Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Chelmsford

For one person, living is cheaper in Lisbon: $2,210 a month against $2,567 in Chelmsford, rent and utilities included – about $4,300 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
123

Cost of Living Index in Chelmsford
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Chelmsford Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Chelmsford

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,567

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Chelmsford

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $2,567 in Chelmsford.

Lisbon $2,210
Chelmsford $2,567

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $3,761 in Chelmsford.

Lisbon $3,275
Chelmsford $3,761

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $4,954 in Chelmsford.

Lisbon $4,341
Chelmsford $4,954

Living in Lisbon costs roughly 14% less than in Chelmsford, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, Chelmsford 89% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.91

$19.63 £14.66

-15.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.3

$73.0 £54.5

-15.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.17

$9.17 £6.85

23.88%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.66

$5.09 £3.80

-41.65%

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

$2.29 €2.05

$2.82 £2.10

-18.79%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$1.42 £1.06

22.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.05

$7.40 £5.53

-54.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.96

$7.33 £5.47

-54.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.59 £1.19

-27.04%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.71

$1.45 £1.08

31.72%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.35

$2.64 £1.97

-42.80%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.60

$3.46 £2.58

16.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.59

$10.16 £7.59

27.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.96

$8.46 £6.31

-8.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.91

$13.51 £10.09

31.46%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.06

$2.33 £1.74

-1.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$1.24 £0.93

39.52%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$2.97 £2.22

-37.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.32

$2.12 £1.58

22.17%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$1.77 £1.32

2.82%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.51 £1.13

30.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.14 £0.85

28.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$1.44 £1.07

-50.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.90

$23.69 £17.69

-72.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.02

$11.92 £8.90

-52.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$2.27 £1.70

-40.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$2.71 £2.02

-21.03%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.09

$4.04 £3.02

-42.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.01

$104 £77.7

-57.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.45

$4.88 £3.64

-21.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$1.76 £1.32

-39.20%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.74

$26.23 £19.58

-37.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.97

$2.00 £1.50

10.00%

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

$34.2K €30.6K

$38.7K £28.9K

-11.68%

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

$38.7K €34.7K

$40.7K £30.4K

-4.87%

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

$161 €144

$265 £198

-39.05%

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

$18.41 €16.49

$14.70 £10.98

25.24%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.32

$40.12 £29.96

-18.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €39.90

$51.4 £38.34

-13.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.10

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.60

$12.11 £9.04

-20.73%

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

$668 €598

$2,034 £1,518

-67.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$13.2K £9,870

33.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.4

$99.9 £74.6

2.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.82

$43.75 £32.67

1.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.2

$95.8 £71.6

2.80%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$86.7 £64.7

42.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,440

$1,583 £1,182

1.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,066

$1,297 £968

-8.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,519

$2,521 £1,882

11.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,803

$2,227 £1,662

-9.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,021

$7,442 £5,557

5.33%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,098

$5,096 £3,805

-10.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,411

$2,919 £2,180

-46.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

5.06

-23.91%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Chelmsford: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Chelmsford

$1.3K 50.5% 9% $107

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Chelmsford

$280 10.9% 3% $8.1

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Chelmsford

$314 12.2% 29.5% $72

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Chelmsford

$319 12.4% 50.4% $107

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Chelmsford

$147 5.7% 11.5% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Chelmsford

$76 2.9% 18.6% $12

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Chelmsford

$134 5.2% 112% $71

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $1,583 in Chelmsford. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Chelmsford pays 85% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $73 in Chelmsford for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $280 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇬🇧 Chelmsford

🕒 Local time

22:35 10:35 PM

Same time as Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

176,194

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lisbon Chelmsford 1,630 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Chelmsford

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 Chelmsford: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $2,567 in Chelmsford, so Lisbon is about 14% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 46% lower in Lisbon. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $1,583 in Chelmsford. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $2,034 in Chelmsford. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 3% higher in Chelmsford. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Lisbon gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.

Safety-wise, Lisbon and Chelmsford are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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