Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Mersa Matruh

For one person, living is cheaper in Mersa Matruh: $457 a month against $2,202 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $20,900 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
22

Cost of Living Index in Mersa Matruh
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Mersa Matruh Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,202

/mo nomad

Mersa Matruh

🇪🇬 Egypt

$457

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Mersa Matruh

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,202 in Lisbon versus $457 in Mersa Matruh.

Lisbon $2,202
Mersa Matruh $457

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,274 in Lisbon versus $749 in Mersa Matruh.

Lisbon $3,274
Mersa Matruh $749

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,346 in Lisbon versus $1,040 in Mersa Matruh.

Lisbon $4,346
Mersa Matruh $1,040

Living in Lisbon is roughly 381% more expensive than in Mersa Matruh, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Mersa Matruh is 66% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.04 €15.21

$4.20 E£232

305.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.3 €55.6

$19.05 E£1,052

226.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.02 €9.83

$4.72 E£261

133.47%

Cappuccino

$3.12 €2.79

$1.27 E£70.0

145.67%

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

$2.27 €2.02

$0.33 E£17.97

587.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.11 E£5.95

1481.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.42 €3.06

$1.36 E£75.1

151.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.74 €3.34

$2.79 E£154

34.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 €1.05

$0.87 E£48.19

34.48%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.66

$0.66 E£36.72

181.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 €1.38

$0.65 E£35.73

136.92%

Eggs

$4.06 €3.63

$1.19 E£65.5

241.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.91 €11.53

$3.80 E£210

239.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.05

$4.24 E£234

86.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.64 €15.75

$9.23 E£510

91.12%

Apples (1kg)

$2.26 €2.02

$1.54 E£85.3

46.75%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.56

$0.75 E£41.43

133.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.89 €1.69

$0.55 E£30.57

243.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.56 €2.28

$0.35 E£19.58

631.43%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 €1.65

$0.26 E£14.46

611.54%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$0.30 E£16.54

556.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$0.27 E£15.05

437.04%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 €0.69

$0.22 E£11.88

250.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.71 €5.99

$1.85 E£102

262.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.67 €5.06

$5.67 E£313

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.25 E£68.9

9.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 €1.89

$2.28 E£126

-7.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.32 €2.07

$0.21 E£11.61

1004.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.43 €39.65

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.95 €3.52

$0.56 E£30.84

605.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.05 €0.94

$0.17 E£9.15

517.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.15 €15.31

$1.20 E£66.4

1329.17%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.19 €1.96

$0.43 E£23.83

409.30%

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

$33.8K €30.2K

$32.5K E£1.8M

4.01%

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

$38.3K €34.2K

$27.1K E£1.5M

41.34%

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

$164 €146

$14.05 E£776

1065.91%

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

$18.48 €16.49

$6.68 E£369

176.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.96 €29.42

$13.50 E£746

144.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.87 €40.93

$15.88 E£877

188.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.68 €16.67

Cinema Ticket

$9.75 €8.70

$2.91 E£161

235.05%

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

$684 €611

$85.0 E£4,696

704.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.7K

$2,090 E£115.5K

743.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 €92.6

$33.72 E£1,863

207.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.20 €41.23

$45.91 E£2,537

0.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.7 €89.0

$128 E£7,046

-21.80%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$125 €111

$57.4 E£3,172

117.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,589 €1,418

$128 E£7,086

1139.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,169 €1,043

$76.7 E£4,238

1424.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,851 €2,544

$256 E£14.1K

1015.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,993 €1,779

$144 E£7,973

1281.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,793 €6,955

$772 E£42.6K

909.94%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,418 €3,943

$354 E£19.5K

1148.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,600 €1,428

$94.2 E£5,204

1598.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

21.33

-81.95%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 19, 2026

Last update for Mersa Matruh: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.1%

Mersa Matruh

$77 16.8% 93.4% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$273 12.4%

Mersa Matruh

$126 27.6% 53.7% $147

Eating Out

Lisbon

$247 11.2%

Mersa Matruh

$77 16.9% 68.9% $170

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$215 9.8%

Mersa Matruh

$34 7.5% 84.1% $181

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.7%

Mersa Matruh

$119 26% 29.3% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$65 3%

Mersa Matruh

$22 4.7% 66.8% $44

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Mersa Matruh

$2.2 * 0.5% 96.5% $61

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 $1,589 in Lisbon and $128 in Mersa Matruh. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays about 17 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $19 in Mersa Matruh for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $273 vs $126 per month, with Mersa Matruh cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇪🇬 Mersa Matruh

🕒 Local time

05:38 5:38 AM

08:38 8:38 AM

3 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

140,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 EGP = 1.81 USD

100 EGP = 1.61 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 55.25 EGP (100 EGP = 1.81 USD). 1 EUR = 61.99 EGP (100 EGP = 1.61 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Mersa Matruh 3,390 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Mersa Matruh

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 Mersa Matruh: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Mersa Matruh differ by about 381% in total monthly costs ($2,202 vs $457 including rent). Mersa Matruh is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Lisbon is about 17 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: $1,589 in Lisbon versus $128 in Mersa Matruh. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 116% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $2,202 per month in Lisbon versus $457 in Mersa Matruh – a 381% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $457 in Mersa Matruh versus $2,202 in Lisbon, a $800 budget is realistic in Mersa Matruh but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Mersa Matruh 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.

It comes down to priorities – Mersa Matruh wins on affordability, Lisbon on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.