Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Mamaia

For one person, living is cheaper in Mamaia: $1,039 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $14,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
Learn more

Lisbon Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Mamaia
Learn more

Mamaia Living Index

Jump to prices

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Mamaia

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,039

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Mamaia

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $1,039 in Mamaia.

Lisbon $2,210
Mamaia $1,039

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $1,585 in Mamaia.

Lisbon $3,275
Mamaia $1,585

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $2,132 in Mamaia.

Lisbon $4,341
Mamaia $2,132

Living in Lisbon is roughly 113% more expensive than in Mamaia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Mamaia is 24% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.92

$10.00 RON 47.93

66.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.3

$46.70 RON 224

32.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.18

$7.73 RON 37.08

46.96%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.66

$2.70 RON 12.93

10.00%

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

$2.29 €2.05

$2.00 RON 9.59

14.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$1.71 RON 8.21

1.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.05

$2.28 RON 10.95

49.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$2.69 RON 12.92

23.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.53 RON 7.36

-24.18%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.71

$1.25 RON 5.99

52.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$1.61 RON 7.73

-6.21%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.60

$3.33 RON 15.98

20.72%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.59

$8.34 RON 39.99

55.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.97

$6.76 RON 32.42

14.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.92

$9.83 RON 47.15

80.67%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.06

$1.13 RON 5.43

103.54%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$1.57 RON 7.54

10.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.60 RON 7.66

16.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.32

$2.19 RON 10.51

18.26%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$0.86 RON 4.13

111.63%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$0.95 RON 4.58

107.37%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$0.89 RON 4.29

65.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.84 RON 4.03

-14.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.90

$6.03 RON 28.92

9.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.02

$6.16 RON 29.56

-8.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.06 RON 5.10

28.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$1.68 RON 8.05

27.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.09

$0.67 RON 3.22

247.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.04

$20.09 RON 96.3

122.40%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.45

$0.78 RON 3.72

393.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$0.76 RON 3.63

40.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.75

$6.75 RON 32.36

143.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.97

$1.60 RON 7.67

37.50%

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

$34.2K €30.6K

$27.6K RON 132.2K

24.05%

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

$38.7K €34.7K

$27.6K RON 132.3K

40.39%

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

$161 €144

$145 RON 694

11.34%

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

$18.41 €16.50

$7.99 RON 38.32

130.41%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.34

$9.19 RON 44.09

256.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €39.92

$41.87 RON 201

6.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.11

$19.21 RON 92.1

-0.57%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.60

$7.03 RON 33.73

36.56%

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

$668 €598

$434 RON 2,081

53.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$7,018 RON 33.7K

150.98%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.4

$67.1 RON 322

52.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.85

$40.98 RON 197

8.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.3

$74.5 RON 357

32.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$94.4 RON 453

31.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,441

$386 RON 1,853

316.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,066

$294 RON 1,410

304.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,520

$585 RON 2,807

380.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,804

$444 RON 2,128

353.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,025

$1,887 RON 9,050

315.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,100

$1,480 RON 7,099

209.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,411

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

6.5

-40.77%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Mamaia: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Mamaia

$294 28.3% 75.3% $896

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Mamaia

$208 20% 23.8% $65

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Mamaia

$167 16.1% 31.1% $75

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Mamaia

$162 15.6% 23.7% $50

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Mamaia

$125 12% 24.9% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Mamaia

$56 5.4% 12.2% $7.8

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Mamaia

$27 2.6% 56.8% $36

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $386 in Mamaia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $47 in Mamaia for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $208 per month, with Mamaia cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇷🇴 Mamaia

🕒 Local time

08:16 8:16 AM

10:16 10:16 AM

2 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

441

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 RON = 0.209 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lisbon Mamaia 3,180 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Mamaia

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 Mamaia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $1,039 in Mamaia, so Mamaia is about 53% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,315 in Lisbon and $1,558 in Mamaia to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $386 in Mamaia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $434 in Mamaia. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 31% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,039 in Mamaia versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mamaia but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Mamaia the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Mamaia 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.

Expats usually find Mamaia gentler on the wallet – expenses run 53% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.