Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Novara

For one person, living is cheaper in Novara: $1,483 a month against $2,202 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $8,600 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
72

Cost of Living Index in Novara
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Novara Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,202

/mo nomad

Novara

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,483

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Novara

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,202 in Lisbon versus $1,483 in Novara.

Lisbon $2,202
Novara $1,483

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,274 in Lisbon versus $2,293 in Novara.

Lisbon $3,274
Novara $2,293

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,346 in Lisbon versus $3,103 in Novara.

Lisbon $4,346
Novara $3,103

Living in Lisbon is roughly 48% more expensive than in Novara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, Novara 9% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.04 €15.15

$16.78 €14.92

1.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.3 €55.4

$56.6 €50.3

10.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.02 €9.80

$10.25 €9.12

7.51%

Cappuccino

$3.12 €2.78

$1.74 €1.55

79.31%

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

$2.27 €2.02

$3.46 €3.08

-34.39%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.55

$1.72 €1.53

1.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.42 €3.04

$5.57 €4.96

-38.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.74 €3.33

$5.09 €4.52

-26.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 €1.04

$1.39 €1.24

-15.83%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.95 €1.74

-4.62%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 €1.37

$2.88 €2.56

-46.53%

Eggs

$4.06 €3.61

$3.33 €2.96

21.92%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.91 €11.49

$11.40 €10.14

13.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.03

$8.76 €7.79

-9.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.64 €15.69

$13.22 €11.76

33.43%

Apples (1kg)

$2.26 €2.01

$2.53 €2.25

-10.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$1.65 €1.46

6.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.89 €1.68

$3.41 €3.04

-44.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.56 €2.27

$2.16 €1.92

18.52%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$1.94 €1.73

-4.64%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$1.14 €1.02

72.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.03 €0.91

40.78%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 €0.69

$0.75 €0.67

2.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.71 €5.97

$6.23 €5.55

7.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.67 €5.04

$5.58 €4.96

1.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 €1.22

$1.84 €1.63

-25.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 €1.88

$2.28 €2.03

-7.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.32 €2.07

$1.69 €1.51

37.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.43 €39.52

$38.24 €34.01

16.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.95 €3.51

$4.36 €3.87

-9.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.05 €0.93

$1.20 €1.06

-12.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.15 €15.26

$34.82 €30.97

-50.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.19 €1.95

$2.05 €1.82

6.83%

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

$33.8K €30.0K

$26.9K €23.9K

25.67%

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

$38.3K €34.0K

$33.4K €29.7K

14.54%

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

$164 €146

$176 €157

-7.14%

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

$18.48 €16.43

$10.41 €9.26

77.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.96 €29.32

$30.24 €26.90

8.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.87 €40.80

$78.3 €69.6

-41.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.68 €16.61

$18.96 €16.86

-1.48%

Cinema Ticket

$9.75 €8.67

$11.39 €10.13

-14.40%

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

$684 €608

$517 €460

32.27%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.7K

$9,907 €8,813

77.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 €92.3

$124 €110

-16.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.20 €41.09

$34.03 €30.27

35.76%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.7 €88.7

$55.5 €49.40

79.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$125 €111

$139 €123

-10.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,589 €1,414

$644 €573

146.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,169 €1,040

$438 €389

167.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,851 €2,536

$1,048 €932

172.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,993 €1,773

$784 €698

154.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,793 €6,932

$2,850 €2,535

173.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,418 €3,930

$1,873 €1,666

135.94%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,600 €1,423

$2,082 €1,852

-23.14%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

3.62

6.35%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 19, 2026

Last update for Novara: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.1%

Novara

$438 29.5% 62.6% $731

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$273 12.4%

Novara

$269 18.1% 1.5% $4

Eating Out

Lisbon

$247 11.2%

Novara

$245 16.5% 1.2% $2.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$215 9.8%

Novara

$217 14.6% 0.8% $1.8

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.7%

Novara

$158 10.7% 6% $10

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$65 3%

Novara

$101 6.8% 54.6% $36

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Novara

$55 3.7% 12% $7.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,589 in Lisbon and $644 in Novara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Novara pays 30% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $62.0 in Lisbon vs $57.0 in Novara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $273 vs $269 per month, with Novara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇮🇹 Novara

🕒 Local time

07:07 7:07 AM

08:07 8:07 AM

1 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

100,910

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Novara 1,640 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

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Lisbon
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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 Novara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Novara differ by about 48% in total monthly costs ($2,202 vs $1,483 including rent). Novara is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 30% lower in Novara. 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: $1,589 in Lisbon versus $644 in Novara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $684 in Lisbon versus $517 in Novara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 1% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,483 in Novara versus $2,202 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Novara but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Novara 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 Novara 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 Novara gentler on the wallet – expenses run 48% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.