Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Petrosani

For one person, living is cheaper in Petrosani: $745 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $17,600 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
36

Cost of Living Index in Petrosani
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Petrosani Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Petrosani

🇷🇴 Romania

$745

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Petrosani

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $745 in Petrosani.

Lisbon $2,210
Petrosani $745

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $1,154 in Petrosani.

Lisbon $3,275
Petrosani $1,154

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $1,562 in Petrosani.

Lisbon $4,341
Petrosani $1,562

Living in Lisbon is roughly 196% more expensive than in Petrosani, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Petrosani is 45% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.95

$14.56 RON 70.0

14.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$32.54 RON 156

89.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$7.47 RON 35.92

52.07%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$2.14 RON 10.28

38.79%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$1.66 RON 7.96

37.95%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$1.42 RON 6.82

22.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

$1.44 RON 6.94

136.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$2.13 RON 10.24

55.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.38 RON 6.63

-15.94%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$1.16 RON 5.58

64.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$1.06 RON 5.12

42.45%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$3.53 RON 16.98

13.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

$8.28 RON 39.80

56.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.98

$6.91 RON 33.20

12.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.95

$11.62 RON 55.8

52.84%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$1.29 RON 6.18

78.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$1.30 RON 6.24

33.08%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$1.50 RON 7.22

24.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$1.48 RON 7.11

75.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$0.65 RON 3.14

180.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$0.61 RON 2.92

222.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$0.88 RON 4.22

67.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.91 RON 4.39

-20.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.91

$6.34 RON 30.49

3.79%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$6.24 RON 30.00

-10.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.25 RON 6.01

8.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$1.65 RON 7.92

29.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

$0.81 RON 3.89

187.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$0.60 RON 2.90

541.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$0.66 RON 3.15

62.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$6.38 RON 30.65

157.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$1.82 RON 8.74

20.88%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$28.1K RON 134.9K

21.77%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$26.1K RON 125.3K

48.48%

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

$161 €145

$193 RON 930

-16.67%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$8.03 RON 38.60

129.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$5.09 RON 24.44

543.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.02

$29.74 RON 143

49.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$5.22 RON 25.07

83.91%

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

$668 €600

$667 RON 3,207

0.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$14.4K RON 69.3K

22.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.6

$16.70 RON 80.2

510.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.94

$37.81 RON 182

17.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$78.2 RON 376

25.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$84.9 RON 408

45.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,526

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,808

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,042

$895 RON 4,301

775.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,110

$867 RON 4,168

427.60%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

$1,100 RON 5,286

43.20%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

6.75

-42.96%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Petrosani: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Petrosani

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Petrosani

$205 27.6% 24.6% $67

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Petrosani

$188 25.3% 22.4% $54

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Petrosani

$207 27.7% 2.7% $5.8

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Petrosani

$98 13.1% 41% $68

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Petrosani

$40 5.4% 37% $24

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Petrosani

$7.1 * 1% 88.7% $56

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Lisbon pays 43% 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 in Lisbon vs $33 in Petrosani for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $205 per month, with Petrosani cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇷🇴 Petrosani

🕒 Local time

18:40 6:40 PM

20:40 8:40 PM

2 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

51,476

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1 RON = 0.208 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Petrosani 2,760 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Petrosani

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 Petrosani: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Petrosani differ by about 196% in total monthly costs ($2,210 vs $745 including rent). Petrosani is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 43% higher in Lisbon, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Supermarket bills run roughly 33% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $2,210 per month in Lisbon versus $745 in Petrosani – a 196% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $745 in Petrosani versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Petrosani but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Petrosani 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 Petrosani are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

It comes down to priorities – Petrosani wins on affordability, Lisbon on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.