Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Joao Pessoa

For one person, living is cheaper in Joao Pessoa: $969 a month against $2,206 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $14,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

106

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
Learn more

Lisbon Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Joao Pessoa
Learn more

Joao Pessoa Living Index

Jump to prices

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,206

/mo nomad

Joao Pessoa

🇧🇷 Brazil

$969

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Joao Pessoa

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,206 in Lisbon versus $969 in Joao Pessoa.

Lisbon $2,206
Joao Pessoa $969

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,276 in Lisbon versus $1,496 in Joao Pessoa.

Lisbon $3,276
Joao Pessoa $1,496

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,346 in Lisbon versus $2,023 in Joao Pessoa.

Lisbon $4,346
Joao Pessoa $2,023

Living in Lisbon is roughly 128% more expensive than in Joao Pessoa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 63% above, Joao Pessoa is 28% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.86 €15.08

$6.54 R$35.71

157.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.0 €54.6

$27.48 R$150

122.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.98 €9.82

$7.37 R$40.26

48.98%

Cappuccino

$3.05 €2.73

$1.42 R$7.78

114.79%

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

$2.28 €2.04

$0.97 R$5.30

135.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 €1.50

$0.66 R$3.63

154.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.44 €3.07

$1.70 R$9.30

102.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 €3.49

$3.39 R$18.52

15.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 €1.03

$1.13 R$6.17

1.77%

White Bread (500g)

$1.89 €1.69

$1.90 R$10.37

-0.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 €1.34

$1.42 R$7.74

5.63%

Eggs

$4.12 €3.68

$1.89 R$10.31

117.99%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.01 €11.63

$7.74 R$42.24

68.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.04 €7.19

$4.62 R$25.22

74.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.89 €16.00

$6.85 R$37.42

161.17%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.03

$2.95 R$16.12

-23.05%

Banana (1kg)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.94 R$5.14

85.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$0.83 R$4.55

119.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.69 €2.40

$1.07 R$5.87

151.40%

Potato (1kg)

$1.77 €1.58

$1.51 R$8.22

17.22%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 €1.73

$1.17 R$6.39

65.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$0.70 R$3.83

108.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 €0.68

$0.99 R$5.42

-23.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.66 €5.95

$2.81 R$15.36

137.01%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.64 €5.04

$8.38 R$45.79

-32.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 €1.15

$1.49 R$8.16

-13.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$3.03 R$16.56

-29.37%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.30 €2.06

$0.99 R$5.40

132.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.02 €39.36

$63.2 R$345

-30.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.98 €3.56

$1.85 R$10.10

115.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 €0.57

$1.89 R$10.33

-66.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$18.93 €16.92

$2.99 R$16.34

533.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.21 R$6.61

88.43%

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

$33.4K €29.8K

$22.0K R$119.9K

52.04%

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

$38.5K €34.4K

$30.7K R$167.7K

25.39%

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

$158 €141

$119 R$651

32.74%

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

$17.54 €15.68

$20.81 R$114

-15.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.18 €27.89

$21.65 R$118

44.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.64 €39.92

$35.08 R$192

27.25%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.98 €16.97

$27.65 R$151

-31.36%

Cinema Ticket

$9.58 €8.56

$9.70 R$53.0

-1.24%

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

$674 €602

$400 R$2,183

68.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.7K €16.7K

$6,320 R$34.5K

196.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.4

$50.6 R$276

102.04%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.90 €41.04

$62.0 R$338

-25.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 €91.4

$80.9 R$442

26.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 €109

$71.6 R$391

70.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,641 €1,467

$369 R$2,015

344.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,187 €1,062

$251 R$1,368

373.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,825 €2,526

$612 R$3,340

361.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,018 €1,805

$483 R$2,639

317.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,836 €7,007

$2,264 R$12.4K

246.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,701 €4,204

$1,122 R$6,128

318.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,687 €1,508

$476 R$2,601

254.17%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.82

-65.27%

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

Last update for Lisbon: November 1, 2026

Last update for Joao Pessoa: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Joao Pessoa

$251 25.9% 78.9% $937

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$275 12.5%

Joao Pessoa

$191 19.7% 30.3% $83

Eating Out

Lisbon

$245 11.1%

Joao Pessoa

$113 11.7% 53.8% $132

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$207 9.4%

Joao Pessoa

$162 16.7% 21.9% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.6%

Joao Pessoa

$119 12.3% 28.8% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Joao Pessoa

$54 5.6% 14.6% $9.3

Getting Around

Lisbon

$60 2.7%

Joao Pessoa

$78 8.1% 29.9% $18

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,641 in Lisbon and $369 in Joao Pessoa. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays about 3.5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $61 in Lisbon vs $27 in Joao Pessoa for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $275 vs $191 per month, with Joao Pessoa cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇧🇷 Joao Pessoa

🕒 Local time

14:16 2:16 PM

11:16 11:16 AM

3 h behind Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

833,932

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 BRL = 0.183 USD

1 BRL = 0.164 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lisbon Joao Pessoa 5,750 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Joao Pessoa

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 Joao Pessoa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,206 in Lisbon and $969 in Joao Pessoa, so Joao Pessoa is about 56% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Lisbon is about 3.5 times higher, 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: $1,641 in Lisbon versus $369 in Joao Pessoa. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $674 in Lisbon versus $400 in Joao Pessoa. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 43% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $969 in Joao Pessoa versus $2,206 in Lisbon, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Joao Pessoa but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Joao Pessoa 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 – Joao Pessoa wins on affordability, Lisbon on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.