Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Boksburg

For one person, living is cheaper in Boksburg: $1,210 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $12,000 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
58

Cost of Living Index in Boksburg
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Boksburg Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Boksburg

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Boksburg

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

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

Lisbon $2,210
Boksburg $1,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $1,890 in Boksburg.

Lisbon $3,275
Boksburg $1,890

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $2,570 in Boksburg.

Lisbon $4,341
Boksburg $2,570

Living in Lisbon is roughly 83% more expensive than in Boksburg, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Boksburg is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.92

$12.05 R 201

38.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.3

$45.54 R 760

35.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.18

$5.33 R 88.9

113.13%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.66

$2.32 R 38.69

28.02%

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

$2.29 €2.05

$1.11 R 18.59

106.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.85 R 14.11

104.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.05

$2.35 R 39.19

44.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$2.75 R 45.83

20.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.31 R 21.95

-11.45%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.71

$1.12 R 18.72

70.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$1.78 R 29.69

-15.17%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.60

$2.74 R 45.75

46.72%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.59

$8.48 R 142

52.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.97

$5.20 R 86.8

49.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.92

$8.73 R 146

103.44%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.06

$1.77 R 29.54

29.94%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$1.65 R 27.47

4.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.76 R 29.40

5.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.32

$1.83 R 30.59

41.53%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$1.63 R 27.25

11.66%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.72 R 28.72

14.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.17 R 19.46

25.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$1.27 R 21.18

-43.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.90

$3.24 R 54.1

103.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.02

$5.88 R 98.2

-4.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.58 R 26.36

-13.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$1.91 R 31.94

12.04%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.09

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.04

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.45

$0.31 R 5.23

1141.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$0.82 R 13.62

30.49%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.75

$14.32 R 239

14.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.97

$1.50 R 25.01

46.67%

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

$34.2K €30.6K

$34.8K R 581.3K

-1.82%

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

$38.7K €34.7K

$34.8K R 581.0K

11.27%

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

$161 €144

$225 R 3,763

-28.47%

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

$18.41 €16.50

$38.67 R 646

-52.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.34

$36.62 R 611

-10.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €39.92

$27.68 R 462

60.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.11

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.60

$8.19 R 137

17.22%

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

$668 €598

$244 R 4,070

173.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$5,450 R 91.0K

223.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.4

$52.2 R 872

95.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.85

$45.39 R 758

-2.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.3

$101 R 1,686

-2.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$112 R 1,874

10.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,441

$319 R 5,318

404.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,066

$349 R 5,823

241.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,520

$663 R 11.1K

324.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,804

$777 R 13.0K

159.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,025

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,100

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,411

$862 R 14.4K

82.62%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

10.91

-64.71%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Boksburg: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Boksburg

$349 28.8% 70.7% $841

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Boksburg

$207 17.1% 24.1% $66

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Boksburg

$165 13.7% 31.9% $77

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Boksburg

$301 24.9% 41.6% $88

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Boksburg

$140 11.6% 15.7% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Boksburg

$44 3.6% 30.9% $20

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Boksburg

$4.4 * 0.4% 93.1% $59

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 $319 in Boksburg. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 83% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $46 in Boksburg for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $207 per month, with Boksburg cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇿🇦 Boksburg

🕒 Local time

05:20 5:20 AM

07:20 7:20 AM

2 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

260,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ZAR = 5.99 USD

100 ZAR = 5.37 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 16.69 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.99 USD). 1 EUR = 18.64 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.37 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Boksburg 8,200 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Boksburg

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 Boksburg: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $1,210 in Boksburg, so Boksburg is about 45% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 83% higher in Lisbon, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $319 in Boksburg. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 32% 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 $1,210 in Boksburg – Boksburg is about 45% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

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

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