Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Gold Coast

For one person, living is cheaper in Lisbon: $2,210 a month against $2,922 in Gold Coast, rent and utilities included – about $8,500 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 Gold Coast
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Gold Coast Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Gold Coast

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,922

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Gold Coast

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $2,922 in Gold Coast.

Lisbon $2,210
Gold Coast $2,922

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $4,497 in Gold Coast.

Lisbon $3,275
Gold Coast $4,497

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $6,073 in Gold Coast.

Lisbon $4,341
Gold Coast $6,073

Living in Lisbon costs roughly 24% less than in Gold Coast, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, Gold Coast 115% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.96

$20.81 A$29.59

-19.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$105 A$149

-41.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$10.62 A$15.09

6.97%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$3.76 A$5.34

-21.01%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$2.83 A$4.02

-19.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$2.46 A$3.50

-29.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

$7.77 A$11.05

-56.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$7.51 A$10.68

-55.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.57 A$2.23

-26.11%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$2.65 A$3.76

-27.92%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$2.36 A$3.35

-36.02%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$4.90 A$6.97

-17.96%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

$9.09 A$12.93

42.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.99

$9.50 A$13.51

-18.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.96

$14.71 A$20.92

20.73%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$3.95 A$5.61

-41.77%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$3.19 A$4.54

-45.77%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$3.47 A$4.93

-46.40%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$4.16 A$5.91

-37.74%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$2.59 A$3.68

-29.73%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$2.48 A$3.53

-20.56%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$2.45 A$3.48

-40.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$2.32 A$3.30

-68.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.92

$45.55 A$64.8

-85.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$14.19 A$20.17

-60.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$5.73 A$8.15

-76.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$6.73 A$9.56

-68.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

$2.73 A$3.88

-14.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

$56.0 A$79.7

-20.26%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$2.22 A$3.15

73.42%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$1.65 A$2.34

-35.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$36.90 A$52.5

-55.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$1.38 A$1.96

59.42%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$29.2K A$41.5K

17.12%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$26.6K A$37.8K

45.49%

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

$161 €145

$218 A$310

-26.09%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$31.16 A$44.31

-40.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$54.4 A$77.4

-39.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.03

$60.7 A$86.3

-26.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

$17.58 A$25.00

8.65%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$13.50 A$19.20

-28.89%

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

$668 €600

$2,134 A$3,034

-68.71%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$12.1K A$17.2K

45.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.7

$76.3 A$109

33.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.95

$53.6 A$76.2

-16.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$106 A$150

-6.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$124 A$176

-0.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

$2,293 A$3,260

-29.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

$1,588 A$2,258

-25.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,527

$3,278 A$4,662

-14.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,809

$2,998 A$4,263

-32.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,043

$10.8K A$15.4K

-27.45%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,111

$7,117 A$10.1K

-35.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

$4,118 A$5,855

-61.75%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

5.69

-32.34%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Gold Coast: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Gold Coast

$1.6K 54.4% 33.4% $398

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Gold Coast

$384 13.2% 41.2% $112

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Gold Coast

$318 10.9% 31.3% $76

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Gold Coast

$304 10.4% 43% $91

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Gold Coast

$162 5.5% 2.4% $4

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Gold Coast

$88 3% 37.6% $24

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Gold Coast

$77 2.7% 22.5% $14

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $2,293 in Gold Coast. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Gold Coast pays about 2.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $105 in Gold Coast for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $384 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇦🇺 Gold Coast

🕒 Local time

09:13 9:13 AM

19:13 7:13 PM

10 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

607,665

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1 AUD = 0.703 USD

1 AUD = 0.632 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.42 AUD (1 AUD = 0.703 USD). 1 EUR = 1.58 AUD (1 AUD = 0.632 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

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Between locations

Lisbon Gold Coast 18,010 km ≈ 23 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Gold Coast

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

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Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Lisbon vs Gold Coast: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Gold Coast differ by about 32% in total monthly costs ($2,210 vs $2,922 including rent). Lisbon is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 62% 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 $2,293 in Gold Coast. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Lisbon runs roughly 20% less than in Gold Coast. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your budget.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $2,134 in Gold Coast. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

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.

Safety-wise, Lisbon and Gold Coast 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 Lisbon gentler on the wallet – expenses run 24% less than in Gold Coast. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.