Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Mangalia

For one person, living is cheaper in Mangalia: $1,107 a month against $2,206 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $13,200 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
51

Cost of Living Index in Mangalia
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Mangalia Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,206

/mo nomad

Mangalia

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,107

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Mangalia

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,206 in Lisbon versus $1,107 in Mangalia.

Lisbon $2,206
Mangalia $1,107

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,276 in Lisbon versus $1,678 in Mangalia.

Lisbon $3,276
Mangalia $1,678

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,346 in Lisbon versus $2,250 in Mangalia.

Lisbon $4,346
Mangalia $2,250

Living in Lisbon is roughly 99% more expensive than in Mangalia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 63% above, Mangalia is 18% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.86 €15.02

$11.44 RON 54.4

47.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.0 €54.4

$46.28 RON 220

31.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.98 €9.78

$7.78 RON 37.03

41.13%

Cappuccino

$3.05 €2.72

$2.90 RON 13.78

5.17%

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

$2.28 €2.03

$2.04 RON 9.72

11.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 €1.50

$2.10 RON 9.99

-20.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.44 €3.06

$2.48 RON 11.81

38.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 €3.48

$3.40 RON 16.16

15.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 €1.02

$1.61 RON 7.64

-28.57%

White Bread (500g)

$1.89 €1.68

$1.13 RON 5.36

67.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 €1.34

$1.55 RON 7.36

-3.23%

Eggs

$4.12 €3.67

$3.08 RON 14.64

33.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.01 €11.59

$7.85 RON 37.33

65.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.04 €7.17

$6.65 RON 31.61

20.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.89 €15.94

$9.63 RON 45.80

85.77%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$1.29 RON 6.14

75.97%

Banana (1kg)

$1.74 €1.55

$1.66 RON 7.91

4.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.38 RON 6.55

31.88%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.69 €2.39

$2.02 RON 9.62

33.17%

Potato (1kg)

$1.77 €1.57

$0.74 RON 3.50

139.19%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 €1.73

$0.76 RON 3.61

155.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.30

$0.67 RON 3.19

117.91%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 €0.68

$0.77 RON 3.66

-1.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.66 €5.93

$6.22 RON 29.61

7.07%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.64 €5.02

$6.74 RON 32.07

-16.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 €1.15

$0.97 RON 4.61

32.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$1.43 RON 6.82

49.65%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.30 €2.05

$0.82 RON 3.89

180.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.02 €39.21

$22.40 RON 107

96.52%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.98 €3.55

$0.90 RON 4.26

342.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 €0.57

$0.87 RON 4.14

-26.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$18.93 €16.86

$8.92 RON 42.42

112.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.86 RON 8.85

22.58%

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

$33.4K €29.7K

$28.6K RON 136.0K

16.75%

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

$38.5K €34.3K

$25.2K RON 119.7K

53.09%

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

$158 €141

$164 RON 779

-3.36%

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

$17.54 €15.62

$5.92 RON 28.17

196.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.18 €27.78

$8.48 RON 40.32

267.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.64 €39.77

$37.18 RON 177

20.06%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.98 €16.91

$19.75 RON 94.0

-3.90%

Cinema Ticket

$9.58 €8.53

$8.60 RON 40.90

11.40%

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

$674 €600

$377 RON 1,792

78.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.7K €16.7K

$5,802 RON 27.6K

222.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.0

$72.1 RON 343

41.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.90 €40.89

$42.48 RON 202

8.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 €91.0

$91.2 RON 434

12.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 €109

$95.3 RON 453

28.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,641 €1,461

$377 RON 1,793

335.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,187 €1,058

$322 RON 1,533

268.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,825 €2,516

$683 RON 3,247

313.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,018 €1,798

$499 RON 2,372

304.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,836 €6,980

$1,715 RON 8,158

356.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,701 €4,188

$1,472 RON 7,000

219.44%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,687 €1,503

$721 RON 3,432

133.84%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.82

7.85

-51.34%

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

Last update for Lisbon: November 1, 2026

Last update for Mangalia: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Mangalia

$322 29.1% 72.9% $865

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$275 12.5%

Mangalia

$200 18.1% 27% $74

Eating Out

Lisbon

$245 11.1%

Mangalia

$185 16.8% 24.4% $60

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$207 9.4%

Mangalia

$178 16.1% 13.9% $29

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.6%

Mangalia

$135 12.2% 19.1% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Mangalia

$54 4.9% 14.8% $9.4

Getting Around

Lisbon

$60 2.7%

Mangalia

$31 2.8% 48.8% $29

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,641 in Lisbon and $377 in Mangalia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays about 2.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $61 in Lisbon vs $46 in Mangalia for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $275 vs $200 per month, with Mangalia cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇷🇴 Mangalia

🕒 Local time

22:26 10:26 PM

00:26 12:26 AM

2 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

36,364

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 RON = 0.21 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Mangalia 3,180 km ≈ 4 h 30 min 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 Mangalia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,206 in Lisbon and $1,107 in Mangalia, so Mangalia is about 50% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Lisbon is about 2.3 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 $377 in Mangalia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $674 in Lisbon versus $377 in Mangalia. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 37% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,107 in Mangalia versus $2,206 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mangalia but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Mangalia 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 Mangalia are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Mangalia gentler on the wallet – expenses run 50% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.