Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Ningbo

For one person, living is cheaper in Ningbo: $691 a month against $2,202 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $18,100 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
33

Cost of Living Index in Ningbo
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Ningbo Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,202

/mo nomad

Ningbo

🇨🇳 China

$691

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Ningbo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,202 in Lisbon versus $691 in Ningbo.

Lisbon $2,202
Ningbo $691

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,274 in Lisbon versus $1,179 in Ningbo.

Lisbon $3,274
Ningbo $1,179

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,346 in Lisbon versus $1,668 in Ningbo.

Lisbon $4,346
Ningbo $1,668

Living in Lisbon is roughly 219% more expensive than in Ningbo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Ningbo is 49% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.04 €15.15

$2.89 ¥19.32

489.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.3 €55.4

$30.12 ¥201

106.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.02 €9.80

$4.46 ¥29.83

147.09%

Cappuccino

$3.12 €2.78

$3.52 ¥23.55

-11.36%

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

$2.27 €2.02

$0.44 ¥2.93

415.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.55

$0.31 ¥2.08

461.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.42 €3.04

$1.04 ¥6.95

228.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.74 €3.33

$3.44 ¥23.00

8.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 €1.04

$1.74 ¥11.65

-32.76%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.16 ¥7.79

60.34%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 €1.37

$0.70 ¥4.66

120.00%

Eggs

$4.06 €3.61

$1.56 ¥10.46

160.26%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.91 €11.49

$15.18 ¥101

-14.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.03

$3.67 ¥24.53

115.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.64 €15.69

$8.78 ¥58.7

100.91%

Apples (1kg)

$2.26 €2.01

$1.07 ¥7.13

111.21%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$1.56 ¥10.42

12.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.89 €1.68

$1.57 ¥10.52

20.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.56 €2.27

$1.22 ¥8.13

109.84%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$0.62 ¥4.12

198.39%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$0.70 ¥4.69

181.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$0.65 ¥4.32

123.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 €0.69

$0.57 ¥3.83

35.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.71 €5.97

$4.61 ¥30.79

45.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.67 €5.04

$8.03 ¥53.7

-29.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 €1.22

$0.81 ¥5.43

69.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 €1.88

$1.50 ¥10.04

40.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.32 €2.07

$0.31 ¥2.08

648.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.43 €39.52

$16.67 ¥111

166.53%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.95 €3.51

$1.68 ¥11.21

135.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.05 €0.93

$0.35 ¥2.31

200.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.15 €15.26

$7.16 ¥47.90

139.53%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.19 €1.95

$1.33 ¥8.88

64.66%

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

$33.8K €30.0K

$19.6K ¥131.1K

72.23%

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

$38.3K €34.0K

$18.1K ¥121.3K

111.00%

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

$164 €146

$51.9 ¥347

215.57%

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

$18.48 €16.43

$6.67 ¥44.63

177.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.96 €29.32

$7.80 ¥52.1

322.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.87 €40.80

$25.44 ¥170

80.31%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.68 €16.61

$14.16 ¥94.7

31.92%

Cinema Ticket

$9.75 €8.67

$8.05 ¥53.8

21.12%

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

$684 €608

$932 ¥6,234

-26.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.7K

$15.9K ¥106.6K

10.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 €92.3

$63.8 ¥427

62.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.20 €41.09

$26.75 ¥179

72.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.7 €88.7

$62.2 ¥416

60.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$125 €111

$52.6 ¥351

137.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,589 €1,414

$358 ¥2,394

343.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,169 €1,040

$184 ¥1,230

535.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,851 €2,536

$766 ¥5,121

272.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,993 €1,773

$469 ¥3,136

324.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,793 €6,932

$3,784 ¥25.3K

105.95%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,418 €3,930

$2,053 ¥13.7K

115.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,600 €1,423

$1,193 ¥7,977

34.09%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

3.18

21.07%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 19, 2026

Last update for Ningbo: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.1%

Ningbo

$184 26.6% 84.3% $985

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$273 12.4%

Ningbo

$191 27.7% 30% $82

Eating Out

Lisbon

$247 11.2%

Ningbo

$94 13.6% 62.1% $154

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$215 9.8%

Ningbo

$66 9.6% 69.2% $149

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.7%

Ningbo

$92 13.4% 45.2% $76

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$65 3%

Ningbo

$42 6% 36.5% $24

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Ningbo

$21 3.1% 66.1% $42

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,589 in Lisbon and $358 in Ningbo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 34% 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: $62.0 in Lisbon vs $30.00 in Ningbo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $273 vs $191 per month, with Ningbo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇨🇳 Ningbo

🕒 Local time

02:31 2:31 AM

09:31 9:31 AM

7 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

7,605,689

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Ningbo 10,840 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

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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 Ningbo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Ningbo differ by about 219% in total monthly costs ($2,202 vs $691 including rent). Ningbo is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 34% 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: $1,589 in Lisbon versus $358 in Ningbo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $684 in Lisbon versus $932 in Ningbo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 43% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $691 in Ningbo versus $2,202 in Lisbon, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Ningbo but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Ningbo 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 Ningbo 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 Ningbo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 219% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.