Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Manila

For one person, living is cheaper in Manila: $931 a month against $2,203 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $15,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

108

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Manila
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Manila Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,203

/mo nomad

Manila

🇵🇭 Philippines

$931

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Manila

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,203 in Lisbon versus $931 in Manila.

Lisbon $2,203
Manila $931

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,237 in Lisbon versus $1,519 in Manila.

Lisbon $3,237
Manila $1,519

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,272 in Lisbon versus $2,106 in Manila.

Lisbon $4,272
Manila $2,106

Living in Lisbon is roughly 137% more expensive than in Manila, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 64% above, Manila is 31% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.01 €15.17

$5.61 ₱353

203.21%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.7 €55.9

$27.39 ₱1,722

128.88%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.42 €10.18

$3.95 ₱248

189.11%

Cappuccino

$3.09 €2.75

$2.56 ₱161

20.70%

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

$2.37 €2.11

$1.42 ₱89.3

66.90%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.66 €1.48

$0.81 ₱51.1

104.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.46 €3.08

$1.17 ₱73.4

195.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.29 €2.93

$2.36 ₱148

39.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 €1.04

$1.94 ₱122

-39.69%

White Bread (500g)

$1.87 €1.66

$1.40 ₱88.2

33.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.52 €1.35

$1.02 ₱64.3

49.02%

Eggs

$3.88 €3.46

$2.29 ₱144

69.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.87 €11.48

$7.86 ₱494

63.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.94 €7.08

$4.89 ₱307

62.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.63 €15.72

$6.77 ₱426

160.41%

Apples (1kg)

$2.26 €2.01

$3.38 ₱213

-33.14%

Banana (1kg)

$1.76 €1.57

$1.85 ₱117

-4.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.88 €1.68

$2.96 ₱186

-36.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.47 €2.20

$1.79 ₱113

37.99%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$2.24 ₱141

-16.96%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$2.69 ₱169

-23.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.39 €1.24

$2.20 ₱138

-36.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.81 €0.72

$0.59 ₱37.35

37.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.89 €6.15

$3.13 ₱197

120.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.53 €4.93

$9.42 ₱593

-41.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.33 €1.19

$1.33 ₱83.5

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 €1.93

$2.00 ₱126

8.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.24 €2.00

$0.47 ₱29.54

376.60%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$45.14 €40.25

$12.58 ₱791

258.82%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.00 €3.57

$0.78 ₱48.91

412.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.95

$0.23 ₱14.47

365.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.53 €14.74

$1.94 ₱122

752.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.26 €2.02

$1.33 ₱83.7

69.92%

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

$33.5K €29.9K

$21.3K ₱1.3M

57.04%

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

$40.5K €36.1K

$19.7K ₱1.2M

105.64%

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

$164 €146

$121 ₱7,635

34.75%

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

$18.54 €16.53

$16.04 ₱1,009

15.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.21 €29.61

$24.25 ₱1,525

36.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €41.02

$43.44 ₱2,732

5.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.80 €16.77

$5.90 ₱371

218.64%

Cinema Ticket

$9.47 €8.44

$6.63 ₱417

42.84%

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

$690 €615

$613 ₱38.5K

12.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.0K

$8,953 ₱563.1K

88.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$105 €93.3

$58.2 ₱3,657

79.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.27 €40.37

$27.18 ₱1,709

66.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.0 €88.2

$77.5 ₱4,875

27.64%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$57.0 ₱3,583

117.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,583 €1,411

$534 ₱33.6K

196.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,209 €1,078

$287 ₱18.0K

321.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,833 €2,526

$1,916 ₱120.5K

47.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,964 €1,751

$677 ₱42.6K

190.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,643 €6,815

$4,439 ₱279.1K

72.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,431 €3,951

$2,556 ₱160.8K

73.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,573 €1,402

$485 ₱30.5K

223.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.79

7.43

-48.99%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 4, 2026

Last update for Manila: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 54%

Manila

$287 30.2% 76.3% $922

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.1%

Manila

$221 23.3% 18.6% $51

Eating Out

Lisbon

$247 11%

Manila

$107 11.3% 56.8% $140

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$215 9.6%

Manila

$162 17% 24.9% $54

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.5%

Manila

$99 10.4% 41% $69

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$65 2.9%

Manila

$57 6% 12.7% $8.3

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

Manila

$16 1.7% 74.2% $47

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,583 in Lisbon and $534 in Manila. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 224% 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: $63.0 in Lisbon vs $27.00 in Manila for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $221 per month, with Manila cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇵🇭 Manila

🕒 Local time

07:21 7:21 AM

14:21 2:21 PM

7 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

1,780,148 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 62.89 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.54 PHP (100 PHP = 1.42 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Manila 12,140 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
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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 Manila: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Manila differ by about 137% in total monthly costs ($2,203 vs $931 including rent). Manila is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 224% higher in Lisbon, 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: $1,583 in Lisbon versus $534 in Manila. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $690 in Lisbon versus $613 in Manila. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 23% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $931 in Manila versus $2,203 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Manila but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Manila 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 Manila are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Manila gentler on the wallet – expenses run 137% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.