Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Motherwell

For one person, living costs are similar in Lisbon and in Motherwell: $2,210 and $2,298 a month, rent and utilities included.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
111

Cost of Living Index in Motherwell
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Motherwell Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Motherwell

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,298

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Motherwell

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $2,298 in Motherwell.

Lisbon $2,210
Motherwell $2,298

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $3,384 in Motherwell.

Lisbon $3,275
Motherwell $3,384

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $4,471 in Motherwell.

Lisbon $4,341
Motherwell $4,471

Living in Lisbon costs roughly 4% less than in Motherwell, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, Motherwell 69% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.96

$19.77 £14.86

-15.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$72.2 £54.3

-14.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$10.67 £8.02

6.47%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$4.95 £3.72

-40.00%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$2.24 £1.68

2.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$1.81 £1.36

-3.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

$5.28 £3.97

-35.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$6.63 £4.98

-50.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.38 £1.03

-15.94%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$1.63 £1.23

17.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$2.29 £1.72

-34.06%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$4.03 £3.03

-0.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

$9.11 £6.85

42.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.99

$9.28 £6.98

-16.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.96

$17.04 £12.81

4.23%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$2.94 £2.21

-21.77%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$1.55 £1.16

11.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$2.82 £2.12

-34.04%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$3.29 £2.47

-21.28%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$1.91 £1.44

-4.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$1.43 £1.08

37.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.16 £0.87

26.72%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$1.57 £1.18

-54.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.92

$20.81 £15.64

-68.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$10.50 £7.89

-46.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$3.04 £2.28

-55.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$3.34 £2.51

-35.93%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

$3.55 £2.67

-34.37%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

$96.9 £72.8

-53.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$5.97 £4.49

-35.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$1.14 £0.86

-6.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$27.51 £20.68

-40.17%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$2.18 £1.64

0.92%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$39.2K £29.4K

-12.71%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$40.2K £30.2K

-3.55%

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

$161 €145

$248 £186

-34.92%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$20.43 £15.35

-9.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$42.97 £32.29

-23.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.03

$46.89 £35.24

-4.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

$6.46 £4.85

195.67%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$11.85 £8.91

-18.99%

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

$668 €600

$924 £694

-27.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$17.8K £13.4K

-1.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.7

$118 £88.3

-13.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.95

$48.08 £36.14

-7.53%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$104 £78.4

-5.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$90.6 £68.1

36.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

$1,244 £935

29.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

$1,018 £765

16.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,527

$2,121 £1,594

32.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,809

$1,690 £1,271

19.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,043

$4,980 £3,742

57.42%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,111

$3,852 £2,895

18.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

-23.00%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Motherwell: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Motherwell

$1K 44.3% 14.4% $172

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Motherwell

$307 13.4% 12.7% $35

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Motherwell

$305 13.3% 25.9% $63

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Motherwell

$311 13.5% 46.5% $99

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Motherwell

$162 7.1% 2.2% $3.7

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Motherwell

$71 3.1% 10.7% $6.9

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Motherwell

$123 5.4% 94.3% $60

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $1,244 in Motherwell. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $72 in Motherwell for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $307 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇬🇧 Motherwell

🕒 Local time

08:57 8:57 AM

Same time as Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

32,120

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Motherwell 1,940 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Motherwell

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 Motherwell: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Motherwell differ by about 4% in total monthly costs ($2,210 vs $2,298 including rent). Lisbon is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,315 in Lisbon and $3,446 in Motherwell 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: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $1,244 in Motherwell. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $924 in Motherwell. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 13% higher in Motherwell. 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.