Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Ernakulam

For one person, living is cheaper in Ernakulam: $355 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $22,400 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
17

Cost of Living Index in Ernakulam
Learn more

Ernakulam Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Ernakulam

🇮🇳 India

$355

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Ernakulam

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

A single person spends $2,223 per month in Lisbon vs $355 in Ernakulam, rent included.

Lisbon $2,223
Ernakulam $355

A couple spends around $3,271 per month in Lisbon vs $573 in Ernakulam, rent included.

Lisbon $3,271
Ernakulam $573

A family of three spends $4,319 per month in Lisbon vs $790 in Ernakulam, rent included.

Lisbon $4,319
Ernakulam $790

Lisbon costs about 525% more than Ernakulam, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Lisbon sits 65% above the global median, while Ernakulam is 74% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.50 €14.65

$1.64 ₹156

906.10%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 €54.4

$8.35 ₹793

633.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.27 €10.01

$3.45 ₹328

226.67%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$1.27 ₹121

140.94%

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

$2.26 €2.01

$0.40 ₹37.91

465.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.54

$0.15 ₹13.78

1053.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 €3.01

$1.69 ₹161

100.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 €3.02

$2.11 ₹200

61.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 €0.99

$0.59 ₹56.0

89.83%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.65

$0.50 ₹47.38

272.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$0.61 ₹57.6

150.82%

Eggs

$3.96 €3.52

$0.89 ₹84.9

344.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.76 €11.33

$5.31 ₹504

140.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.01

$2.84 ₹270

178.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 €15.07

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.01

$2.22 ₹211

2.25%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$0.72 ₹68.7

143.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$1.06 ₹101

74.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.28

$0.48 ₹45.72

435.42%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$0.38 ₹36.16

389.47%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$0.49 ₹46.73

312.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

$0.52 ₹48.96

176.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$0.29 ₹27.23

182.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.56 €5.82

$4.35 ₹413

50.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.62 €4.99

$5.24 ₹498

7.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.13

$1.73 ₹164

-26.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$2.47 ₹234

-16.19%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$5.04 ₹478

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.08

$0.16 ₹14.84

1368.75%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.24

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.54

$1.33 ₹127

200.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$0.32 ₹30.60

240.63%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.64 €14.78

$1.27 ₹121

1210.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.14 ₹108

100.00%

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

$33.7K €29.9K

$12.5K ₹1.2M

168.63%

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

$39.3K €34.9K

$26.8K ₹2.5M

46.53%

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

$167 €149

$32.84 ₹3,118

410.02%

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

$18.80 €16.69

$3.37 ₹320

457.86%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.09 €29.39

$6.79 ₹644

387.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €40.86

$12.19 ₹1,158

277.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.04

$8.83 ₹838

117.33%

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 €8.74

$2.11 ₹200

366.35%

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

$677 €601

$55.3 ₹5,251

1124.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.0K

$2,059 ₹195.6K

721.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €89.9

$21.25 ₹2,018

376.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 €40.64

$17.75 ₹1,685

157.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100.0 €88.8

$36.50 ₹3,466

173.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €109

$26.91 ₹2,556

356.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 €1,433

$148 ₹14.1K

990.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,063

$92.0 ₹8,735

1201.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,862 €2,541

$371 ₹35.3K

670.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,990 €1,767

$227 ₹21.6K

775.96%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,729

$1,078 ₹102.4K

602.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,825

$1,197 ₹113.7K

259.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,588 €1,410

$346 ₹32.9K

358.48%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

9.5

-59.47%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Last update for Ernakulam: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9%

Ernakulam

$92 25.9% 92.3% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$269 12.1%

Ernakulam

$101 28.4% 62.6% $169

Eating Out

Lisbon

$242 10.9%

Ernakulam

$54 15.1% 77.9% $189

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$219 9.9%

Ernakulam

$43 12.1% 80.4% $176

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Ernakulam

$46 13% 72.3% $120

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$66 3%

Ernakulam

$16 4.6% 75% $49

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

Ernakulam

$3.6 * 1% 94.3% $59

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,614 in Lisbon versus $148 in Ernakulam. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 358% higher in Lisbon, 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 $61.0 in Lisbon versus $8.00 in Ernakulam. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $269 vs $101 – making Ernakulam the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇮🇳 Ernakulam

🕒 Local time

22:30 10:30 PM

03:00 3:00 AM

4 h 30 min ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

612,343

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.13 USD

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.35 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 0.888 EUR (1 EUR = 1.13 USD).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 94.96 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 107 INR (1,000 INR = 9.35 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Ernakulam 8,920 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Ernakulam

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 Ernakulam: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Lisbon is pricier by about 525%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,335 per month in Lisbon and $533 in Ernakulam. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Ernakulam, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61.0 in Lisbon and $8.00 in Ernakulam. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 167% more in Lisbon, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Ernakulam, where all-in costs run around $355, than in Lisbon at $2,223. In Ernakulam it covers expenses comfortably, while in Lisbon it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Ernakulam – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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