Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Big Bend

For one person, living is cheaper in Big Bend: $705 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $18,100 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
34

Cost of Living Index in Big Bend
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Big Bend Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Big Bend

🇸🇿 Eswatini

$705

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Big Bend

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

A single person spends $2,210 per month in Lisbon vs $705 in Big Bend, rent included.

Lisbon $2,210
Big Bend $705

A couple spends around $3,275 per month in Lisbon vs $1,391 in Big Bend, rent included.

Lisbon $3,275
Big Bend $1,391

A family of three spends $4,341 per month in Lisbon vs $2,077 in Big Bend, rent included.

Lisbon $4,341
Big Bend $2,077

Lisbon costs about 213% more than Big Bend, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Lisbon sits 62% above the global median, while Big Bend is 48% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.92

$3.85 SZL 63.9

332.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.3

$26.59 SZL 441

132.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.18

$5.06 SZL 84.0

124.51%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.66

$1.48 SZL 24.58

100.68%

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

$2.29 €2.05

$0.73 SZL 12.18

213.70%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.40 SZL 6.70

335.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.05

$1.49 SZL 24.67

128.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$1.62 SZL 26.86

104.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.17 SZL 19.35

-0.85%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.71

$0.87 SZL 14.45

119.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$1.53 SZL 25.39

-1.31%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.60

$4.52 SZL 75.0

-11.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.59

$18.04 SZL 299

-28.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.97

$11.81 SZL 196

-34.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.92

$4.91 SZL 81.4

261.71%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.06

$4.29 SZL 71.2

-46.39%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$0.58 SZL 9.64

198.28%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.78 SZL 29.60

4.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.32

$1.18 SZL 19.64

119.49%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$2.33 SZL 38.74

-21.89%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$2.06 SZL 34.21

-4.37%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$0.92 SZL 15.33

59.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.93 SZL 15.48

-22.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.90

$5.72 SZL 94.8

15.03%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.02

$3.64 SZL 60.4

54.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$0.58 SZL 9.68

134.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$0.89 SZL 14.70

140.45%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.09

$1.23 SZL 20.41

89.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.04

$24.12 SZL 400

85.24%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.45

$1.84 SZL 30.61

109.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$1.53 SZL 25.42

-30.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.75

$3.71 SZL 61.5

343.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.97

$1.11 SZL 18.38

98.20%

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

$34.2K €30.6K

$12.1K SZL 201.0K

182.18%

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

$38.7K €34.7K

$17.9K SZL 297.3K

116.08%

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

$161 €144

$127 SZL 2,112

26.63%

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

$18.41 €16.50

$24.38 SZL 404

-24.49%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.34

$24.38 SZL 405

34.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €39.92

$17.91 SZL 297

148.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.11

$2.46 SZL 40.76

676.42%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.60

$3.06 SZL 50.7

213.73%

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

$668 €598

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.4

$35.47 SZL 589

187.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.85

$24.12 SZL 400

84.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.3

$35.78 SZL 594

175.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$54.4 SZL 903

127.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,441

$108 SZL 1,797

1384.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,066

$71.6 SZL 1,188

1561.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,520

$1,099 SZL 18.2K

155.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,804

$715 SZL 11.9K

181.70%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,025

$199 SZL 3,295

3847.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,100

$139 SZL 2,310

3186.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,411

$769 SZL 12.8K

104.86%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

-57.22%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Big Bend: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Big Bend

$72 10.2% 94% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Big Bend

$248 35.2% 8.8% $24

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Big Bend

$79 11.2% 67.4% $164

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Big Bend

$176 25% 17.1% $36

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Big Bend

$67 9.6% 59.4% $98

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Big Bend

$24 3.4% 62.3% $40

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Big Bend

$39 5.5% 39% $25

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,608 in Lisbon versus $108 in Big Bend. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Lisbon are about 2 times higher, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $62 in Lisbon versus $27 in Big Bend. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $272 vs $248 – making Big Bend the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇸🇿 Big Bend

🕒 Local time

07:55 7:55 AM

09:55 9:55 AM

2 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

6,433

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Eswatini Lilangeni SZL L

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 SZL = 6.03 USD

100 SZL = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SZL, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Eswatini Lilangeni exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 16.59 SZL (100 SZL = 6.03 USD). 1 EUR = 18.51 SZL (100 SZL = 5.4 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

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Between locations

Lisbon Big Bend 8,440 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Big Bend

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 Big Bend: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon, $705 in Big Bend – Big Bend comes out roughly 68% 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 $1,058 in Big Bend. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Big Bend, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $108 there versus $1,608 in Lisbon.

Public transport costs about 46% less in Big Bend. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Groceries cost about 10% more in Lisbon, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Big Bend, where all-in costs run around $705, than in Lisbon at $2,210. In Big Bend it covers expenses comfortably, while in Lisbon it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Lisbon has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $705 in Big Bend to $2,210 in Lisbon. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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

If budget matters most, go with Big Bend. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Lisbon makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.