Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Nivelles

For one person, living is cheaper in Nivelles: $2,092 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Lisbon outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in Nivelles
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Nivelles Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Nivelles

🇧🇪 Belgium

$2,092

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Nivelles

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $2,092 in Nivelles.

Lisbon $2,210
Nivelles $2,092

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $3,149 in Nivelles.

Lisbon $3,275
Nivelles $3,149

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $4,206 in Nivelles.

Lisbon $4,341
Nivelles $4,206

Living in Lisbon is roughly 6% more expensive than in Nivelles, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, Nivelles 54% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.95

$22.72 €20.41

-26.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$110 €98.4

-43.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$15.85 €14.24

-28.33%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$4.30 €3.86

-30.93%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$3.52 €3.16

-34.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$2.86 €2.57

-39.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

$5.55 €4.98

-38.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$5.49 €4.94

-39.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.15 €1.03

0.87%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$1.93 €1.73

-1.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$2.16 €1.94

-30.09%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$3.93 €3.53

2.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

$18.49 €16.61

-30.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.98

$12.52 €11.25

-37.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.95

$19.91 €17.89

-10.80%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$2.69 €2.41

-14.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$2.44 €2.19

-29.10%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$2.52 €2.26

-26.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$2.80 €2.52

-7.50%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$2.18 €1.96

-16.51%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$1.91 €1.72

3.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.31 €1.18

12.21%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$1.10 €0.99

-34.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.91

$13.15 €11.81

-49.96%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$6.90 €6.20

-18.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$2.00 €1.80

-32.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$2.44 €2.19

-12.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

$3.36 €3.02

-30.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

$55.4 €49.75

-19.32%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$11.35 €10.19

-66.08%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$2.99 €2.69

-64.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$52.4 €47.05

-68.58%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$1.79 €1.61

22.91%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$35.2K €31.6K

-2.73%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$35.8K €32.2K

8.05%

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

$161 €145

$209 €188

-22.89%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$21.12 €18.97

-12.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$46.97 €42.20

-30.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.02

$36.09 €32.42

23.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

$18.91 €16.98

1.00%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$16.12 €14.48

-40.45%

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

$668 €600

$564 €507

18.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$21.2K €19.1K

-17.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.6

$79.0 €70.9

29.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.94

$21.05 €18.91

111.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$108 €96.9

-8.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$151 €135

-17.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

$934 €839

72.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

$803 €721

48.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,526

$1,410 €1,267

99.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,808

$1,143 €1,027

76.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,042

$4,495 €4,038

74.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,110

$2,801 €2,516

63.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

$3,637 €3,267

-56.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

3.2

20.31%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Nivelles: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Nivelles

$803 38.4% 32.6% $388

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Nivelles

$343 16.4% 25.8% $70

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Nivelles

$345 16.5% 42.3% $103

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Nivelles

$277 13.3% 30.5% $65

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Nivelles

$161 7.7% 2.7% $4.5

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Nivelles

$68 3.3% 7.2% $4.6

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Nivelles

$95 4.6% 50.5% $32

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $934 in Nivelles. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nivelles pays about 2.3 times 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 $110 in Nivelles for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $343 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇧🇪 Nivelles

🕒 Local time

20:22 8:22 PM

21:22 9:22 PM

1 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

27,488

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Nivelles 1,690 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
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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 Nivelles: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $2,092 in Nivelles, so Nivelles is about 5% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 57% 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 $934 in Nivelles. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $564 in Nivelles. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 21% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Either city works on $2,500 a month, though Nivelles 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.

Safety-wise, Lisbon and Nivelles are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.