Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Middlesex

For one person, living is cheaper in Lisbon: $2,206 a month against $2,323 in Middlesex, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 less a year. The total is higher in Middlesex despite lower rent and utilities.

106

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
116

Cost of Living Index in Middlesex
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Middlesex Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,206

/mo nomad

Middlesex

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,323

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Middlesex

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,206 in Lisbon versus $2,323 in Middlesex.

Lisbon $2,206
Middlesex $2,323

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,276 in Lisbon versus $3,517 in Middlesex.

Lisbon $3,276
Middlesex $3,517

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,346 in Lisbon versus $4,710 in Middlesex.

Lisbon $4,346
Middlesex $4,710

Living in Lisbon costs roughly 5% less than in Middlesex, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 63% above, Middlesex 72% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.86 €15.04

$21.22 £15.80

-20.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.0 €54.5

$70.3 £52.3

-13.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.98 €9.80

$9.69 £7.21

13.31%

Cappuccino

$3.05 €2.72

$4.07 £3.03

-25.06%

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

$2.28 €2.04

$3.12 £2.32

-26.92%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 €1.50

$1.99 £1.48

-15.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.44 €3.07

$4.90 £3.65

-29.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 €3.48

$4.20 £3.12

-6.90%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 €1.02

$1.30 £0.97

-11.54%

White Bread (500g)

$1.89 €1.68

$1.42 £1.06

33.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 €1.34

$3.71 £2.76

-59.57%

Eggs

$4.12 €3.67

$3.73 £2.77

10.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.01 €11.60

$7.58 £5.64

71.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.04 €7.18

$7.07 £5.26

13.72%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.89 €15.96

$14.09 £10.49

26.97%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.03

$3.23 £2.40

-29.72%

Banana (1kg)

$1.74 €1.56

$1.02 £0.76

70.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.02 £0.76

78.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.69 €2.40

$3.71 £2.76

-27.49%

Potato (1kg)

$1.77 €1.58

$1.81 £1.35

-2.21%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 €1.73

$1.77 £1.32

9.60%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$0.98 £0.73

48.98%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 €0.68

$1.93 £1.43

-60.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.66 €5.94

$22.91 £17.05

-70.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.64 €5.03

$9.56 £7.12

-41.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 €1.15

$4.84 £3.61

-73.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$3.61 £2.69

-40.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.30 €2.05

$3.72 £2.77

-38.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.02 €39.26

$106 £78.7

-58.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.98 €3.55

$3.27 £2.43

21.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 €0.57

$1.57 £1.17

-59.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$18.93 €16.88

$33.63 £25.03

-43.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$2.02 £1.51

12.87%

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

$33.4K €29.8K

$39.0K £29.0K

-14.36%

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

$38.5K €34.3K

$40.9K £30.4K

-5.79%

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

$158 €141

$355 £264

-55.41%

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

$17.54 €15.64

$25.76 £19.17

-31.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.18 €27.82

$39.95 £29.74

-21.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.64 €39.82

$47.44 £35.32

-5.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.98 €16.93

Cinema Ticket

$9.58 €8.54

$17.54 £13.06

-45.38%

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

$674 €601

$1,632 £1,215

-58.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.7K €16.7K

$19.0K £14.1K

-1.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.2

$110 £82.0

-7.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.90 €40.94

$56.1 £41.76

-18.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 €91.2

$114 £85.0

-10.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 €109

$114 £84.5

7.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,641 €1,463

$1,273 £947

28.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,187 €1,059

$921 £686

28.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,825 €2,519

$1,860 £1,385

51.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,018 €1,800

$1,823 £1,357

10.70%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,836 €6,989

$5,152 £3,835

52.08%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,701 €4,193

$3,899 £2,902

20.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,687 €1,505

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.82

5.53

-30.92%

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

Last update for Lisbon: November 1, 2026

Last update for Middlesex: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Middlesex

$921 39.7% 22.4% $266

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$275 12.5%

Middlesex

$289 12.4% 5.2% $14

Eating Out

Lisbon

$245 11.1%

Middlesex

$301 13% 22.7% $56

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$207 9.4%

Middlesex

$420 18.1% 103% $214

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.6%

Middlesex

$177 7.6% 5.8% $9.8

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Middlesex

$83 3.6% 29.3% $19

Getting Around

Lisbon

$60 2.7%

Middlesex

$132 5.7% 118% $71

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,641 in Lisbon and $1,273 in Middlesex. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $61 in Lisbon vs $70 in Middlesex for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $275 vs $289 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇬🇧 Middlesex

🕒 Local time

14:55 2:55 PM

Same time as Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

17,162

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Middlesex 1,590 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

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Lisbon
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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 Middlesex: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,206 in Lisbon and $2,323 in Middlesex, so Lisbon is about 5% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,309 in Lisbon and $3,484 in Middlesex 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: $1,641 in Lisbon versus $1,273 in Middlesex. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $674 in Lisbon versus $1,632 in Middlesex. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 5% higher in Middlesex. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Lisbon gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.