Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Brasilia

For one person, living is cheaper in Brasilia: $916 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $15,500 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
44

Cost of Living Index in Brasilia
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Brasilia Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Brasilia

🇧🇷 Brazil

$916

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Brasilia

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $916 in Brasilia.

Lisbon $2,210
Brasilia $916

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $1,514 in Brasilia.

Lisbon $3,275
Brasilia $1,514

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $2,112 in Brasilia.

Lisbon $4,341
Brasilia $2,112

Living in Lisbon is roughly 141% more expensive than in Brasilia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Brasilia is 33% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.96

$8.44 R$45.15

97.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$36.71 R$196

68.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$7.98 R$42.72

42.36%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$2.53 R$13.51

17.39%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$1.42 R$7.60

61.27%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$1.00 R$5.36

74.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

$2.20 R$11.77

54.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$3.76 R$20.10

-11.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.02 R$5.45

13.73%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$1.95 R$10.45

-2.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$1.24 R$6.64

21.77%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$2.27 R$12.17

77.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

$11.17 R$59.8

15.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.99

$3.86 R$20.68

101.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.96

$8.58 R$45.90

106.99%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$2.31 R$12.34

-0.43%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$1.38 R$7.38

25.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$1.26 R$6.73

47.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$1.52 R$8.14

70.39%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$1.11 R$5.95

63.96%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$0.98 R$5.22

101.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$0.76 R$4.04

93.42%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.93 R$5.00

-22.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.92

$2.36 R$12.65

178.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$7.67 R$41.04

-26.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.24 R$6.64

9.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$2.36 R$12.60

-9.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

$0.73 R$3.90

219.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

$29.76 R$159

50.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$1.01 R$5.43

281.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$0.86 R$4.59

24.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$5.77 R$30.89

185.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$1.25 R$6.68

76.00%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$22.0K R$117.5K

55.75%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$31.9K R$170.4K

21.58%

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

$161 €145

$92.1 R$493

75.01%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$11.85 R$63.4

55.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$20.93 R$112

56.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.03

$30.47 R$163

46.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

$26.29 R$141

-27.35%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$7.46 R$39.95

28.69%

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

$668 €600

$764 R$4,091

-12.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$15.7K R$84.1K

12.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.7

$52.6 R$282

93.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.95

$42.10 R$225

5.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$79.4 R$425

24.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$83.6 R$447

48.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

$517 R$2,767

211.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

$242 R$1,292

392.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,527

$1,156 R$6,188

143.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,809

$580 R$3,102

247.33%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,043

$2,398 R$12.8K

226.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,111

$1,678 R$8,979

172.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

$784 R$4,197

100.81%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

12.12

-68.23%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Brasilia: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Brasilia

$242 26.4% 79.7% $949

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Brasilia

$201 21.9% 26.4% $72

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Brasilia

$150 16.4% 38.2% $93

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Brasilia

$125 13.6% 41.2% $87

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Brasilia

$116 12.7% 30.1% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Brasilia

$45 5% 28.8% $18

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Brasilia

$38 4.1% 39.9% $25

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $517 in Brasilia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays about 2 times 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 $37 in Brasilia for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $201 per month, with Brasilia cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇧🇷 Brasilia

🕒 Local time

09:12 9:12 AM

06:12 6:12 AM

3 h behind Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

2,817,381 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1 BRL = 0.187 USD

1 BRL = 0.168 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Lisbon Brasilia 7,280 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

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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 Brasilia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Brasilia differ by about 141% in total monthly costs ($2,210 vs $916 including rent). Brasilia is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Lisbon is about 2 times higher, 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 $517 in Brasilia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Brasilia – a meal for two runs $37 versus $62 in Lisbon. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $2,210 per month in Lisbon versus $916 in Brasilia – a 141% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $916 in Brasilia versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Brasilia but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Brasilia 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.

Expats usually find Brasilia gentler on the wallet – expenses run 59% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.