Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Port Elizabeth

For one person, living is cheaper in Port Elizabeth: $1,216 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $12,100 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
59

Cost of Living Index in Port Elizabeth
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Port Elizabeth Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Port Elizabeth

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,216

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Port Elizabeth

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,223 in Lisbon versus $1,216 in Port Elizabeth.

Lisbon $2,223
Port Elizabeth $1,216

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,271 in Lisbon versus $1,835 in Port Elizabeth.

Lisbon $3,271
Port Elizabeth $1,835

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,319 in Lisbon versus $2,453 in Port Elizabeth.

Lisbon $4,319
Port Elizabeth $2,453

Living in Lisbon is roughly 83% more expensive than in Port Elizabeth, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 65% above, Port Elizabeth is 10% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.50 €14.67

$11.00 R 181

50.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 €54.5

$41.67 R 687

46.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.27 €10.03

$5.84 R 96.2

92.98%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.17 R 35.81

41.01%

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

$2.26 €2.01

$1.03 R 16.91

119.42%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.54

$0.76 R 12.59

127.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 €3.02

$2.69 R 44.37

26.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 €3.02

$3.24 R 53.3

4.94%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.12 R 18.39

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.04 R 17.20

78.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$1.51 R 24.94

1.32%

Eggs

$3.96 €3.53

$2.81 R 46.35

40.93%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.76 €11.35

$8.58 R 141

48.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.02

$5.33 R 87.7

48.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 €15.09

$8.36 R 138

102.99%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$2.19 R 36.04

3.65%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$1.49 R 24.58

17.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$1.70 R 28.04

8.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.28

$1.81 R 29.74

41.99%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.66 R 27.41

12.05%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.45 R 23.83

39.31%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.26 R 20.72

14.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$0.99 R 16.39

-17.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.56 €5.83

$3.26 R 53.8

101.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.62 €5.00

$4.82 R 79.4

16.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.14

$1.27 R 20.99

0.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$1.82 R 30.00

13.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

$1.10 R 18.17

113.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

$36.67 R 604

20.48%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.55

$2.04 R 33.68

95.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$0.50 R 8.25

118.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.64 €14.81

$8.45 R 139

96.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.48 R 24.38

54.05%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$35.8K R 589.5K

-5.89%

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

$39.3K €35.0K

$34.1K R 562.5K

15.09%

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

$167 €149

$125 R 2,058

34.08%

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

$18.80 €16.72

$34.90 R 575

-46.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.09 €29.43

$44.55 R 734

-25.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €40.93

$32.20 R 530

42.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

$23.27 R 383

-17.53%

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 €8.75

$10.74 R 177

-8.38%

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

$677 €602

$177 R 2,924

281.64%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.1K

$6,046 R 99.6K

179.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €90.1

$72.4 R 1,193

39.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 €40.70

$38.28 R 631

19.54%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100.0 €88.9

$110 R 1,806

-8.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €109

$95.6 R 1,574

28.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 €1,436

$598 R 9,859

169.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,065

$415 R 6,838

188.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,862 €2,545

$808 R 13.3K

253.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,990 €1,770

$682 R 11.2K

191.81%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

$764 R 12.6K

891.27%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

$522 R 8,604

724.67%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,588 €1,412

$1,625 R 26.8K

-2.27%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

11.94

-67.76%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Last update for Port Elizabeth: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9%

Port Elizabeth

$415 34.1% 65.3% $782

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$269 12.1%

Port Elizabeth

$197 16.2% 27% $73

Eating Out

Lisbon

$242 10.9%

Port Elizabeth

$159 13.1% 34.5% $84

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$219 9.9%

Port Elizabeth

$204 16.8% 6.8% $15

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Port Elizabeth

$142 11.7% 14.6% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$66 3%

Port Elizabeth

$54 4.4% 18.3% $12

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

Port Elizabeth

$46 3.8% 27.6% $17

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,614 in Lisbon and $598 in Port Elizabeth. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Port Elizabeth pays 2% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $61.0 in Lisbon vs $42.00 in Port Elizabeth for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $269 vs $197 per month, with Port Elizabeth cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇿🇦 Port Elizabeth

🕒 Local time

13:34 1:34 PM

14:34 2:34 PM

1 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

1,050,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Port Elizabeth 8,840 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

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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 Port Elizabeth: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Port Elizabeth differ by about 83% in total monthly costs ($2,223 vs $1,216 including rent). Port Elizabeth is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 2% lower in Port Elizabeth. 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: $1,614 in Lisbon versus $598 in Port Elizabeth. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $677 in Lisbon versus $177 in Port Elizabeth. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 37% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,216 in Port Elizabeth versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Port Elizabeth but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Port Elizabeth 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 Port Elizabeth 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 Port Elizabeth gentler on the wallet – expenses run 83% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.