Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Puerto Vallarta

For one person, living is cheaper in Puerto Vallarta: $1,602 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $7,500 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
78

Cost of Living Index in Puerto Vallarta
Learn more

Puerto Vallarta Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Puerto Vallarta

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,602

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Puerto Vallarta

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,223 in Lisbon versus $1,602 in Puerto Vallarta.

Lisbon $2,223
Puerto Vallarta $1,602

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,271 in Lisbon versus $2,430 in Puerto Vallarta.

Lisbon $3,271
Puerto Vallarta $2,430

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,319 in Lisbon versus $3,259 in Puerto Vallarta.

Lisbon $4,319
Puerto Vallarta $3,259

Living in Lisbon is roughly 39% more expensive than in Puerto Vallarta, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 65% above, Puerto Vallarta 19% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.50 €14.67

$13.62 MX$252

21.15%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 €54.5

$58.3 MX$1,076

5.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.27 €10.03

$11.17 MX$206

0.90%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$4.23 MX$78.2

-27.66%

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

$2.26 €2.01

$1.86 MX$34.43

21.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.54

$1.38 MX$25.59

25.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 €3.02

$2.93 MX$54.1

15.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 €3.02

$4.24 MX$78.3

-19.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.79 MX$33.17

-37.43%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.65

$3.51 MX$64.9

-47.01%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$2.00 MX$36.97

-23.50%

Eggs

$3.96 €3.53

$2.20 MX$40.72

80.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.76 €11.35

$10.04 MX$185

27.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.02

$10.99 MX$203

-28.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 €15.09

$16.33 MX$302

3.92%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$2.93 MX$54.2

-22.53%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$1.51 MX$27.99

15.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$1.94 MX$35.88

-4.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.28

$2.13 MX$39.43

20.66%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$2.40 MX$44.26

-22.50%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$3.17 MX$58.5

-36.28%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.39 MX$25.73

3.60%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$1.13 MX$20.97

-27.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.56 €5.83

$4.30 MX$79.5

52.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.62 €5.00

$11.13 MX$206

-49.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.14

$1.87 MX$34.64

-31.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$2.58 MX$47.63

-19.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

$0.62 MX$11.54

279.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

$21.79 MX$403

102.75%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.55

$4.78 MX$88.4

-16.53%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$3.08 MX$56.9

-64.61%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.64 €14.81

$4.26 MX$78.8

290.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.55 MX$28.63

47.10%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$21.5K MX$396.7K

56.86%

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

$39.3K €35.0K

$24.0K MX$443.2K

63.82%

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

$167 €149

$85.7 MX$1,583

95.48%

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

$18.80 €16.72

$25.48 MX$471

-26.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.09 €29.43

$31.81 MX$588

4.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €40.93

$36.74 MX$679

25.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

$14.96 MX$276

28.28%

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 €8.75

$8.74 MX$161

12.59%

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

$677 €602

$335 MX$6,187

102.25%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.1K

$6,188 MX$114.3K

173.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €90.1

$54.6 MX$1,008

85.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 €40.70

$34.55 MX$638

32.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100.0 €88.9

$102 MX$1,893

-2.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €109

$95.0 MX$1,755

29.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 €1,436

$1,311 MX$24.2K

23.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,065

$687 MX$12.7K

74.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,862 €2,545

$2,068 MX$38.2K

38.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,990 €1,770

$1,105 MX$20.4K

80.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

$5,117 MX$94.6K

48.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

$2,541 MX$47.0K

69.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,588 €1,412

$910 MX$16.8K

74.54%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

11.7

-67.09%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Last update for Puerto Vallarta: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9%

Puerto Vallarta

$687 42.9% 42.6% $511

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$269 12.1%

Puerto Vallarta

$316 19.7% 17.2% $46

Eating Out

Lisbon

$242 10.9%

Puerto Vallarta

$229 14.3% 5.3% $13

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$219 9.9%

Puerto Vallarta

$143 8.9% 34.8% $76

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Puerto Vallarta

$129 8.1% 22.5% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$66 3%

Puerto Vallarta

$54 3.4% 17.5% $11

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

Puerto Vallarta

$44 2.8% 29.4% $19

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,614 in Lisbon and $1,311 in Puerto Vallarta. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 75% 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 $58.0 in Puerto Vallarta. Groceries flip the comparison at $269 vs $316, with Lisbon cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇲🇽 Puerto Vallarta

🕒 Local time

00:34 12:34 AM

17:34 5:34 PM

7 h behind Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

224,166

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

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Between locations

Lisbon Puerto Vallarta 9,090 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

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 Puerto Vallarta: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Puerto Vallarta differ by about 39% in total monthly costs ($2,223 vs $1,602 including rent). Puerto Vallarta is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 75% 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 $1,311 in Puerto Vallarta. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $677 in Lisbon versus $335 in Puerto Vallarta. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 17% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,602 in Puerto Vallarta versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Puerto Vallarta but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Puerto Vallarta 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 Vallarta 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 Vallarta gentler on the wallet – expenses run 39% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.