Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Meru

For one person, living is cheaper in Meru: $520 a month against $2,206 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $20,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

106

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
25

Cost of Living Index in Meru
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Meru Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,206

/mo nomad

Meru

🇰🇪 Kenya

$520

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Meru

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,206 in Lisbon versus $520 in Meru.

Lisbon $2,206
Meru $520

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,276 in Lisbon versus $853 in Meru.

Lisbon $3,276
Meru $853

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,346 in Lisbon versus $1,185 in Meru.

Lisbon $4,346
Meru $1,185

Living in Lisbon is roughly 324% more expensive than in Meru, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 63% above, Meru is 62% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.86 €15.00

$6.43 KES 835

162.21%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.0 €54.3

$34.99 KES 4,542

74.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.98 €9.77

$6.24 KES 810

75.96%

Cappuccino

$3.05 €2.71

$2.59 KES 336

17.76%

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

$2.28 €2.03

$0.66 KES 85.6

245.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 €1.50

$0.66 KES 86.0

154.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.44 €3.06

$2.35 KES 305

46.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 €3.48

$2.73 KES 355

43.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 €1.02

$0.82 KES 106

40.24%

White Bread (500g)

$1.89 €1.68

$0.40 KES 51.4

372.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 €1.34

$1.11 KES 144

35.14%

Eggs

$4.12 €3.66

$1.46 KES 190

182.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.01 €11.57

$10.70 KES 1,389

21.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.04 €7.16

$6.68 KES 867

20.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.89 €15.92

$5.12 KES 665

249.41%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$3.35 KES 434

-32.24%

Banana (1kg)

$1.74 €1.55

$0.80 KES 104

117.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.82 €1.62

$0.75 KES 98.0

142.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.69 €2.39

$0.80 KES 103

236.25%

Potato (1kg)

$1.77 €1.57

$1.16 KES 150

52.59%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 €1.72

$1.01 KES 132

92.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.30

$0.24 KES 31.32

508.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 €0.68

$0.40 KES 51.9

90.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.66 €5.92

$3.38 KES 439

97.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.64 €5.02

$11.69 KES 1,518

-51.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 €1.15

$2.29 KES 297

-43.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.90

$2.67 KES 347

-19.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.30 €2.05

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.02 €39.17

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.98 €3.54

$1.57 KES 204

153.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 €0.57

$1.52 KES 198

-57.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$18.93 €16.84

$2.85 KES 370

564.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.60 KES 208

42.50%

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

$33.4K €29.7K

$19.5K KES 2.5M

70.93%

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

$38.5K €34.3K

$21.9K KES 2.8M

75.78%

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

$158 €141

$57.0 KES 7,393

177.77%

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

$17.54 €15.61

$15.21 KES 1,975

15.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.18 €27.75

$34.48 KES 4,477

-9.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.64 €39.73

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.98 €16.89

Cinema Ticket

$9.58 €8.52

$7.51 KES 976

27.56%

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

$674 €599

$281 KES 36.4K

140.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.7K €16.7K

$12.1K KES 1.6M

55.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €90.9

$27.89 KES 3,621

266.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.90 €40.85

$28.49 KES 3,699

61.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 €91.0

$69.5 KES 9,026

47.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 €109

$57.8 KES 7,501

111.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,641 €1,460

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,187 €1,057

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,825 €2,514

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,018 €1,796

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,836 €6,973

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,701 €4,183

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,687 €1,501

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.82

14.71

-74.03%

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

Last update for Lisbon: November 1, 2026

Last update for Meru: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Meru

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$275 12.5%

Meru

$183 35.2% 33.3% $91

Eating Out

Lisbon

$245 11.1%

Meru

$124 23.8% 49.6% $122

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$207 9.4%

Meru

$107 20.5% 48.5% $100

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.6%

Meru

$83 15.9% 50.7% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Meru

$15 * 2.9% 76.4% $49

Getting Around

Lisbon

$60 2.7%

Meru

$9.2 * 1.8% 84.8% $51

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $61 in Lisbon vs $35 in Meru for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $275 vs $183 per month, with Meru cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇰🇪 Meru

🕒 Local time

06:06 6:06 AM

09:06 9:06 AM

3 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

1,833,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Kenyan Shilling KES Sh

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 KES = 7.7 USD

1,000 KES = 6.84 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KES, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 0.89 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Kenyan Shilling exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 130 KES (1,000 KES = 7.7 USD). 1 EUR = 146 KES (1,000 KES = 6.84 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Meru 6,410 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

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Meru

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 Meru: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,206 in Lisbon and $520 in Meru, so Meru is about 76% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,309 in Lisbon and $781 in Meru to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Supermarket bills run roughly 50% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $2,206 per month in Lisbon versus $520 in Meru – Meru is about 76% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $520 in Meru versus $2,206 in Lisbon, a $800 budget is realistic in Meru but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Meru 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.