Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Estepona

For one person, living is cheaper in Estepona: $1,807 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $5,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
Learn more

Lisbon Living Index
88

Cost of Living Index in Estepona
Learn more

Estepona Living Index

Jump to prices

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Estepona

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,807

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Estepona

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,223 in Lisbon versus $1,807 in Estepona.

Lisbon $2,223
Estepona $1,807

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,271 in Lisbon versus $2,759 in Estepona.

Lisbon $3,271
Estepona $2,759

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,319 in Lisbon versus $3,712 in Estepona.

Lisbon $4,319
Estepona $3,712

Living in Lisbon is roughly 23% more expensive than in Estepona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 65% above, Estepona 34% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.50 €14.67

$19.42 €17.28

-15.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 €54.5

$78.0 €69.4

-21.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.27 €10.03

$10.05 €8.94

12.14%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.67 €2.37

14.61%

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

$2.26 €2.01

$2.37 €2.11

-4.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.54

$2.03 €1.81

-14.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 €3.02

$4.34 €3.86

-21.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 €3.02

$4.42 €3.93

-23.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.24 €1.10

-9.68%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.67 €1.49

11.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$1.54 €1.37

-0.65%

Eggs

$3.96 €3.53

$3.47 €3.09

14.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.76 €11.35

$13.51 €12.01

-5.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.02

$8.15 €7.25

-3.07%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 €15.09

$15.81 €14.07

7.34%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$3.54 €3.15

-35.88%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$2.08 €1.85

-15.87%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$2.20 €1.96

-15.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.28

$3.11 €2.77

-17.36%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$2.24 €2.00

-16.96%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$2.17 €1.93

-6.91%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.68 €1.50

-14.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$1.09 €0.97

-24.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.56 €5.83

$6.72 €5.97

-2.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.62 €5.00

$5.92 €5.27

-5.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.14

$1.47 €1.31

-12.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$2.90 €2.58

-28.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

$2.76 €2.46

-14.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.55

$1.75 €1.55

128.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$1.04 €0.93

4.81%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.64 €14.81

$13.38 €11.90

24.36%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.84 €1.64

23.91%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$35.5K €31.6K

-5.12%

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

$39.3K €35.0K

$29.2K €26.0K

34.54%

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

$167 €149

$120 €107

39.64%

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

$18.80 €16.72

$15.97 €14.21

17.72%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.09 €29.43

$30.74 €27.34

7.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €40.93

$44.96 €40.00

2.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

$22.60 €20.11

-15.09%

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 €8.75

$11.29 €10.04

-12.84%

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

$677 €602

$554 €493

22.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.1K

$8,051 €7,162

110.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €90.1

$56.5 €50.3

79.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 €40.70

$41.50 €36.91

10.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100.0 €88.9

$95.9 €85.3

4.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €109

$99.5 €88.5

23.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 €1,436

$1,186 €1,055

36.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,065

$869 €773

37.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,862 €2,545

$2,227 €1,981

28.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,990 €1,770

$1,421 €1,264

40.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

$4,673 €4,157

62.14%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

$4,540 €4,038

-5.13%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,588 €1,412

$1,459 €1,298

8.83%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

3.5

10.00%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Last update for Estepona: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9%

Estepona

$869 48.1% 27.4% $328

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$269 12.1%

Estepona

$288 16% 7% $19

Eating Out

Lisbon

$242 10.9%

Estepona

$266 14.7% 9.7% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$219 9.9%

Estepona

$167 9.2% 24% $53

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Estepona

$132 7.3% 20.7% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$66 3%

Estepona

$68 3.7% 2.8% $1.9

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

Estepona

$18 * 1% 71.4% $45

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 $1,614 in Lisbon and $1,186 in Estepona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 9% 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: $61.0 in Lisbon vs $78.0 in Estepona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $269 vs $288 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇪🇸 Estepona

🕒 Local time

18:54 6:54 PM

19:54 7:54 PM

1 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

76,975

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lisbon Estepona 430 km

From you

Lisbon
Estepona

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 Estepona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Estepona is cheaper overall, especially in clothing, transport, and utilities. The 23% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 9% 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: $1,614 in Lisbon versus $1,186 in Estepona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $677 in Lisbon versus $554 in Estepona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Estepona – a meal for two runs $78.0 versus $61.0 in Lisbon. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,807 in Estepona versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Estepona but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Estepona the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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

Safety-wise, Lisbon and Estepona are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Estepona gentler on the wallet – expenses run 23% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.