Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Knysna

For one person, living is cheaper in Knysna: $1,198 a month against $2,202 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $12,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
Learn more

Lisbon Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Knysna
Learn more

Knysna Living Index

Jump to prices

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,202

/mo nomad

Knysna

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,198

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Knysna

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

A single person spends $2,202 per month in Lisbon vs $1,198 in Knysna, rent included.

Lisbon $2,202
Knysna $1,198

A couple spends around $3,274 per month in Lisbon vs $1,788 in Knysna, rent included.

Lisbon $3,274
Knysna $1,788

A family of three spends $4,346 per month in Lisbon vs $2,379 in Knysna, rent included.

Lisbon $4,346
Knysna $2,379

Lisbon costs about 84% more than Knysna, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Lisbon sits 62% above the global median, while Knysna is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.04 €15.15

$9.64 R 159

76.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.3 €55.4

$39.13 R 645

59.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.02 €9.80

$5.73 R 94.5

92.32%

Cappuccino

$3.12 €2.78

$2.11 R 34.70

47.87%

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

$2.27 €2.02

$1.07 R 17.57

112.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.55

$0.72 R 11.84

141.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.42 €3.04

$2.34 R 38.49

46.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.74 €3.33

$2.78 R 45.75

34.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 €1.04

$1.19 R 19.58

-1.68%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.07 R 17.57

73.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 €1.37

$1.47 R 24.27

4.76%

Eggs

$4.06 €3.61

$2.81 R 46.24

44.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.91 €11.49

$8.66 R 143

49.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.03

$4.90 R 80.8

61.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.64 €15.69

$8.09 R 133

118.05%

Apples (1kg)

$2.26 €2.01

$1.59 R 26.22

42.14%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$1.54 R 25.32

13.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.89 €1.68

$1.60 R 26.39

18.12%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.56 €2.27

$1.55 R 25.53

65.16%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$1.60 R 26.33

15.63%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$1.39 R 22.83

41.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.28 R 21.02

13.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 €0.69

$1.03 R 17.00

-25.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.71 €5.97

$3.24 R 53.5

107.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.67 €5.04

$4.97 R 81.9

14.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.21 R 19.91

13.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 €1.88

$1.54 R 25.44

37.01%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.32 €2.07

$1.49 R 24.49

55.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.43 €39.52

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.95 €3.51

$0.62 R 10.21

537.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.05 €0.93

$0.56 R 9.30

87.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.15 €15.26

$8.34 R 137

105.64%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.19 €1.95

$1.41 R 23.22

55.32%

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

$33.8K €30.0K

$23.6K R 388.8K

43.15%

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

$38.3K €34.0K

$27.7K R 455.9K

38.27%

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

$164 €146

$113 R 1,855

45.51%

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

$18.48 €16.43

$33.83 R 557

-45.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.96 €29.32

$44.58 R 735

-26.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.87 €40.80

$48.38 R 797

-5.19%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.68 €16.61

$9.84 R 162

89.84%

Cinema Ticket

$9.75 €8.67

$8.76 R 144

11.30%

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

$684 €608

$182 R 3,001

275.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.7K

$5,898 R 97.2K

198.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 €92.3

$42.18 R 695

145.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.20 €41.09

$33.77 R 556

36.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.7 €88.7

$107 R 1,770

-7.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$125 €111

$77.4 R 1,275

61.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,589 €1,414

$514 R 8,462

209.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,169 €1,040

$480 R 7,912

143.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,851 €2,536

$837 R 13.8K

240.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,993 €1,773

$799 R 13.2K

149.53%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,793 €6,932

$1,001 R 16.5K

678.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,418 €3,930

$1,056 R 17.4K

318.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,600 €1,423

$942 R 15.5K

69.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

11.83

-67.46%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 19, 2026

Last update for Knysna: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.1%

Knysna

$480 40.1% 58.9% $689

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$273 12.4%

Knysna

$190 15.9% 30.5% $83

Eating Out

Lisbon

$247 11.2%

Knysna

$144 12% 41.8% $103

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$215 9.8%

Knysna

$191 16% 11.3% $24

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.7%

Knysna

$117 9.8% 30.3% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$65 3%

Knysna

$66 5.5% 0.8% $0.5

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Knysna

$9.4 * 0.8% 85.1% $54

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,589 in Lisbon versus $514 in Knysna. 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 70% 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 $62.0 in Lisbon versus $39.00 in Knysna. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $273 vs $190 – making Knysna the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇿🇦 Knysna

🕒 Local time

14:11 2:11 PM

15:11 3:11 PM

1 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

51,078

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lisbon Knysna 8,740 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Knysna

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 Knysna: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Lisbon is pricier by about 84%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,302 per month in Lisbon and $1,797 in Knysna. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,202 in Lisbon and $1,198 in Knysna. That's a gap of about 84%.

Kindergarten costs $684 per month in Lisbon and $182 in Knysna. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Knysna, where all-in costs run around $1,198, than in Lisbon at $2,202. In Knysna it covers expenses comfortably, while in Lisbon it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Knysna – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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 Knysna. 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.