Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Dubai

For one person, living is cheaper in Lisbon: $2,210 a month against $2,896 in Dubai, rent and utilities included – about $8,200 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
140

Cost of Living Index in Dubai
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Dubai Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Dubai

🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

$2,896

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Dubai

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $2,896 in Dubai.

Lisbon $2,210
Dubai $2,896

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $4,468 in Dubai.

Lisbon $3,275
Dubai $4,468

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $6,040 in Dubai.

Lisbon $4,341
Dubai $6,040

Living in Lisbon costs roughly 24% less than in Dubai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, Dubai 113% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.91

$12.73 AED 46.74

30.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.3

$81.5 AED 299

-24.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.17

$9.68 AED 35.55

17.36%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.66

$5.97 AED 21.93

-50.25%

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

$2.29 €2.05

$1.66 AED 6.10

37.95%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.82 AED 3.00

112.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.05

$13.38 AED 49.13

-74.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.96

$13.60 AED 49.94

-75.66%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.81 AED 6.66

-35.91%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.71

$1.55 AED 5.68

23.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.35

$2.60 AED 9.57

-41.92%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.60

$3.58 AED 13.16

12.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.59

$12.12 AED 44.52

6.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.96

$9.50 AED 34.90

-18.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.91

$13.88 AED 51.0

27.95%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.06

$2.63 AED 9.67

-12.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$1.90 AED 6.97

-8.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.85 AED 6.81

0.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.32

$1.50 AED 5.51

72.67%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$1.19 AED 4.36

52.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.01 AED 3.70

95.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.66 AED 6.10

-11.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.62 AED 2.27

16.13%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.90

$6.11 AED 22.42

7.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.02

$16.08 AED 59.1

-65.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$2.71 AED 9.95

-49.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$3.02 AED 11.10

-29.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.09

$1.47 AED 5.39

58.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.01

$67.0 AED 246

-33.32%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.45

$3.35 AED 12.31

14.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$0.68 AED 2.48

57.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.74

$8.24 AED 30.24

99.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.97

$0.92 AED 3.40

139.13%

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

$34.2K €30.6K

$26.0K AED 95.5K

31.53%

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

$38.7K €34.7K

$21.5K AED 79.0K

79.96%

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

$161 €144

$248 AED 910

-34.92%

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

$18.41 €16.49

$56.2 AED 206

-67.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.32

$93.8 AED 344

-65.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €39.90

$91.1 AED 335

-51.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.10

$45.35 AED 167

-57.88%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.60

$16.58 AED 60.9

-42.10%

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

$668 €598

$949 AED 3,486

-29.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$17.1K AED 62.8K

2.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.4

$70.5 AED 259

44.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.82

$61.7 AED 227

-27.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.2

$101 AED 370

-2.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$114 AED 419

8.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,440

$2,510 AED 9,217

-35.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,066

$1,537 AED 5,644

-22.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,519

$5,106 AED 18.8K

-44.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,803

$3,110 AED 11.4K

-35.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,021

$7,216 AED 26.5K

8.63%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,098

$4,383 AED 16.1K

4.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,411

$3,556 AED 13.1K

-55.71%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

4.54

-15.20%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Dubai: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Dubai

$1.5K 53.1% 29.1% $347

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Dubai

$295 10.2% 8.2% $22

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Dubai

$307 10.6% 26.3% $64

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Dubai

$398 13.7% 87.3% $185

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Dubai

$156 5.4% 5.9% $9.7

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Dubai

$124 4.3% 95% $61

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Dubai

$80 2.8% 26% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $2,510 in Dubai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dubai pays about 2.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $81 in Dubai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $295 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇦🇪 Dubai

🕒 Local time

06:35 6:35 AM

10:35 10:35 AM

4 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

3,790,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

UAE Dirham AED د.إ

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 AED = 0.272 USD

1 AED = 0.244 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Dubai 6,130 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

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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 Dubai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon is about 24% cheaper overall, especially in utilities, eating out, and leisure. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 56% 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 $2,510 in Dubai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Lisbon runs roughly 33% less than in Dubai. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $949 in Dubai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

For families, Lisbon is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Dubai, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

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

Expats usually find Lisbon gentler on the wallet – expenses run 24% less than in Dubai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.