Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Exeter

For one person, living is cheaper in Lisbon: $2,210 a month against $2,571 in Exeter, rent and utilities included – about $4,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
123

Cost of Living Index in Exeter
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Exeter Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Exeter

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,571

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Exeter

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $2,571 in Exeter.

Lisbon $2,210
Exeter $2,571

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $3,846 in Exeter.

Lisbon $3,275
Exeter $3,846

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $5,121 in Exeter.

Lisbon $4,341
Exeter $5,121

Living in Lisbon costs roughly 14% less than in Exeter, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.91

$19.92 £14.88

-16.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.3

$97.8 £73.1

-36.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.17

$9.57 £7.15

18.70%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.66

$4.96 £3.70

-40.12%

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

$2.29 €2.05

$3.17 £2.36

-27.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$2.51 £1.87

-30.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.05

$7.45 £5.57

-54.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.96

$6.16 £4.60

-46.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.52 £1.14

-23.68%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.71

$1.68 £1.25

13.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.35

$1.78 £1.33

-15.17%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.60

$4.30 £3.21

-6.51%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.59

$8.70 £6.50

48.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.96

$8.71 £6.51

-10.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.91

$23.73 £17.72

-25.16%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.06

$3.12 £2.33

-26.28%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$1.43 £1.06

20.98%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$2.32 £1.73

-19.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.32

$3.19 £2.38

-18.81%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$2.27 £1.70

-19.82%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.97 £1.47

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.61 £1.20

-8.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$1.95 £1.45

-63.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.90

$23.49 £17.54

-71.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.02

$9.54 £7.12

-41.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$3.74 £2.79

-63.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$4.42 £3.30

-51.58%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.09

$3.92 £2.93

-40.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.01

$112 £83.6

-60.09%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.45

$5.75 £4.29

-33.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$2.53 £1.89

-57.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.74

$23.92 £17.86

-31.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.97

$2.04 £1.53

7.84%

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

$34.2K €30.6K

$38.7K £28.9K

-11.64%

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

$38.7K €34.7K

$40.1K £30.0K

-3.54%

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

$161 €144

$469 £350

-65.60%

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

$18.41 €16.49

$15.97 £11.93

15.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.32

$47.00 £35.09

-30.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €39.90

$39.72 £29.66

12.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.10

$13.18 £9.84

44.92%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.60

$12.62 £9.42

-23.93%

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

$668 €598

$2,180 £1,628

-69.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$17.6K £13.2K

-0.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.4

$68.0 £50.8

50.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.82

$31.16 £23.26

42.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.2

$105 £78.7

-6.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$74.2 £55.4

66.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,440

$1,381 £1,031

16.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,066

$1,050 £784

13.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,519

$2,160 £1,613

30.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,803

$1,946 £1,453

3.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,021

$5,743 £4,288

36.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,098

$4,565 £3,409

0.23%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,411

$3,062 £2,286

-48.56%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

5.11

-24.66%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Exeter: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Exeter

$1K 40.8% 11.8% $141

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Exeter

$334 13% 22.6% $61

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Exeter

$320 12.4% 31.9% $77

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Exeter

$532 20.7% 150% $319

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Exeter

$125 4.9% 24.4% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Exeter

$65 2.5% 1.9% $1.2

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Exeter

$146 5.7% 131% $83

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $1,381 in Exeter. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Exeter pays 94% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $98 in Exeter for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $334 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇬🇧 Exeter

🕒 Local time

15:45 3:45 PM

Same time as Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

130,800

💱 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 Exeter 1,410 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Exeter

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 Exeter: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $2,571 in Exeter, so Lisbon is about 14% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 49% 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 $1,381 in Exeter. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Lisbon – a meal for two runs $62 versus $98 in Exeter. 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 $2,571 in Exeter – Lisbon is about 14% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

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.

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

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