Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Ouarzazate

For one person, living is cheaper in Ouarzazate: $706 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $18,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Lisbon, Portugal
Ouarzazate, Morocco
Lisbon
🇵🇹 Portugal
$2,210
/mo nomad
Ouarzazate
🇲🇦 Morocco
$706
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Ouarzazate

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $706 in Ouarzazate.

  • Lisbon $2,210
  • Ouarzazate $706

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $1,099 in Ouarzazate.

  • Lisbon $3,275
  • Ouarzazate $1,099

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $1,492 in Ouarzazate.

  • Lisbon $4,341
  • Ouarzazate $1,492

Living in Lisbon is roughly 213% more expensive than in Ouarzazate, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Ouarzazate is 48% below.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Lisbon
Ouarzazate
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$16.65 €14.91
$3.93 MAD 38.58
323.66%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$61.7 €55.3
$30.65 MAD 301
101.44%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.36 €10.17
$6.02 MAD 59.2
88.70%
Cappuccino
$2.97 €2.66
$2.47 MAD 24.29
20.24%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.29 €2.05
$0.56 MAD 5.46
308.93%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.74 €1.56
$0.37 MAD 3.60
370.27%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.40 €3.05
$6.56 MAD 64.5
-48.17%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.31 €2.96
$5.58 MAD 54.8
-40.68%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Lisbon
Ouarzazate
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.16 €1.04
$0.80 MAD 7.81
45.00%
White Bread (500g)
$1.91 €1.71
$0.85 MAD 8.38
124.71%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.51 €1.35
$1.47 MAD 14.43
2.72%
Eggs
$4.02 €3.60
$1.52 MAD 14.95
164.47%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$12.94 €11.59
$7.64 MAD 75.1
69.37%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.77 €6.96
$4.45 MAD 43.69
74.61%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$17.76 €15.91
$11.29 MAD 111
57.31%
Apples (1kg)
$2.30 €2.06
$0.74 MAD 7.32
210.81%
Banana (1kg)
$1.73 €1.55
$1.26 MAD 12.34
37.30%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.86 €1.66
$0.64 MAD 6.25
190.63%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.59 €2.32
$0.72 MAD 7.03
259.72%
Potato (1kg)
$1.82 €1.63
$0.66 MAD 6.45
175.76%
Onion (1kg)
$1.97 €1.76
$0.75 MAD 7.38
162.67%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.47 €1.32
$0.23 MAD 2.26
539.13%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.72 €0.65
$0.61 MAD 5.97
18.03%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$6.58 €5.90
$3.99 MAD 39.23
64.91%
Wine (Bottle)
$5.61 €5.02
$7.68 MAD 75.5
-26.95%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.36 €1.22
$2.23 MAD 21.92
-39.01%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.14 €1.91
$3.38 MAD 33.27
-36.69%
🚌 Getting Around
Lisbon
Ouarzazate
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.33 €2.09
$0.50 MAD 4.94
366.00%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$44.68 €40.01
$18.66 MAD 183
139.44%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.85 €3.45
$0.53 MAD 5.19
626.42%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.07 €0.96
$0.62 MAD 6.10
72.58%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$16.46 €14.74
$7.09 MAD 69.7
132.16%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$2.20 €1.97
$1.41 MAD 13.84
56.03%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$34.2K €30.6K
$30.1K MAD 296.4K
13.40%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$38.7K €34.7K
$30.9K MAD 303.6K
25.36%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Lisbon
Ouarzazate
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$161 €144
$35.09 MAD 345
359.45%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$18.41 €16.49
$4.96 MAD 48.75
271.17%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$32.74 €29.32
$25.40 MAD 250
28.90%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Lisbon
Ouarzazate
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$44.55 €39.90
$25.27 MAD 248
76.30%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$19.10 €17.10
$17.98 MAD 177
6.23%
Cinema Ticket
$9.60 €8.60
$6.41 MAD 63.0
49.77%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Lisbon
Ouarzazate
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$668 €598
$98.6 MAD 969
577.23%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$17.6K €15.8K
$8,270 MAD 81.3K
112.99%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Lisbon
Ouarzazate
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$102 €91.4
$31.20 MAD 307
226.99%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$44.46 €39.82
$43.88 MAD 431
1.32%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$98.5 €88.2
$80.4 MAD 790
22.59%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$124 €111
$79.7 MAD 783
55.25%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Lisbon
Ouarzazate
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,608 €1,440
$278 MAD 2,730
479.06%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,190 €1,066
$176 MAD 1,732
575.52%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,812 €2,519
$519 MAD 5,105
441.54%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$2,013 €1,803
$265 MAD 2,606
659.47%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$7,839 €7,021
$1,196 MAD 11.8K
555.65%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$4,576 €4,098
$828 MAD 8,134
452.94%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Lisbon
Ouarzazate
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,575 €1,411
$201 MAD 1,979
682.45%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
3.85
4.5
-14.44%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Ouarzazate: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Lisbon
$1.2K
Ouarzazate
$176 85.2% $1K
Groceries & Markets
Lisbon
$272
Ouarzazate
$170 37.7% $103
Eating Out
Lisbon
$243
Ouarzazate
$127 47.8% $116
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Lisbon
$212
Ouarzazate
$65 69.2% $147
Clothing & Footwear
Lisbon
$166
Ouarzazate
$106 36.2% $60
Sport & Entertainment
Lisbon
$64
Ouarzazate
$38 40.3% $26
Getting Around
Lisbon
$63
Ouarzazate
$24 61.6% $39

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $278 in Ouarzazate. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays about 7.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $31 in Ouarzazate for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $170 per month, with Ouarzazate cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇵🇹 Lisbon
🇲🇦 Ouarzazate
🕒 Local time
06:55 6:55 AM
06:55 6:55 AM
Same time as Lisbon
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
545,923 Capital
71,067
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

MAD, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

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

Moroccan Dirham exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 9.83 MAD (1 MAD = 0.102 USD). 1 EUR = 10.98 MAD (100 MAD = 9.11 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Lisbon Ouarzazate 890 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Lisbon
  • Ouarzazate

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 Ouarzazate: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Lisbon and in Ouarzazate?
Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $706 in Ouarzazate, so Ouarzazate is about 68% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city pays better: Lisbon or Ouarzazate?
Average pay in Lisbon is about 7.8 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.
How do apartment prices compare in Lisbon and in Ouarzazate?
Rent for a central apartment: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $278 in Ouarzazate. 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 Ouarzazate?
Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $99 in Ouarzazate. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city has cheaper grocery shopping?
Supermarket bills run roughly 60% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.
Which city is more doable on $1,200 per month?
At $706 in Ouarzazate versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Ouarzazate but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Ouarzazate the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between Lisbon and Ouarzazate?
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 Ouarzazate safer for residents?
Safety-wise, Lisbon and Ouarzazate are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.
Where should expats move: Lisbon or Ouarzazate?
Expats usually find Ouarzazate gentler on the wallet – expenses run 68% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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