Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Maoming

For one person, living is cheaper in Maoming: $709 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $18,200 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
35

Cost of Living Index in Maoming
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Maoming Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Maoming

🇨🇳 China

$709

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Maoming

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,223 in Lisbon versus $709 in Maoming.

Lisbon $2,223
Maoming $709

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,271 in Lisbon versus $1,137 in Maoming.

Lisbon $3,271
Maoming $1,137

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,319 in Lisbon versus $1,566 in Maoming.

Lisbon $4,319
Maoming $1,566

Living in Lisbon is roughly 214% more expensive than in Maoming, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 65% above, Maoming is 47% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.50 €14.67

$2.62 ¥17.53

529.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 €54.5

$23.74 ¥159

158.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.27 €10.03

$4.01 ¥26.83

181.05%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.75 ¥18.36

11.27%

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

$2.26 €2.01

$0.50 ¥3.35

352.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.54

$0.29 ¥1.93

496.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 €3.02

$0.95 ¥6.35

256.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 €3.02

$2.29 ¥15.32

48.47%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.74 ¥11.65

-35.63%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.77 ¥11.81

5.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$1.00 ¥6.67

53.00%

Eggs

$3.96 €3.53

$1.66 ¥11.09

138.55%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.76 €11.35

$13.96 ¥93.4

-8.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.02

$3.47 ¥23.17

127.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 €15.09

$11.04 ¥73.9

53.71%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$1.93 ¥12.90

17.62%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$1.34 ¥8.99

30.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$1.55 ¥10.36

19.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.28

$1.25 ¥8.34

105.60%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$0.69 ¥4.64

169.57%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$0.95 ¥6.33

112.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

$0.66 ¥4.43

118.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$0.55 ¥3.66

49.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.56 €5.83

$3.37 ¥22.55

94.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.62 €5.00

$11.67 ¥78.0

-51.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.14

$0.84 ¥5.59

52.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$1.54 ¥10.26

34.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

$0.29 ¥1.92

710.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

$17.23 ¥115

156.41%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.55

$1.51 ¥10.09

164.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$0.36 ¥2.39

202.78%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.64 €14.81

$7.12 ¥47.62

133.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.29 ¥8.64

76.74%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$19.4K ¥129.5K

73.83%

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

$39.3K €35.0K

$17.5K ¥117.2K

124.14%

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

$167 €149

$57.6 ¥385

190.78%

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

$18.80 €16.72

$8.78 ¥58.7

114.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.09 €29.43

$11.99 ¥80.2

175.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €40.93

$33.74 ¥226

36.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

$15.10 ¥101

27.09%

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 €8.75

$6.18 ¥41.32

59.22%

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

$677 €602

$463 ¥3,098

46.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.1K

$17.2K ¥115.0K

-1.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €90.1

$44.17 ¥295

129.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 €40.70

$33.79 ¥226

35.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100.0 €88.9

$80.7 ¥540

23.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €109

$67.8 ¥453

81.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 €1,436

$257 ¥1,715

529.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,065

$171 ¥1,140

601.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,862 €2,545

$601 ¥4,017

376.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,990 €1,770

$339 ¥2,267

486.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

$3,926 ¥26.2K

92.99%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

$1,723 ¥11.5K

150.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,588 €1,412

$1,026 ¥6,857

54.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

3.36

14.58%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Last update for Maoming: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9%

Maoming

$171 24.1% 85.8% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$269 12.1%

Maoming

$212 29.9% 21.3% $57

Eating Out

Lisbon

$242 10.9%

Maoming

$78 11.1% 67.6% $164

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$219 9.9%

Maoming

$78 11.1% 64.3% $141

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Maoming

$102 14.4% 38.7% $64

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$66 3%

Maoming

$46 6.5% 29.8% $20

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

Maoming

$22 3.1% 65.6% $41

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,614 in Lisbon and $257 in Maoming. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 55% 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: $61.0 in Lisbon vs $24.00 in Maoming for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $269 vs $212 per month, with Maoming cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇨🇳 Maoming

🕒 Local time

10:02 10:02 AM

17:02 5:02 PM

7 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

1,217,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

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Lisbon vs Maoming: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Maoming differ by about 214% in total monthly costs ($2,223 vs $709 including rent). Maoming is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 55% 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: $1,614 in Lisbon versus $257 in Maoming. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $677 in Lisbon versus $463 in Maoming. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 27% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $709 in Maoming versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Maoming but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Maoming 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 Maoming 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 Maoming gentler on the wallet – expenses run 214% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.