Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Mdina

For one person, living is cheaper in Mdina: $2,080 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Lisbon outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
95

Cost of Living Index in Mdina
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Mdina Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Mdina

🇲🇹 Malta

$2,080

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Mdina

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,223 in Lisbon versus $2,080 in Mdina.

Lisbon $2,223
Mdina $2,080

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,271 in Lisbon versus $3,064 in Mdina.

Lisbon $3,271
Mdina $3,064

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,319 in Lisbon versus $4,048 in Mdina.

Lisbon $4,319
Mdina $4,048

Living in Lisbon is roughly 7% more expensive than in Mdina, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 65% above, Mdina 54% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.50 €14.67

$19.17 €17.05

-13.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 €54.5

$85.3 €75.9

-28.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.27 €10.03

$13.38 €11.90

-15.77%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.78 €2.47

10.07%

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

$2.26 €2.01

$3.15 €2.80

-28.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.54

$2.18 €1.94

-20.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 €3.02

$4.42 €3.93

-23.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 €3.02

$5.06 €4.50

-32.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.33 €1.18

-15.79%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.36 €1.21

36.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$4.31 €3.83

-64.50%

Eggs

$3.96 €3.53

$4.25 €3.78

-6.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.76 €11.35

$8.34 €7.42

53.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.02

$10.26 €9.13

-23.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 €15.09

$18.48 €16.44

-8.17%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$4.05 €3.60

-43.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$2.78 €2.48

-37.05%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$3.63 €3.23

-49.04%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.28

$3.38 €3.01

-23.96%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$2.43 €2.16

-23.46%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$2.04 €1.82

-0.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

$2.27 €2.02

-36.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$1.34 €1.19

-38.81%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.56 €5.83

$6.82 €6.06

-3.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.62 €5.00

$8.23 €7.32

-31.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.14

$1.78 €1.58

-28.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$2.36 €2.10

-12.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

$2.55 €2.27

-7.84%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.55

$5.45 €4.85

-26.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$2.21 €1.96

-50.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.64 €14.81

$26.64 €23.70

-37.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.47 €1.31

55.10%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$37.6K €33.4K

-10.41%

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

$39.3K €35.0K

$38.9K €34.6K

1.06%

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

$167 €149

$104 €92.5

61.14%

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

$18.80 €16.72

$25.81 €22.96

-27.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.09 €29.43

$42.04 €37.39

-21.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €40.93

$70.5 €62.7

-34.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 €8.75

$9.90 €8.80

-0.61%

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

$677 €602

$370 €329

83.18%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.1K

$11.0K €9,820

53.27%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €90.1

$87.3 €77.6

15.99%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 €40.70

$40.22 €35.78

13.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100.0 €88.9

$98.4 €87.5

1.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €109

$79.1 €70.4

55.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 €1,436

$1,170 €1,040

37.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,065

$1,045 €930

14.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,862 €2,545

$1,554 €1,383

84.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,990 €1,770

$1,544 €1,374

28.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

$3,557 €3,164

112.99%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

$3,055 €2,717

40.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,588 €1,412

$1,467 €1,305

8.24%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

2.9

32.76%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Last update for Mdina: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9%

Mdina

$1K 50.3% 12.7% $152

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$269 12.1%

Mdina

$328 15.8% 21.7% $59

Eating Out

Lisbon

$242 10.9%

Mdina

$280 13.5% 15.8% $38

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$219 9.9%

Mdina

$172 8.3% 21.7% $48

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Mdina

$137 6.6% 17.5% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$66 3%

Mdina

$90 4.3% 37.4% $25

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

Mdina

$27 * 1.3% 57.6% $36

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,614 in Lisbon and $1,170 in Mdina. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 8% 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 $85.0 in Mdina for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $269 vs $328 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇲🇹 Mdina

🕒 Local time

16:51 4:51 PM

17:51 5:51 PM

1 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

193

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Mdina 2,100 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
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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 Mdina: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Mdina differ by about 7% in total monthly costs ($2,223 vs $2,080 including rent). Mdina is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 8% 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 $1,170 in Mdina. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 22% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $2,223 per month in Lisbon versus $2,080 in Mdina – a 7% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $2,080 in Mdina versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Mdina but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Mdina 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 Mdina 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 Mdina gentler on the wallet – expenses run 7% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.