Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Havana

For one person, living is cheaper in Havana: $862 a month against $2,202 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $16,100 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
42

Cost of Living Index in Havana
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Havana Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,202

/mo nomad

Havana

🇨🇺 Cuba

$862

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Havana

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,202 in Lisbon versus $862 in Havana.

Lisbon $2,202
Havana $862

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,274 in Lisbon versus $1,389 in Havana.

Lisbon $3,274
Havana $1,389

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,346 in Lisbon versus $1,916 in Havana.

Lisbon $4,346
Havana $1,916

Living in Lisbon is roughly 155% more expensive than in Havana, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Havana is 36% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.04 €15.15

$3.68 CUP 88.4

363.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.3 €55.4

$27.47 CUP 659

126.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.02 €9.80

$5.12 CUP 123

115.23%

Cappuccino

$3.12 €2.78

$1.05 CUP 25.28

197.14%

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

$2.27 €2.02

$1.58 CUP 37.86

43.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.55

$1.00 CUP 24.07

74.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.42 €3.04

$1.23 CUP 29.62

178.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.74 €3.33

$2.02 CUP 48.54

85.15%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 €1.04

$2.74 CUP 65.7

-57.30%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.47 CUP 35.30

26.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 €1.37

$1.78 CUP 42.73

-13.48%

Eggs

$4.06 €3.61

$3.61 CUP 86.7

12.47%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.91 €11.49

$4.42 CUP 106

192.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.03

$4.78 CUP 115

65.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.64 €15.69

$8.43 CUP 202

109.25%

Apples (1kg)

$2.26 €2.01

$5.91 CUP 142

-61.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$1.05 CUP 25.32

66.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.89 €1.68

$3.88 CUP 93.2

-51.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.56 €2.27

$2.29 CUP 54.9

11.79%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$2.81 CUP 67.4

-34.16%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$2.68 CUP 64.2

-26.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$0.79 CUP 19.07

83.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 €0.69

$0.57 CUP 13.68

35.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.71 €5.97

$1.67 CUP 40.16

301.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.67 €5.04

$5.19 CUP 124

9.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.72 CUP 41.30

-20.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 €1.88

$2.06 CUP 49.38

2.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.32 €2.07

$0.63 CUP 15.15

268.25%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.43 €39.52

$22.59 CUP 542

96.68%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.95 €3.51

$2.59 CUP 62.1

52.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.05 €0.93

$0.36 CUP 8.73

191.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.15 €15.26

$19.97 CUP 479

-14.12%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.19 €1.95

$1.33 CUP 31.87

64.66%

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

$33.8K €30.0K

$61.0K CUP 1.5M

-44.59%

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

$38.3K €34.0K

$59.1K CUP 1.4M

-35.20%

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

$164 €146

$46.70 CUP 1,121

250.77%

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

$18.48 €16.43

$39.02 CUP 936

-52.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.96 €29.32

$91.3 CUP 2,191

-63.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.87 €40.80

$16.26 CUP 390

182.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.68 €16.61

$12.92 CUP 310

44.58%

Cinema Ticket

$9.75 €8.67

$0.84 CUP 20.13

1060.71%

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

$684 €608

$154 CUP 3,688

345.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.7K

$12.6K CUP 302.8K

39.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 €92.3

$51.9 CUP 1,246

99.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.20 €41.09

$41.76 CUP 1,002

10.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.7 €88.7

$80.2 CUP 1,925

24.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$125 €111

$66.3 CUP 1,590

88.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,589 €1,414

$243 CUP 5,841

553.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,169 €1,040

$216 CUP 5,181

441.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,851 €2,536

$878 CUP 21.1K

224.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,993 €1,773

$500 CUP 12.0K

298.72%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,793 €6,932

$304 CUP 7,295

2463.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,418 €3,930

$406 CUP 9,749

987.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,600 €1,423

$29.43 CUP 706

5336.29%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

9.1

-57.69%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 19, 2026

Last update for Havana: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.1%

Havana

$216 25% 81.5% $953

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$273 12.4%

Havana

$236 27.4% 13.6% $37

Eating Out

Lisbon

$247 11.2%

Havana

$78 9% 68.5% $169

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$215 9.8%

Havana

$177 20.5% 17.8% $38

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.7%

Havana

$108 12.5% 35.9% $60

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$65 3%

Havana

$18 2.1% 72.6% $47

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Havana

$30 3.4% 53.1% $33

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,589 in Lisbon and $243 in Havana. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 5336% 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: $62.0 in Lisbon vs $27.00 in Havana for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $273 vs $236 per month, with Havana cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇨🇺 Havana

🕒 Local time

13:32 1:32 PM

08:32 8:32 AM

5 h behind Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

2,141,993 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Cuban Peso CUP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 CUP = 4.17 USD

100 CUP = 3.71 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Havana 7,010 km ≈ 9 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 Havana: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Havana differ by about 155% in total monthly costs ($2,202 vs $862 including rent). Havana is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 5336% 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: $1,589 in Lisbon versus $243 in Havana. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Havana – a meal for two runs $27.00 versus $62.0 in Lisbon. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,202 per month in Lisbon versus $862 in Havana – a 155% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $862 in Havana versus $2,202 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Havana but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Havana 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.

Safety-wise, Lisbon and Havana 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 Havana gentler on the wallet – expenses run 155% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.