Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Mahabad

For one person, living is cheaper in Mahabad: $528 a month against $2,206 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $20,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

106

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
25

Cost of Living Index in Mahabad
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Mahabad Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,206

/mo nomad

Mahabad

🇮🇷 Iran

$528

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Mahabad

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,206 in Lisbon versus $528 in Mahabad.

Lisbon $2,206
Mahabad $528

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,276 in Lisbon versus $831 in Mahabad.

Lisbon $3,276
Mahabad $831

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,346 in Lisbon versus $1,135 in Mahabad.

Lisbon $4,346
Mahabad $1,135

Living in Lisbon is roughly 318% more expensive than in Mahabad, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 63% above, Mahabad is 61% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.86 €15.01

$2.92 $2.92

477.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.0 €54.4

$16.31 $16.31

274.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.98 €9.78

$3.99 $3.99

175.19%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.73 $0.73

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.08 $1.08

Cappuccino

$3.05 €2.72

$1.13 $1.13

169.91%

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

$2.28 €2.03

$0.51 $0.51

347.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 €1.50

$0.99 $0.99

69.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.44 €3.06

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 €3.48

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 €1.02

$0.68 $0.68

69.12%

White Bread (500g)

$1.89 €1.68

$0.51 $0.51

270.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 €1.34

$2.09 $2.09

-28.23%

Eggs

$4.12 €3.66

$1.24 $1.24

232.26%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.01 €11.58

$4.47 $4.47

191.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.04 €7.16

$3.34 $3.34

140.72%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.89 €15.93

$7.85 $7.85

127.90%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$1.03 $1.03

120.39%

Banana (1kg)

$1.74 €1.55

$1.59 $1.59

9.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.82 €1.62

$0.86 $0.86

111.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.69 €2.39

$0.57 $0.57

371.93%

Potato (1kg)

$1.77 €1.57

$0.57 $0.57

210.53%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 €1.72

$0.47 $0.47

312.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.30

$0.54 $0.54

170.37%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 €0.68

$0.24 $0.24

216.67%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$0.77 $0.77

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.50 $0.50

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.34 $1.34

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.66 €5.93

$2.46 $2.46

170.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.64 €5.02

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 €1.15

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.90

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.30 €2.05

$0.14 $0.14

1542.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.02 €39.19

$9.67 $9.67

355.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.98 €3.55

$0.44 $0.44

804.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 €0.57

$0.31 $0.31

106.45%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$18.93 €16.85

$2.63 $2.63

619.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$0.10 $0.10

2180.00%

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

$33.4K €29.7K

$50.0K $50.0K

-33.22%

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

$38.5K €34.3K

$45.4K $45.4K

-15.22%

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

$158 €141

$12.98 $12.98

1118.72%

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

$17.54 €15.62

$1.57 $1.57

1017.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.18 €27.77

$3.81 $3.81

718.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.64 €39.75

$18.40 $18.40

142.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.98 €16.90

$13.52 $13.52

40.38%

Cinema Ticket

$9.58 €8.53

$2.04 $2.04

369.61%

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

$674 €600

$107 $107

527.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.7K €16.7K

$2,442 $2,442

667.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.0

$22.95 $22.95

345.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.90 €40.87

$27.82 $27.82

64.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 €91.0

$98.5 $98.5

3.80%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 €109

$73.7 $73.7

65.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,641 €1,461

$290 $290

465.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,187 €1,057

$212 $212

460.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,825 €2,515

$806 $806

250.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,018 €1,797

$356 $356

466.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,836 €6,977

$1,134 $1,134

590.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,701 €4,186

$541 $541

768.42%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,687 €1,502

$254 $254

565.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.82

24.3

-84.28%

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

Last update for Lisbon: November 1, 2026

Last update for Mahabad: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Mahabad

$212 40.2% 82.2% $975

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$275 12.5%

Mahabad

$108 20.4% 60.8% $167

Eating Out

Lisbon

$245 11.1%

Mahabad

$55 10.4% 77.6% $190

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$207 9.4%

Mahabad

$18 3.5% 91.1% $189

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.6%

Mahabad

$100 19% 40.1% $67

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Mahabad

$22 4.3% 64.8% $41

Getting Around

Lisbon

$60 2.7%

Mahabad

$12 2.3% 79.8% $48

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,641 in Lisbon and $290 in Mahabad. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays about 6.7 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $61 in Lisbon vs $16 in Mahabad for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $275 vs $108 per month, with Mahabad cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇮🇷 Mahabad

🕒 Local time

02:39 2:39 AM

06:09 6:09 AM

3 h 30 min ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

208,541

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

USD USD

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 USD = 0.891 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Mahabad 4,760 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

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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 Mahabad: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,206 in Lisbon and $528 in Mahabad, so Mahabad is about 76% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Lisbon is about 6.7 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: $1,641 in Lisbon versus $290 in Mahabad. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $674 in Lisbon versus $107 in Mahabad. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 155% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $528 in Mahabad versus $2,206 in Lisbon, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Mahabad but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Mahabad 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 Mahabad are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Mahabad gentler on the wallet – expenses run 76% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.