Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Puerto de la Cruz

For one person, living is cheaper in Puerto de la Cruz: $1,912 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 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
92

Cost of Living Index in Puerto de la Cruz
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Puerto de la Cruz Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Puerto de la Cruz

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,912

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Puerto de la Cruz

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 Puerto de la Cruz actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,223 in Lisbon versus $1,912 in Puerto de la Cruz.

Lisbon $2,223
Puerto de la Cruz $1,912

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,271 in Lisbon versus $2,769 in Puerto de la Cruz.

Lisbon $3,271
Puerto de la Cruz $2,769

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,319 in Lisbon versus $3,625 in Puerto de la Cruz.

Lisbon $4,319
Puerto de la Cruz $3,625

Living in Lisbon is roughly 16% more expensive than in Puerto de la Cruz, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 65% above, Puerto de la Cruz 42% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.50 €14.67

$13.53 €12.04

21.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 €54.5

$61.4 €54.6

-0.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.27 €10.03

$10.06 €8.95

12.03%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.58 €2.29

18.60%

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

$2.26 €2.01

$1.90 €1.69

18.95%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.54

$1.53 €1.36

13.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 €3.02

$2.86 €2.54

18.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 €3.02

$3.59 €3.20

-5.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.10 €0.98

1.82%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.62 €1.44

14.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$1.65 €1.47

-7.27%

Eggs

$3.96 €3.53

$3.70 €3.29

7.03%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.76 €11.35

$12.22 €10.87

4.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.02

$10.00 €8.89

-21.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 €15.09

$13.61 €12.10

24.69%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$2.55 €2.27

-10.98%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$2.06 €1.83

-15.05%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$1.48 €1.32

25.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.28

$2.58 €2.29

-0.39%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$2.35 €2.09

-20.85%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$2.31 €2.05

-12.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

$2.02 €1.79

-28.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$0.81 €0.72

1.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.56 €5.83

$4.17 €3.71

57.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.62 €5.00

$6.52 €5.80

-13.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.14

$1.37 €1.22

-6.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$2.68 €2.38

-22.76%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

$41.93 €37.29

5.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.55

$3.31 €2.94

20.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$2.28 €2.02

-52.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.64 €14.81

$28.23 €25.11

-41.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.65 €1.47

38.18%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$35.1K €31.2K

-4.02%

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

$39.3K €35.0K

$28.4K €25.3K

38.20%

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

$167 €149

$111 €98.4

51.40%

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

$18.80 €16.72

$19.16 €17.04

-1.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.09 €29.43

$28.08 €24.97

17.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €40.93

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

$16.72 €14.87

14.77%

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 €8.75

$9.15 €8.14

7.54%

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

$677 €602

$481 €428

40.68%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.1K

$6,713 €5,971

152.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €90.1

$88.7 €78.9

14.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 €40.70

$37.90 €33.71

20.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100.0 €88.9

$88.9 €79.1

12.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €109

$120 €107

2.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 €1,436

$1,133 €1,008

42.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,065

$1,049 €933

14.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,862 €2,545

$1,891 €1,682

51.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,990 €1,770

$1,577 €1,403

26.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

$3,614 €3,215

109.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

$3,478 €3,093

23.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,588 €1,412

$1,345 €1,196

18.05%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

3.15

22.22%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Last update for Puerto de la Cruz: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9%

Puerto de la Cruz

$1K 54.9% 12.4% $148

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$269 12.1%

Puerto de la Cruz

$275 14.4% 2% $5.4

Eating Out

Lisbon

$242 10.9%

Puerto de la Cruz

$205 10.7% 15.5% $38

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$219 9.9%

Puerto de la Cruz

$158 8.3% 28% $62

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Puerto de la Cruz

$151 7.9% 9.3% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$66 3%

Puerto de la Cruz

$18 * 1% 72.1% $47

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

Puerto de la Cruz

$57 * 3% 10.1% $6.4

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,614 in Lisbon and $1,133 in Puerto de la Cruz. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 18% 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: $61.0 in Lisbon vs $61.0 in Puerto de la Cruz for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $269 vs $275 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇪🇸 Puerto de la Cruz

🕒 Local time

10:34 10:34 AM

Same time as Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

30,849

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Puerto de la Cruz 1,330 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Puerto de la Cruz

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 Puerto de la Cruz: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Puerto de la Cruz differ by about 16% in total monthly costs ($2,223 vs $1,912 including rent). Puerto de la Cruz is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 18% higher in Lisbon, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,614 in Lisbon versus $1,133 in Puerto de la Cruz. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $677 in Lisbon versus $481 in Puerto de la Cruz. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 2% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,912 in Puerto de la Cruz versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Puerto de la Cruz but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Puerto de la Cruz 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 Puerto de la Cruz 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 Puerto de la Cruz gentler on the wallet – expenses run 16% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.