Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Mgarr

For one person, living is cheaper in Mgarr: $2,090 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $1,600 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
101

Cost of Living Index in Mgarr
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Mgarr Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Mgarr

🇲🇹 Malta

$2,090

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Mgarr

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,223 in Lisbon versus $2,090 in Mgarr.

Lisbon $2,223
Mgarr $2,090

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,271 in Lisbon versus $3,175 in Mgarr.

Lisbon $3,271
Mgarr $3,175

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,319 in Lisbon versus $4,260 in Mgarr.

Lisbon $4,319
Mgarr $4,260

Living in Lisbon is roughly 6% more expensive than in Mgarr, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 65% above, Mgarr 55% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.50 €14.67

$22.19 €19.74

-25.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 €54.5

$88.8 €79.0

-31.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.27 €10.03

$13.23 €11.77

-14.81%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$3.19 €2.84

-4.08%

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

$2.26 €2.01

$2.31 €2.06

-2.16%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.54

$2.00 €1.78

-13.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 €3.02

$5.49 €4.89

-38.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 €3.02

$6.72 €5.97

-49.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.31 €1.17

-14.50%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.40 €1.25

32.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$3.40 €3.02

-55.00%

Eggs

$3.96 €3.53

$4.48 €3.98

-11.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.76 €11.35

$10.27 €9.14

24.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.02

$11.74 €10.44

-32.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 €15.09

$18.26 €16.24

-7.06%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$3.66 €3.25

-37.98%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$2.72 €2.42

-35.66%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$3.79 €3.37

-51.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.28

$3.83 €3.41

-32.90%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$3.34 €2.97

-39.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

$2.17 €1.93

-33.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$1.56 €1.39

-47.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.56 €5.83

$6.13 €5.45

7.01%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.62 €5.00

$6.07 €5.40

-7.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.14

$2.51 €2.23

-49.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$2.37 €2.11

-12.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

$2.47 €2.20

-4.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.55

$3.85 €3.43

3.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$1.75 €1.56

-37.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.64 €14.81

$32.05 €28.51

-48.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.47 €1.30

55.10%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$27.5K €24.4K

22.56%

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

$39.3K €35.0K

$39.7K €35.3K

-0.97%

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

$167 €149

$154 €137

8.94%

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

$18.80 €16.72

$31.46 €27.98

-40.24%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.09 €29.43

$29.71 €26.43

11.38%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €40.93

$67.9 €60.4

-32.28%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 €8.75

$11.38 €10.13

-13.53%

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

$677 €602

$281 €250

141.18%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.1K

$12.2K €10.9K

38.44%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €90.1

$56.3 €50.1

79.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 €40.70

$69.2 €61.5

-33.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100.0 €88.9

$114 €101

-12.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €109

$131 €116

-6.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 €1,436

$1,126 €1,002

43.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,065

$941 €837

27.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,862 €2,545

$1,785 €1,588

60.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,990 €1,770

$1,525 €1,357

30.47%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

$4,469 €3,975

69.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

$2,453 €2,182

75.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,588 €1,412

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

4.05

-4.94%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Last update for Mgarr: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9%

Mgarr

$941 45% 21.4% $256

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$269 12.1%

Mgarr

$341 16.3% 26.6% $72

Eating Out

Lisbon

$242 10.9%

Mgarr

$314 15% 29.5% $71

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$219 9.9%

Mgarr

$215 10.3% 2% $4.5

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Mgarr

$167 8% 0.1% $0.2

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$66 3%

Mgarr

$91 4.3% 38.1% $25

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

Mgarr

$23 * 1.1% 64.3% $40

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 $1,126 in Mgarr. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $61.0 in Lisbon vs $89.0 in Mgarr for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $269 vs $341 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇲🇹 Mgarr

🕒 Local time

16:51 4:51 PM

17:51 5:51 PM

1 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

3,600

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Mgarr 2,100 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Mgarr

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 Mgarr: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Mgarr differ by about 6% in total monthly costs ($2,223 vs $2,090 including rent). Mgarr is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $3,335 in Lisbon and $3,136 in Mgarr 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,614 in Lisbon versus $1,126 in Mgarr. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 27% 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 $2,090 in Mgarr – a 6% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $2,090 in Mgarr versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mgarr but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Mgarr 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 Mgarr 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 Mgarr gentler on the wallet – expenses run 6% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.