Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Karaj

For one person, living is cheaper in Karaj: $823 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $16,600 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
40

Cost of Living Index in Karaj
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Karaj Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Karaj

🇮🇷 Iran

$823

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Karaj

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $823 in Karaj.

Lisbon $2,210
Karaj $823

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $1,058 in Karaj.

Lisbon $3,275
Karaj $1,058

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $1,293 in Karaj.

Lisbon $4,341
Karaj $1,293

Living in Lisbon is roughly 169% more expensive than in Karaj, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Karaj is 40% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.91

$3.54 $3.54

370.34%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.3

$16.19 $16.19

281.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.17

$3.97 $3.97

186.15%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.48 $0.48

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.06 $1.06

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.66

$1.06 $1.06

180.19%

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

$2.29 €2.05

$0.43 $0.43

432.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$1.65 $1.65

5.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.05

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.96

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$0.70 $0.70

65.71%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.71

$0.52 $0.52

267.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.35

$2.07 $2.07

-27.05%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.60

$1.03 $1.03

290.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.59

$4.48 $4.48

188.84%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.96

$3.33 $3.33

133.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.91

$10.43 $10.43

70.28%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.06

$0.89 $0.89

158.43%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$1.70 $1.70

1.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$0.80 $0.80

132.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.32

$0.49 $0.49

428.57%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$0.46 $0.46

295.65%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$0.47 $0.47

319.15%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$0.54 $0.54

172.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.21 $0.21

242.86%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$0.83 $0.83

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 $0.51

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.34 $1.34

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.90

$2.48 $2.48

165.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.02

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.09

$0.20 $0.20

1065.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.01

$13.11 $13.11

240.81%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.45

$0.29 $0.29

1227.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$0.31 $0.31

245.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.74

$2.64 $2.64

523.48%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.97

$0.08 $0.08

2650.00%

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

$34.2K €30.6K

$49.5K $49.5K

-30.86%

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

$38.7K €34.7K

$45.6K $45.6K

-15.11%

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

$161 €144

$13.24 $13.24

1117.67%

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

$18.41 €16.49

$1.54 $1.54

1095.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.32

$3.81 $3.81

759.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €39.90

$23.04 $23.04

93.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.10

$10.08 $10.08

89.48%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.60

$1.06 $1.06

805.66%

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

$668 €598

$108 $108

520.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$839 $839

2000.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.4

$25.32 $25.32

302.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.82

$27.83 $27.83

59.76%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.2

$97.8 $97.8

0.71%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$73.3 $73.3

68.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,440

$298 $298

439.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,066

$488 $488

143.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,519

$798 $798

252.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,803

$476 $476

323.34%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,021

$1,274 $1,274

515.07%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,098

$527 $527

768.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,411

$239 $239

558.39%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

-83.26%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Karaj: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Karaj

$488 59.3% 59% $702

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Karaj

$113 13.8% 58.4% $159

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Karaj

$61 7.5% 74.7% $181

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Karaj

$19 2.3% 91.2% $194

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Karaj

$101 12.3% 39.2% $65

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Karaj

$25 3.1% 60.5% $39

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Karaj

$16 1.9% 75% $47

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $298 in Karaj. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays about 6.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $16 in Karaj for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $113 per month, with Karaj cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇮🇷 Karaj

🕒 Local time

02:22 2:22 AM

05:52 5:52 AM

3 h 30 min ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

1,712,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

USD USD

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 USD = 0.896 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Karaj 5,230 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

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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 Karaj: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $823 in Karaj, so Karaj is about 63% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Lisbon is about 6.6 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: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $298 in Karaj. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 141% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Karaj – a meal for two runs $16 versus $62 in Lisbon. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $823 in Karaj versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Karaj but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Karaj 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 Karaj are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Karaj gentler on the wallet – expenses run 63% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.