Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Labuan

For one person, living is cheaper in Labuan: $1,020 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $14,400 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
48

Cost of Living Index in Labuan
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Labuan Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Labuan

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$1,020

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Labuan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,223 in Lisbon versus $1,020 in Labuan.

Lisbon $2,223
Labuan $1,020

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,271 in Lisbon versus $1,487 in Labuan.

Lisbon $3,271
Labuan $1,487

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,319 in Lisbon versus $1,953 in Labuan.

Lisbon $4,319
Labuan $1,953

Living in Lisbon is roughly 118% more expensive than in Labuan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 65% above, Labuan is 24% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.50 €14.67

$5.52 MYR 22.53

198.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 €54.5

$24.16 MYR 98.6

153.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.27 €10.03

$6.66 MYR 27.19

69.22%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$3.93 MYR 16.05

-22.14%

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

$2.26 €2.01

$1.06 MYR 4.34

113.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.54

$0.45 MYR 1.83

284.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 €3.02

$3.72 MYR 15.19

-8.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 €3.02

$4.53 MYR 18.48

-24.94%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.82 MYR 7.43

-38.46%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.04 MYR 4.26

78.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$1.49 MYR 6.07

2.68%

Eggs

$3.96 €3.53

$2.10 MYR 8.58

88.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.76 €11.35

$16.82 MYR 68.6

-24.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.02

$4.42 MYR 18.03

78.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 €15.09

$9.50 MYR 38.76

78.63%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$3.17 MYR 12.95

-28.39%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$1.83 MYR 7.46

-4.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$2.39 MYR 9.75

-22.59%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.28

$1.76 MYR 7.17

46.02%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.39 MYR 5.68

33.81%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.03 MYR 4.20

96.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.18 MYR 4.81

22.03%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$0.54 MYR 2.20

51.85%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.56 €5.83

$5.04 MYR 20.57

30.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.62 €5.00

$16.29 MYR 66.5

-65.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.14

$3.21 MYR 13.11

-60.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$4.39 MYR 17.90

-52.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

$0.78 MYR 3.17

201.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

$10.66 MYR 43.48

314.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.55

$1.34 MYR 5.47

197.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$0.48 MYR 1.97

127.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.64 €14.81

$6.48 MYR 26.43

156.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$0.88 MYR 3.58

159.09%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$44.0K MYR 179.5K

-23.46%

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

$39.3K €35.0K

$32.5K MYR 132.7K

20.79%

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

$167 €149

$48.90 MYR 199

242.52%

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

$18.80 €16.72

$9.68 MYR 39.49

94.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.09 €29.43

$27.69 MYR 113

19.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €40.93

$41.60 MYR 170

10.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

$7.68 MYR 31.32

149.87%

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 €8.75

$4.29 MYR 17.51

129.37%

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

$677 €602

$208 MYR 849

225.57%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.1K

$7,011 MYR 28.6K

141.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €90.1

$55.8 MYR 228

81.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 €40.70

$30.07 MYR 123

52.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100.0 €88.9

$87.0 MYR 355

14.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €109

$81.8 MYR 334

50.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 €1,436

$433 MYR 1,768

272.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,065

$342 MYR 1,397

249.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,862 €2,545

$641 MYR 2,614

346.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,990 €1,770

$464 MYR 1,892

329.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

$2,282 MYR 9,308

232.09%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

$1,136 MYR 4,636

279.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,588 €1,412

$374 MYR 1,525

324.69%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

4.06

-5.17%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Last update for Labuan: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9%

Labuan

$342 33.6% 71.4% $855

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$269 12.1%

Labuan

$264 25.9% 2% $5.3

Eating Out

Lisbon

$242 10.9%

Labuan

$145 14.2% 40.1% $97

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$219 9.9%

Labuan

$86 8.5% 60.7% $133

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Labuan

$115 11.2% 31.1% $52

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$66 3%

Labuan

$50 4.9% 23.6% $16

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

Labuan

$18 1.7% 72.2% $45

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,614 in Lisbon and $433 in Labuan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 325% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $61.0 in Lisbon vs $24.00 in Labuan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $269 vs $264 per month, with Labuan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇲🇾 Labuan

🕒 Local time

04:24 4:24 AM

11:24 11:24 AM

7 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

95,120

💱 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 →

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Between locations

Lisbon Labuan 12,500 km ≈ 16 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 Labuan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Labuan is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 118% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 325% higher in Lisbon, 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: $1,614 in Lisbon versus $433 in Labuan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $677 in Lisbon versus $208 in Labuan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 2% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,020 in Labuan versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Labuan but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Labuan the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Labuan is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Lisbon, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

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

Expats usually find Labuan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 118% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.