$0.81 LKR 269

86.42%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$1.70 LKR 565

136.47%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

$13.71 LKR 4,559

-5.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.98

$3.31 LKR 1,100

134.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.95

$4.40 LKR 1,464

303.64%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$6.71 LKR 2,229

-65.72%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$0.74 LKR 247

133.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$4.27 LKR 1,421

-56.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$0.88 LKR 294

194.32%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$1.04 LKR 347

75.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$0.79 LKR 262

149.37%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$0.93 LKR 309

58.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.46 LKR 153

56.52%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.91

$10.18 LKR 3,383

-35.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$12.92 LKR 4,296

-56.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.92 LKR 637

-29.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$3.05 LKR 1,015

-29.84%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

$0.19 LKR 62.3

1126.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$0.37 LKR 124

940.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$0.31 LKR 104

245.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$0.94 LKR 313

1651.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$1.32 LKR 440

66.67%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$44.2K LKR 14.7M

-22.57%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$41.2K LKR 13.7M

-5.95%

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

$161 €145

$57.9 LKR 19.3K

178.35%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$2.30 LKR 764

700.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$9.30 LKR 3,093

252.04%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.02

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$4.65 LKR 1,546

106.45%

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

$668 €600

$38.46 LKR 12.8K

1636.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$1,196 LKR 397.5K

1373.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.6

$17.92 LKR 5,959

469.31%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.94

$16.78 LKR 5,577

164.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$78.8 LKR 26.2K

24.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$42.02 LKR 14.0K

194.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

$553 LKR 184.0K

190.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

$300 LKR 99.8K

296.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,526

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,808

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,042

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,110

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

12.69

-69.66%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Bentota: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Bentota

$300 38.9% 74.8% $890

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Bentota

$217 28.2% 20.2% $55

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Bentota

$103 13.3% 57.6% $140

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Bentota

$70 9% 67.3% $143

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Bentota

$70 9.1% 57.8% $96

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Bentota

$9.3 * 1.2% 85.4% $54

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Bentota

$2.7 * 0.4% 95.8% $61

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 $1,608 in Lisbon and $553 in Bentota. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $12 in Bentota for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $217 per month, with Bentota cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇱🇰 Bentota

🕒 Local time

22:54 10:54 PM

04:24 4:24 AM

5 h 30 min ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

37,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.7 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LKR, 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).

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 332 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD). 1 EUR = 370 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.7 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Lisbon Bentota 9,490 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Bentota

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 Bentota: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bentota is about 65% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $3,315 in Lisbon and $1,158 in Bentota 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 $553 in Bentota. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 25% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $2,210 per month in Lisbon versus $772 in Bentota – Bentota is about 65% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $772 in Bentota versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Bentota but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Bentota 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.