Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Galle

For one person, living is cheaper in Galle: $459 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $21,000 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
22

Cost of Living Index in Galle
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Galle Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Galle

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$459

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Galle

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $459 in Galle.

Lisbon $2,210
Galle $459

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $748 in Galle.

Lisbon $3,275
Galle $748

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $1,038 in Galle.

Lisbon $4,341
Galle $1,038

Living in Lisbon is roughly 381% more expensive than in Galle, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Galle is 66% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.92

$1.46 LKR 484

1040.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.3

$23.83 LKR 7,923

159.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.18

$7.40 LKR 2,459

53.51%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.66

$1.77 LKR 588

67.80%

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

$2.29 €2.05

$0.67 LKR 222

241.79%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.27 LKR 89.8

544.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.05

$1.16 LKR 387

193.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$1.47 LKR 488

125.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.64 LKR 545

-29.27%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.71

$0.57 LKR 190

235.09%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$0.75 LKR 248

101.33%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.60

$1.64 LKR 546

145.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.59

$13.58 LKR 4,513

-4.71%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.97

$4.76 LKR 1,584

63.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.92

$7.46 LKR 2,480

138.07%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.06

$6.54 LKR 2,174

-64.83%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$0.73 LKR 243

136.99%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$4.35 LKR 1,447

-57.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.32

$1.29 LKR 429

100.78%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$1.05 LKR 349

73.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$0.81 LKR 270

143.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$0.92 LKR 306

59.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.45 LKR 150

60.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.90

$10.17 LKR 3,382

-35.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.02

$9.05 LKR 3,010

-38.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.87 LKR 622

-27.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$3.05 LKR 1,015

-29.84%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.09

$0.13 LKR 43.44

1692.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.04

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.45

$0.29 LKR 96.3

1227.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$0.31 LKR 103

245.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.75

$0.93 LKR 308

1669.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.97

$1.38 LKR 460

59.42%

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

$34.2K €30.6K

$42.8K LKR 14.2M

-20.20%

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

$38.7K €34.7K

$40.5K LKR 13.5M

-4.30%

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

$161 €144

$59.0 LKR 19.6K

173.25%

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

$18.41 €16.50

$4.29 LKR 1,426

329.14%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.34

$20.50 LKR 6,817

59.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €39.92

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.11

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.60

$4.46 LKR 1,484

115.25%

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

$668 €598

$38.10 LKR 12.7K

1652.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$1,187 LKR 394.5K

1384.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.4

$18.31 LKR 6,086

457.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.85

$16.40 LKR 5,453

171.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.3

$78.4 LKR 26.1K

25.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$41.83 LKR 13.9K

195.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,441

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,066

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,520

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,804

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,025

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,100

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,411

$313 LKR 103.9K

403.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

12.69

-69.66%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Galle: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Galle

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Galle

$227 49.4% 16.7% $45

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Galle

$68 14.7% 72.2% $175

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Galle

$84 18.2% 60.5% $129

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Galle

$70 15.2% 58% $96

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Galle

$8.9 * 1.9% 86% $55

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Galle

$2.4 * 0.5% 96.3% $61

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

Cost Breakdown

Lisbon pays about 5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $24 in Galle for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $227 per month, with Galle cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇱🇰 Galle

🕒 Local time

01:02 1:02 AM

06:32 6:32 AM

5 h 30 min ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

100,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.7 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LKR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 332 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD). 1 EUR = 370 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.7 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

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Between locations

Lisbon Galle 9,530 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

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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 Galle: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Galle is about 79% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Lisbon is about 5 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $38 in Galle. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Galle – a meal for two runs $24 versus $62 in Lisbon. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $459 in Galle versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Galle but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Galle the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

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