Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Kobe

For one person, living is cheaper in Kobe: $1,392 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $9,800 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
67

Cost of Living Index in Kobe
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Kobe Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Kobe

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,392

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Kobe

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $1,392 in Kobe.

Lisbon $2,210
Kobe $1,392

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $2,067 in Kobe.

Lisbon $3,275
Kobe $2,067

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $2,742 in Kobe.

Lisbon $4,341
Kobe $2,742

Living in Lisbon is roughly 59% more expensive than in Kobe, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, Kobe 2% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.95

$7.70 ¥1,216

116.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$31.86 ¥5,031

93.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$4.91 ¥776

131.36%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$2.37 ¥375

25.32%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$1.19 ¥188

92.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.57 ¥90.0

205.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

$2.12 ¥335

60.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$2.30 ¥363

43.91%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.57 ¥248

-26.11%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$1.34 ¥211

42.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$4.17 ¥658

-63.79%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$2.04 ¥322

97.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

$12.61 ¥1,990

2.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.98

$6.78 ¥1,070

14.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.95

$17.06 ¥2,694

4.10%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$7.70 ¥1,216

-70.13%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$3.06 ¥484

-43.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$4.97 ¥784

-62.58%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$7.71 ¥1,217

-66.41%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$3.84 ¥606

-52.60%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$3.45 ¥545

-42.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.13 ¥179

30.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.94 ¥148

-23.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.91

$3.48 ¥549

89.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$8.05 ¥1,271

-30.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.96 ¥310

-30.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$1.45 ¥229

47.59%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

$1.45 ¥229

60.69%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

$62.4 ¥9,856

-28.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$3.11 ¥491

23.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$3.24 ¥511

-66.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$26.72 ¥4,218

-38.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$1.06 ¥168

107.55%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$19.9K ¥3.1M

71.83%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$15.4K ¥2.4M

150.79%

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

$161 €145

$148 ¥23.3K

9.09%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$23.26 ¥3,672

-20.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$31.25 ¥4,933

4.77%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.02

$46.90 ¥7,405

-5.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

$11.83 ¥1,868

61.45%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$12.86 ¥2,031

-25.35%

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

$668 €600

$321 ¥50.6K

108.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$6,141 ¥969.5K

186.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.6

$50.6 ¥7,990

101.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.94

$25.01 ¥3,949

77.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$45.98 ¥7,260

114.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$65.6 ¥10.4K

88.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

$691 ¥109.0K

132.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

$463 ¥73.1K

157.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,526

$1,100 ¥173.7K

155.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,808

$737 ¥116.4K

173.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,042

$4,325 ¥682.9K

81.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,110

$2,894 ¥456.9K

58.12%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

$1,975 ¥311.8K

-20.26%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

2.02

90.59%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Kobe: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Kobe

$463 33.3% 61.1% $727

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Kobe

$355 25.5% 30.4% $83

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Kobe

$127 9.1% 47.6% $116

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Kobe

$202 14.5% 4.7% $10

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Kobe

$84 6.1% 49.2% $82

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Kobe

$73 5.2% 13.9% $8.9

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Kobe

$88 6.3% 38.5% $24

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $691 in Kobe. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Kobe pays 25% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $32 in Kobe. Groceries flip the comparison at $272 vs $355, with Lisbon cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇯🇵 Kobe

🕒 Local time

18:39 6:39 PM

03:39 3:39 AM

9 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

1,537,272

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Kobe 11,070 km ≈ 14 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 Kobe: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kobe wins on cost – living expenses run 37% lower than in Lisbon. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Kobe the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 20% lower in Lisbon. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $691 in Kobe. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Lisbon runs roughly 28% less than in Kobe. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your budget.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $321 in Kobe. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Kobe is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both work as nomad bases, but Kobe delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,392 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Kobe hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Lisbon and Kobe are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.