Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Mombasa

For one person, living is cheaper in Mombasa: $726 a month against $2,203 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $17,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

108

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
35

Cost of Living Index in Mombasa
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Mombasa Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,203

/mo nomad

Mombasa

🇰🇪 Kenya

$726

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Mombasa

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,203 in Lisbon versus $726 in Mombasa.

Lisbon $2,203
Mombasa $726

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,237 in Lisbon versus $1,140 in Mombasa.

Lisbon $3,237
Mombasa $1,140

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,272 in Lisbon versus $1,553 in Mombasa.

Lisbon $4,272
Mombasa $1,553

Living in Lisbon is roughly 203% more expensive than in Mombasa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 64% above, Mombasa is 46% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.01 €15.18

$2.65 KES 343

541.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.7 €56.0

$24.75 KES 3,210

153.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.42 €10.19

$10.36 KES 1,343

10.23%

Cappuccino

$3.09 €2.76

$2.75 KES 357

12.36%

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

$2.37 €2.11

$0.68 KES 88.1

248.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.66 €1.48

$0.52 KES 67.1

219.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.46 €3.09

$2.28 KES 296

51.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.29 €2.93

$3.33 KES 432

-1.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 €1.04

$0.99 KES 128

18.18%

White Bread (500g)

$1.87 €1.66

$0.53 KES 69.3

252.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.52 €1.36

$1.52 KES 197

Eggs

$3.88 €3.46

$1.75 KES 227

121.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.87 €11.49

$13.89 KES 1,802

-7.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.94 €7.08

$4.92 KES 639

61.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.63 €15.73

$5.42 KES 703

225.28%

Apples (1kg)

$2.26 €2.01

$2.17 KES 282

4.15%

Banana (1kg)

$1.76 €1.57

$1.15 KES 149

53.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.88 €1.68

$1.77 KES 230

6.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.47 €2.20

$0.71 KES 91.6

247.89%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$0.74 KES 95.8

151.35%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.05 KES 136

97.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.39 €1.24

$0.60 KES 78.0

131.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.81 €0.73

$0.46 KES 59.4

76.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.89 €6.15

$3.99 KES 517

72.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.53 €4.93

$9.71 KES 1,259

-43.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.33 €1.19

$1.93 KES 250

-31.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 €1.93

$2.90 KES 377

-25.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.24 €2.00

$0.80 KES 103

180.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$45.14 €40.29

$39.24 KES 5,089

15.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.00 €3.57

$3.17 KES 411

26.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.95

$1.76 KES 229

-39.20%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.53 €14.75

$4.49 KES 583

268.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.26 €2.02

$1.59 KES 206

42.14%

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

$33.5K €29.9K

$12.1K KES 1.6M

176.50%

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

$40.5K €36.1K

$12.2K KES 1.6M

232.98%

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

$164 €146

$76.8 KES 9,958

113.06%

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

$18.54 €16.55

$9.20 KES 1,194

101.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.21 €29.64

$34.52 KES 4,478

-3.79%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €41.06

$18.03 KES 2,339

155.19%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.80 €16.78

$19.39 KES 2,515

-3.04%

Cinema Ticket

$9.47 €8.45

$15.22 KES 1,974

-37.78%

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

$690 €615

$85.5 KES 11.1K

707.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.0K

$5,377 KES 697.4K

213.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$105 €93.4

$13.31 KES 1,727

686.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.27 €40.40

$13.57 KES 1,760

233.60%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.0 €88.3

$23.10 KES 2,996

328.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$46.02 KES 5,969

169.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,583 €1,413

$231 KES 30.0K

585.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,209 €1,079

$157 KES 20.3K

671.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,833 €2,528

$538 KES 69.8K

426.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,964 €1,753

$374 KES 48.5K

425.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,643 €6,821

$5,456 KES 707.6K

40.09%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,431 €3,954

$3,836 KES 497.6K

15.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,573 €1,403

$318 KES 41.3K

394.23%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.79

-70.85%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 4, 2026

Last update for Mombasa: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 54%

Mombasa

$157 21.8% 87% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.1%

Mombasa

$186 26% 31.5% $86

Eating Out

Lisbon

$247 11%

Mombasa

$108 15.1% 56.3% $139

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$215 9.6%

Mombasa

$121 16.8% 44% $95

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.5%

Mombasa

$43 6% 74.3% $125

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$65 2.9%

Mombasa

$48 6.8% 25.4% $16

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

Mombasa

$54 7.6% 14.2% $9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,583 in Lisbon and $231 in Mombasa. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 394% 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: $63.0 in Lisbon vs $25.00 in Mombasa for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $186 per month, with Mombasa cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇰🇪 Mombasa

🕒 Local time

10:41 10:41 AM

12:41 12:41 PM

2 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

1,300,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Kenyan Shilling KES Sh

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 KES = 7.71 USD

1,000 KES = 6.88 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KES, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Kenyan Shilling exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 130 KES (1,000 KES = 7.71 USD). 1 EUR = 145 KES (1,000 KES = 6.88 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Mombasa 6,900 km ≈ 9 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 Mombasa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Mombasa differ by about 203% in total monthly costs ($2,203 vs $726 including rent). Mombasa is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 394% 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: $1,583 in Lisbon versus $231 in Mombasa. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $690 in Lisbon versus $85.5 in Mombasa. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 46% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $726 in Mombasa versus $2,203 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mombasa but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Mombasa 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 Mombasa 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 Mombasa gentler on the wallet – expenses run 203% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.