Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and New York, NY

For one person, living is cheaper in Lisbon: $2,210 a month against $4,941 in New York, NY, rent and utilities included – about $32,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
239

Cost of Living Index in New York, NY
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New York, NY Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

New York, NY

🇺🇸 United States

$4,941

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in New York, NY

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $4,941 in New York, NY.

Lisbon $2,210
New York, NY $4,941

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $7,225 in New York, NY.

Lisbon $3,275
New York, NY $7,225

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $9,509 in New York, NY.

Lisbon $4,341
New York, NY $9,509

Living in Lisbon costs roughly 55% less than in New York, NY, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, New York, NY 263% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.95

$28.55 $28.55

-41.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$118 $118

-47.88%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$15.04 $15.04

-24.47%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$6.53 $6.53

-54.52%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$3.96 $3.96

-42.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$3.01 $3.01

-42.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

$8.16 $8.16

-58.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$9.84 $9.84

-66.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.37 $1.37

-15.33%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$4.97 $4.97

-61.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$7.81 $7.81

-80.67%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$5.97 $5.97

-32.66%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

$18.91 $18.91

-31.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.98

$18.04 $18.04

-56.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.95

$19.05 $19.05

-6.77%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$6.76 $6.76

-65.98%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$2.27 $2.27

-23.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$6.83 $6.83

-72.77%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$7.09 $7.09

-63.47%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$4.22 $4.22

-56.87%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$4.65 $4.65

-57.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$2.87 $2.87

-48.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$2.60 $2.60

-72.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.91

$18.77 $18.77

-64.94%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$20.13 $20.13

-72.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$3.45 $3.45

-60.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$4.02 $4.02

-46.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

$2.91 $2.91

-19.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

$139 $139

-67.84%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$3.08 $3.08

25.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$2.12 $2.12

-49.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$41.96 $41.96

-60.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$1.17 $1.17

88.03%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$34.5K $34.5K

-0.83%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$25.9K $25.9K

49.79%

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

$161 €145

$219 $219

-26.52%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$74.2 $74.2

-75.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$70.2 $70.2

-53.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.02

$112 $112

-60.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

$74.9 $74.9

-74.49%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$22.14 $22.14

-56.64%

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

$668 €600

$3,558 $3,558

-81.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$62.2K $62.2K

-71.66%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.6

$75.6 $75.6

34.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.94

$51.2 $51.2

-13.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$123 $123

-20.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$140 $140

-11.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

$4,499 $4,499

-64.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

$3,078 $3,078

-61.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,526

$9,447 $9,447

-70.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,808

$5,190 $5,190

-61.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,042

$18.1K $18.1K

-56.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,110

$6,693 $6,693

-31.63%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

$5,220 $5,220

-69.83%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

6.86

-43.88%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for New York, NY: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

New York, NY

$3.1K 62.3% 159% $1.9K

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

New York, NY

$563 11.4% 107% $291

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

New York, NY

$440 8.9% 81.5% $198

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

New York, NY

$364 7.4% 71.3% $152

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

New York, NY

$175 3.6% 5.7% $9.5

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

New York, NY

$156 3.2% 145% $92

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

New York, NY

$164 3.3% 160% $101

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $4,499 in New York, NY. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

New York, NY pays about 3.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $118 in New York, NY for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $563 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇺🇸 New York, NY

🕒 Local time

13:34 1:34 PM

09:34 9:34 AM

4 h behind Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

8,804,190

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1 USD = 0.899 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon New York, NY 5,440 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
New York, NY

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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 New York, NY: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and New York, NY differ by about 124% in total monthly costs ($2,210 vs $4,941 including rent). Lisbon is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 70% 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $4,499 in New York, NY. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $3,558 in New York, NY. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 107% higher in New York, NY. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,210 in Lisbon versus $4,941 in New York, NY, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Lisbon but tight or insufficient in New York, NY. The gap between the two cities makes Lisbon 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.

Expats usually find Lisbon gentler on the wallet – expenses run 55% less than in New York, NY. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.