Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Ipoh

For one person, living is cheaper in Ipoh: $922 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $15,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
Learn more

Lisbon Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Ipoh
Learn more

Ipoh Living Index

Jump to prices

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Ipoh

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$922

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Ipoh

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

A single person spends $2,223 per month in Lisbon vs $922 in Ipoh, rent included.

Lisbon $2,223
Ipoh $922

A couple spends around $3,271 per month in Lisbon vs $1,372 in Ipoh, rent included.

Lisbon $3,271
Ipoh $1,372

A family of three spends $4,319 per month in Lisbon vs $1,821 in Ipoh, rent included.

Lisbon $4,319
Ipoh $1,821

Lisbon costs about 141% more than Ipoh, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Lisbon sits 65% above the global median, while Ipoh is 32% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.50 €14.67

$3.26 MYR 13.29

406.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 €54.5

$19.29 MYR 78.7

217.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.27 €10.03

$4.51 MYR 18.38

149.89%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.80 MYR 11.41

9.29%

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

$2.26 €2.01

$0.70 MYR 2.87

222.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.54

$0.44 MYR 1.81

293.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 €3.02

$4.34 MYR 17.70

-21.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 €3.02

$4.52 MYR 18.42

-24.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.97 MYR 8.05

-43.15%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.05 MYR 4.29

77.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$1.36 MYR 5.56

12.50%

Eggs

$3.96 €3.53

$2.21 MYR 9.03

79.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.76 €11.35

$13.65 MYR 55.7

-6.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.02

$4.56 MYR 18.62

73.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 €15.09

$7.64 MYR 31.16

122.12%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$3.01 MYR 12.27

-24.58%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$1.77 MYR 7.21

-1.13%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$2.22 MYR 9.05

-16.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.28

$1.56 MYR 6.34

64.74%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.28 MYR 5.22

45.31%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.34 MYR 5.48

50.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.13 MYR 4.62

27.43%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$0.45 MYR 1.82

82.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.56 €5.83

$4.32 MYR 17.63

51.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.62 €5.00

$16.98 MYR 69.3

-66.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.14

$3.48 MYR 14.22

-63.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$4.57 MYR 18.64

-54.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

$0.62 MYR 2.54

279.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

$11.56 MYR 47.14

282.18%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.55

$1.24 MYR 5.07

221.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$1.23 MYR 5.04

-11.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.64 €14.81

$5.04 MYR 20.56

230.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$0.52 MYR 2.11

338.46%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$41.3K MYR 168.7K

-18.54%

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

$39.3K €35.0K

$34.7K MYR 141.4K

13.36%

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

$167 €149

$61.9 MYR 253

170.41%

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

$18.80 €16.72

$8.92 MYR 36.37

110.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.09 €29.43

$26.24 MYR 107

26.11%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €40.93

$40.16 MYR 164

14.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

$6.93 MYR 28.26

176.91%

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 €8.75

$3.33 MYR 13.59

195.50%

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

$677 €602

$305 MYR 1,242

122.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.1K

$13.3K MYR 54.2K

27.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €90.1

$61.5 MYR 251

64.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 €40.70

$36.00 MYR 147

27.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100.0 €88.9

$61.8 MYR 252

61.80%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €109

$62.0 MYR 253

98.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 €1,436

$401 MYR 1,635

302.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,065

$298 MYR 1,217

301.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,862 €2,545

$679 MYR 2,770

321.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,990 €1,770

$490 MYR 2,001

305.81%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

$2,059 MYR 8,400

267.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

$1,093 MYR 4,458

294.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,588 €1,412

$973 MYR 3,968

63.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

3.99

-3.51%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Last update for Ipoh: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9%

Ipoh

$298 32.4% 75.1% $899

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$269 12.1%

Ipoh

$250 27.2% 7% $19

Eating Out

Lisbon

$242 10.9%

Ipoh

$108 11.8% 55.2% $134

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$219 9.9%

Ipoh

$97 10.5% 55.7% $122

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Ipoh

$100 10.8% 40.2% $67

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$66 3%

Ipoh

$47 5.1% 28.7% $19

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

Ipoh

$21 2.3% 65.9% $42

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,614 in Lisbon versus $401 in Ipoh. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 63% higher in Lisbon, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61.0 in Lisbon versus $19.00 in Ipoh. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $269 vs $250 – making Ipoh the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇲🇾 Ipoh

🕒 Local time

14:26 2:26 PM

21:26 9:26 PM

7 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

759,952

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.218 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MYR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.59 MYR (1 MYR = 0.218 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lisbon Ipoh 11,410 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Ipoh

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 Ipoh: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon costs about 141% more than Ipoh, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,335 per month in Lisbon and $1,383 in Ipoh. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Ipoh, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 282% less in Ipoh. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $677 per month in Lisbon and $305 in Ipoh. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Ipoh, where all-in costs run around $922, than in Lisbon at $2,223. In Ipoh it covers expenses comfortably, while in Lisbon it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Ipoh costs $922 versus $2,223 in Lisbon. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Ipoh. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Lisbon makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.