Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Manakara

For one person, living is cheaper in Manakara: $397 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $21,800 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
19

Cost of Living Index in Manakara
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Manakara Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Manakara

🇲🇬 Madagascar

$397

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Manakara

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $397 in Manakara.

Lisbon $2,210
Manakara $397

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $610 in Manakara.

Lisbon $3,275
Manakara $610

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $822 in Manakara.

Lisbon $4,341
Manakara $822

Living in Lisbon is roughly 456% more expensive than in Manakara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Manakara is 71% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.92

$2.23 MGA 10.2K

646.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.3

$14.74 MGA 67.5K

318.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.18

$3.58 MGA 16.4K

217.32%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.66

$1.14 MGA 5,205

160.53%

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

$2.29 €2.05

$0.61 MGA 2,771

275.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.53 MGA 2,424

228.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.05

$1.18 MGA 5,424

188.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$1.47 MGA 6,721

125.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.78 MGA 8,161

-34.83%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.71

$1.02 MGA 4,685

87.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$0.67 MGA 3,057

125.37%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.60

$2.28 MGA 10.4K

76.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.59

$6.56 MGA 30.0K

97.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.97

$3.40 MGA 15.6K

128.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.92

$3.60 MGA 16.5K

393.33%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.06

$0.95 MGA 4,365

142.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$0.72 MGA 3,304

140.28%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$0.37 MGA 1,696

402.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.32

$0.71 MGA 3,265

264.79%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$0.58 MGA 2,679

213.79%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$0.70 MGA 3,203

181.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$0.35 MGA 1,584

320.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.63 MGA 2,903

14.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.90

$1.36 MGA 6,248

383.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.02

$4.34 MGA 19.9K

29.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.06 MGA 4,858

28.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$1.25 MGA 5,707

71.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.09

$0.21 MGA 961

1009.52%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.04

$34.72 MGA 159.0K

28.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.45

$1.12 MGA 5,152

243.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$2.26 MGA 10.4K

-52.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.75

$3.32 MGA 15.2K

395.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.97

$1.12 MGA 5,111

96.43%

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

$34.2K €30.6K

$15.2K MGA 69.6M

124.92%

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

$38.7K €34.7K

$20.7K MGA 94.7M

87.36%

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

$161 €144

$42.29 MGA 193.7K

281.22%

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

$18.41 €16.50

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.34

$53.6 MGA 245.6K

-38.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €39.92

$11.63 MGA 53.3K

283.06%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.11

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.60

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

$668 €598

$22.17 MGA 101.5K

2911.64%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.4

$16.20 MGA 74.2K

529.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.85

$20.07 MGA 91.9K

121.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.3

$44.60 MGA 204.3K

120.87%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$43.80 MGA 200.6K

182.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,441

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,066

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,520

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,804

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,025

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,100

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,411

$115 MGA 527.9K

1266.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

-83.96%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Manakara: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Manakara

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Manakara

$130 32.7% 52.2% $142

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Manakara

$56 14% 77.1% $187

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Manakara

$96 * 24.1% 54.8% $116

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Manakara

$56 14.1% 66.2% $110

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Manakara

$12 * 2.9% 81.8% $52

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Manakara

$48 12.1% 24.1% $15

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

Cost Breakdown

Lisbon pays about 14 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $15 in Manakara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $130 per month, with Manakara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇲🇬 Manakara

🕒 Local time

05:25 5:25 AM

08:25 8:25 AM

3 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

44,237

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Malagasy Ariary MGA Ar

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

10,000 MGA = 2.18 USD

10,000 MGA = 1.96 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MGA, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Malagasy Ariary exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 4,580 MGA (10,000 MGA = 2.18 USD). 1 EUR = 5,099 MGA (10,000 MGA = 1.96 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Lisbon Manakara 9,010 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Manakara

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 Manakara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $397 in Manakara, so Manakara is about 82% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Lisbon is about 14 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $22 in Manakara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 109% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $397 in Manakara versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Manakara but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Manakara 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.

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