Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Machakos

For one person, living is cheaper in Machakos: $520 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $20,300 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
25

Cost of Living Index in Machakos
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Machakos Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Machakos

🇰🇪 Kenya

$520

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Machakos

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $520 in Machakos.

Lisbon $2,210
Machakos $520

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $802 in Machakos.

Lisbon $3,275
Machakos $802

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $1,084 in Machakos.

Lisbon $4,341
Machakos $1,084

Living in Lisbon is roughly 325% more expensive than in Machakos, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.96

$2.99 KES 389

456.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$19.26 KES 2,501

220.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$6.26 KES 813

81.47%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$1.97 KES 255

50.76%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$0.66 KES 85.4

246.97%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.54 KES 69.6

222.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

$2.16 KES 281

57.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$2.67 KES 346

23.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$0.39 KES 50.9

197.44%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$0.48 KES 62.7

297.92%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$0.80 KES 104

88.75%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$1.36 KES 177

195.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

$10.89 KES 1,414

18.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.99

$6.36 KES 827

22.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.96

$4.71 KES 612

277.07%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$1.50 KES 195

53.33%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$0.81 KES 105

113.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$0.37 KES 47.51

402.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$0.40 KES 51.6

547.50%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$0.79 KES 102

130.38%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$0.76 KES 98.7

159.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$0.75 KES 97.6

96.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.39 KES 51.1

84.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.92

$3.51 KES 456

87.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$11.31 KES 1,469

-50.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.91 KES 248

-28.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$2.70 KES 351

-20.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$0.74 KES 96.4

420.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$0.75 KES 97.8

42.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$2.86 KES 371

475.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$1.50 KES 195

46.67%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$19.1K KES 2.5M

78.81%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$21.7K KES 2.8M

78.23%

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

$161 €145

$57.0 KES 7,400

182.94%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$7.83 KES 1,017

135.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$11.58 KES 1,504

182.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.03

$38.98 KES 5,062

14.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$7.66 KES 995

25.33%

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

$668 €600

$45.51 KES 5,910

1367.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$12.3K KES 1.6M

43.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.7

$11.62 KES 1,509

777.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.95

$28.49 KES 3,700

56.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$68.8 KES 8,927

43.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$38.19 KES 4,959

223.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

$94.2 KES 12.2K

1608.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

$70.4 KES 9,137

1591.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,527

$155 KES 20.1K

1717.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,809

$116 KES 15.1K

1630.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,043

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,111

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

$385 KES 50.0K

309.07%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

14.71

-73.83%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Machakos: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Machakos

$70 13.5% 94.1% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Machakos

$161 31% 40.9% $111

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Machakos

$87 16.8% 64% $155

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Machakos

$76 14.7% 64% $136

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Machakos

$66 12.7% 60.1% $100

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Machakos

$54 10.4% 14.8% $9.4

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Machakos

$4.5 * 0.9% 92.9% $59

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $94 in Machakos. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays about 4.1 times 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: $62 in Lisbon vs $19 in Machakos for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $161 per month, with Machakos cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇰🇪 Machakos

🕒 Local time

17:40 5:40 PM

20:40 8:40 PM

3 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

114,109

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Kenyan Shilling KES Sh

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1,000 KES = 7.7 USD

1,000 KES = 6.92 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KES, 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).

Kenyan Shilling exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 130 KES (1,000 KES = 7.7 USD). 1 EUR = 145 KES (1,000 KES = 6.92 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Machakos 6,510 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

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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 Machakos: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Machakos differ by about 325% in total monthly costs ($2,210 vs $520 including rent). Machakos is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Lisbon is about 4.1 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 $94 in Machakos. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 69% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $2,210 per month in Lisbon versus $520 in Machakos – a 325% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $520 in Machakos versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $800 budget is realistic in Machakos but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Machakos 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 Machakos are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

It comes down to priorities – Machakos wins on affordability, Lisbon on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.