Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Mataro

For one person, living is cheaper in Mataro: $1,845 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $4,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Lisbon outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
Learn more

Lisbon Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Mataro
Learn more

Mataro Living Index

Jump to prices

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Mataro

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,845

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Mataro

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,223 in Lisbon versus $1,845 in Mataro.

Lisbon $2,223
Mataro $1,845

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,271 in Lisbon versus $2,691 in Mataro.

Lisbon $3,271
Mataro $2,691

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,319 in Lisbon versus $3,536 in Mataro.

Lisbon $4,319
Mataro $3,536

Living in Lisbon is roughly 20% more expensive than in Mataro, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 65% above, Mataro 37% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.50 €14.67

$16.49 €14.67

0.06%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 €54.5

$56.6 €50.3

8.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.27 €10.03

$13.31 €11.84

-15.33%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.11 €1.88

45.02%

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

$2.26 €2.01

$2.32 €2.06

-2.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.54

$1.93 €1.72

-10.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 €3.02

$3.88 €3.45

-12.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 €3.02

$3.29 €2.93

3.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.17 €1.04

-4.27%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.99 €1.77

-6.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$1.50 €1.33

2.00%

Eggs

$3.96 €3.53

$3.90 €3.47

1.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.76 €11.35

$16.84 €14.98

-24.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.02

$8.84 €7.86

-10.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 €15.09

$19.92 €17.72

-14.81%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$2.71 €2.41

-16.24%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$2.04 €1.81

-14.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$2.59 €2.30

-28.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.28

$2.74 €2.44

-6.20%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$2.01 €1.79

-7.46%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$2.27 €2.02

-11.01%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.53 €1.36

-5.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$0.88 €0.79

-6.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.56 €5.83

$6.32 €5.63

3.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.62 €5.00

$5.43 €4.83

3.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.14

$1.15 €1.02

11.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$2.29 €2.03

-9.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

$2.57 €2.28

-8.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

$35.25 €31.35

25.33%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.55

$2.31 €2.06

72.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$1.02 €0.91

6.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.64 €14.81

$29.23 €26.00

-43.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.79 €1.59

27.37%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$34.5K €30.7K

-2.38%

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

$39.3K €35.0K

$28.4K €25.3K

38.19%

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

$167 €149

$181 €161

-7.33%

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

$18.80 €16.72

$12.10 €10.77

55.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.09 €29.43

$28.95 €25.75

14.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €40.93

$60.7 €54.0

-24.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

$13.94 €12.40

37.66%

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 €8.75

$10.51 €9.35

-6.37%

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

$677 €602

$498 €443

35.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.1K

$7,969 €7,089

112.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €90.1

$87.2 €77.6

16.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 €40.70

$39.03 €34.71

17.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100.0 €88.9

$97.8 €87.0

2.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €109

$112 €99.5

9.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 €1,436

$954 €849

69.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,065

$791 €704

51.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,862 €2,545

$1,350 €1,200

112.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,990 €1,770

$1,179 €1,048

68.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

$3,404 €3,028

122.56%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

$2,818 €2,507

52.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,588 €1,412

$1,889 €1,681

-15.97%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

3.28

17.38%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Last update for Mataro: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9%

Mataro

$791 42.9% 33.9% $406

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$269 12.1%

Mataro

$306 16.6% 13.6% $37

Eating Out

Lisbon

$242 10.9%

Mataro

$240 13% 0.8% $2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$219 9.9%

Mataro

$222 12% 1.1% $2.4

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Mataro

$151 8.2% 9.2% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$66 3%

Mataro

$82 4.4% 24.4% $16

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

Mataro

$53 2.9% 16% $10

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,614 in Lisbon and $954 in Mataro. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mataro pays 19% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $61.0 in Lisbon vs $57.0 in Mataro. Groceries flip the comparison at $269 vs $306, with Lisbon cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇪🇸 Mataro

🕒 Local time

20:27 8:27 PM

21:27 9:27 PM

1 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

129,870

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lisbon Mataro 1,030 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Mataro

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 Mataro: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Mataro differ by about 20% in total monthly costs ($2,223 vs $1,845 including rent). Mataro is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 19% lower in Mataro. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,614 in Lisbon versus $954 in Mataro. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $677 in Lisbon versus $498 in Mataro. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 14% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,845 in Mataro versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Mataro but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Mataro 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 Mataro 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 Mataro gentler on the wallet – expenses run 20% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.