Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and New Plymouth

For one person, living is cheaper in New Plymouth: $1,820 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $4,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Lisbon, Portugal
New Plymouth, New Zealand
Lisbon
🇵🇹 Portugal
$2,210
/mo nomad
New Plymouth
🇳🇿 New Zealand
$1,820
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in New Plymouth

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $1,820 in New Plymouth.

  • Lisbon $2,210
  • New Plymouth $1,820

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $2,828 in New Plymouth.

  • Lisbon $3,275
  • New Plymouth $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $3,836 in New Plymouth.

  • Lisbon $4,341
  • New Plymouth $3,836

Living in Lisbon is roughly 21% more expensive than in New Plymouth, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, New Plymouth 34% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Lisbon
New Plymouth
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$16.65 €14.92
$12.43 NZ$22.09
33.95%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$61.7 €55.3
$67.9 NZ$121
-9.07%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.36 €10.18
$8.44 NZ$14.99
34.60%
Cappuccino
$2.97 €2.66
$3.34 NZ$5.94
-11.08%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.29 €2.05
$2.12 NZ$3.77
8.02%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.74 €1.56
$1.85 NZ$3.28
-5.95%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.40 €3.05
$5.32 NZ$9.46
-36.09%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.31 €2.97
$5.65 NZ$10.04
-41.42%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Lisbon
New Plymouth
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.16 €1.04
$1.44 NZ$2.56
-19.44%
White Bread (500g)
$1.91 €1.71
$1.25 NZ$2.22
52.80%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.51 €1.36
$1.65 NZ$2.92
-8.48%
Eggs
$4.02 €3.60
$5.53 NZ$9.83
-27.31%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$12.94 €11.59
$5.52 NZ$9.80
134.42%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.77 €6.97
$7.19 NZ$12.78
8.07%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$17.76 €15.92
$11.42 NZ$20.31
55.52%
Apples (1kg)
$2.30 €2.06
$2.63 NZ$4.67
-12.55%
Banana (1kg)
$1.73 €1.55
$1.86 NZ$3.30
-6.99%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.86 €1.66
$2.93 NZ$5.21
-36.52%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.59 €2.32
$6.12 NZ$10.87
-57.68%
Potato (1kg)
$1.82 €1.63
$1.99 NZ$3.53
-8.54%
Onion (1kg)
$1.97 €1.76
$1.41 NZ$2.51
39.72%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.47 €1.32
$1.88 NZ$3.34
-21.81%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.72 €0.65
$1.32 NZ$2.35
-45.45%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$6.58 €5.90
$23.12 NZ$41.09
-71.54%
Wine (Bottle)
$5.61 €5.02
$8.73 NZ$15.53
-35.74%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.36 €1.22
$3.03 NZ$5.38
-55.12%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.14 €1.91
$3.78 NZ$6.73
-43.39%
🚌 Getting Around
Lisbon
New Plymouth
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.33 €2.09
$1.68 NZ$2.99
38.69%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$44.68 €40.04
$74.6 NZ$133
-40.14%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.85 €3.45
$3.68 NZ$6.54
4.62%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.07 €0.96
-
-
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$16.46 €14.75
-
-
Gasoline (1 liter)
$2.20 €1.97
$1.67 NZ$2.97
31.74%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$34.2K €30.6K
$28.7K NZ$51.0K
19.24%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$38.7K €34.7K
$22.8K NZ$40.5K
69.91%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Lisbon
New Plymouth
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$161 €144
$130 NZ$231
24.16%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$18.41 €16.50
$27.85 NZ$49.50
-33.90%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$32.74 €29.34
$48.35 NZ$86.0
-32.29%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Lisbon
New Plymouth
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$44.55 €39.92
$43.29 NZ$77.0
2.91%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$19.10 €17.11
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$9.60 €8.60
$8.20 NZ$14.57
17.07%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Lisbon
New Plymouth
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$668 €598
$680 NZ$1,208
-1.74%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$17.6K €15.8K
$23.1K NZ$41.0K
-23.70%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Lisbon
New Plymouth
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$102 €91.4
$61.3 NZ$109
66.51%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$44.46 €39.85
$38.74 NZ$68.9
14.77%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$98.5 €88.3
$90.6 NZ$161
8.74%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$124 €111
$106 NZ$188
16.81%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Lisbon
New Plymouth
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,608 €1,441
$907 NZ$1,613
77.27%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,190 €1,066
$836 NZ$1,487
42.29%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,812 €2,520
$1,740 NZ$3,093
61.63%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$2,013 €1,804
$1,589 NZ$2,824
26.72%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$7,839 €7,025
$3,209 NZ$5,704
144.30%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$4,576 €4,100
$2,622 NZ$4,661
74.51%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Lisbon
New Plymouth
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,575 €1,411
$2,787 NZ$4,954
-43.49%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
3.85
5.93
-35.08%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for New Plymouth: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Lisbon
$1.2K
New Plymouth
$836 29.7% $354
Groceries & Markets
Lisbon
$272
New Plymouth
$281 3.3% $8.9
Eating Out
Lisbon
$243
New Plymouth
$219 9.9% $24
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Lisbon
$212
New Plymouth
$206 3% $6.3
Clothing & Footwear
Lisbon
$166
New Plymouth
$133 19.6% $32
Sport & Entertainment
Lisbon
$64
New Plymouth
$60 6.4% $4.1
Getting Around
Lisbon
$63
New Plymouth
$85 * 34.6% $22

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 $1,608 in Lisbon and $907 in New Plymouth. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

New Plymouth pays 77% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $68 in New Plymouth for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $281 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇵🇹 Lisbon
🇳🇿 New Plymouth
🕒 Local time
02:01 2:01 AM
15:01 3:01 PM
13 h ahead of Lisbon
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
545,923 Capital
58,400
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

NZD, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1.78 NZD (1 NZD = 0.563 USD). 1 EUR = 1.98 NZD (1 NZD = 0.504 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Lisbon New Plymouth 19,730 km ≈ 25 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Lisbon
  • New Plymouth

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 New Plymouth: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Lisbon and in New Plymouth?
Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $1,820 in New Plymouth, so New Plymouth is about 18% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city has better-paying jobs?
On paper, salaries run 43% lower in Lisbon. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.
How do apartment prices compare in Lisbon and in New Plymouth?
Rent for a central apartment: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $907 in New Plymouth. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Lisbon and New Plymouth?
Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $680 in New Plymouth. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city has cheaper grocery shopping?
Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 3% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.
How far does $3,000 go in Lisbon compared to New Plymouth?
Either city works on $3,000 a month, though New Plymouth gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.
How does quality of life compare between Lisbon and New Plymouth?
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.
Is Lisbon or New Plymouth safer for residents?
Safety-wise, Lisbon and New Plymouth are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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