Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Reykjavik

For one person, living is cheaper in Lisbon: $2,223 a month against $4,002 in Reykjavik, rent and utilities included – about $21,300 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
193

Cost of Living Index in Reykjavik
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Reykjavik Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Reykjavik

🇮🇸 Iceland

$4,002

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Reykjavik

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,223 in Lisbon versus $4,002 in Reykjavik.

Lisbon $2,223
Reykjavik $4,002

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,271 in Lisbon versus $5,705 in Reykjavik.

Lisbon $3,271
Reykjavik $5,705

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,319 in Lisbon versus $7,407 in Reykjavik.

Lisbon $4,319
Reykjavik $7,407

Living in Lisbon costs roughly 44% less than in Reykjavik, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 65% above, Reykjavik 196% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.50 €14.67

$31.56 ISK 3,828

-47.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 €54.5

$122 ISK 14.8K

-49.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.27 €10.03

$26.86 ISK 3,258

-58.04%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$6.81 ISK 827

-55.07%

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

$2.26 €2.01

$3.39 ISK 411

-33.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.54

$3.20 ISK 388

-45.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 €3.02

$14.14 ISK 1,715

-76.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 €3.02

$12.31 ISK 1,493

-72.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 €1.00

$2.10 ISK 255

-46.67%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.65

$4.19 ISK 508

-55.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$3.72 ISK 451

-58.87%

Eggs

$3.96 €3.53

$7.05 ISK 856

-43.83%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.76 €11.35

$21.56 ISK 2,615

-40.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.02

$24.68 ISK 2,993

-67.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 €15.09

$42.19 ISK 5,117

-59.78%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$3.23 ISK 392

-29.72%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$2.73 ISK 331

-35.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$3.17 ISK 384

-41.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.28

$6.61 ISK 802

-61.12%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$3.85 ISK 467

-51.69%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.66 ISK 201

21.69%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

$3.80 ISK 461

-62.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$1.75 ISK 212

-53.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.56 €5.83

$13.71 ISK 1,662

-52.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.62 €5.00

$24.21 ISK 2,937

-76.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.14

$3.53 ISK 428

-63.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$3.32 ISK 402

-37.65%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

$5.75 ISK 697

-59.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

$93.8 ISK 11.4K

-52.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.55

$6.61 ISK 802

-39.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$2.90 ISK 352

-62.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.64 €14.81

$79.2 ISK 9,602

-78.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$2.09 ISK 253

9.09%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$51.0K ISK 6.2M

-33.99%

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

$39.3K €35.0K

$53.3K ISK 6.5M

-26.24%

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

$167 €149

$95.3 ISK 11.6K

75.82%

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

$18.80 €16.72

$32.35 ISK 3,923

-41.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.09 €29.43

$87.5 ISK 10.6K

-62.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €40.93

$102 ISK 12.4K

-54.83%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

$50.1 ISK 6,074

-61.68%

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 €8.75

$19.88 ISK 2,412

-50.50%

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

$677 €602

$1,194 ISK 144.8K

-43.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.1K

$25.4K ISK 3.1M

-33.41%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €90.1

$149 ISK 18.1K

-32.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 €40.70

$66.6 ISK 8,080

-31.31%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100.0 €88.9

$180 ISK 21.8K

-44.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €109

$253 ISK 30.7K

-51.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 €1,436

$2,549 ISK 309.2K

-36.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,065

$2,056 ISK 249.4K

-41.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,862 €2,545

$3,498 ISK 424.2K

-18.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,990 €1,770

$2,764 ISK 335.2K

-27.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

$8,120 ISK 984.9K

-6.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

$6,254 ISK 758.5K

-31.13%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,588 €1,412

$4,573 ISK 554.6K

-65.28%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

8.81

-56.30%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Last update for Reykjavik: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9%

Reykjavik

$2.1K 51.4% 71.8% $859

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$269 12.1%

Reykjavik

$623 15.6% 131% $353

Eating Out

Lisbon

$242 10.9%

Reykjavik

$536 13.4% 122% $294

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$219 9.9%

Reykjavik

$215 5.4% 1.9% $4.2

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Reykjavik

$292 7.3% 75.5% $126

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$66 3%

Reykjavik

$142 3.5% 116% $76

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

Reykjavik

$138 3.5% 119% $75

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,614 in Lisbon and $2,549 in Reykjavik. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Reykjavik pays 188% 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 $122 in Reykjavik for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $269 vs $623 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇮🇸 Reykjavik

🕒 Local time

09:49 9:49 AM

08:49 8:49 AM

1 h behind Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

136,894 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Icelandic Króna ISK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 ISK = 8.24 USD

1,000 ISK = 7.33 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ISK, 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).

Icelandic Króna exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 121 ISK (1,000 ISK = 8.24 USD). 1 EUR = 136 ISK (1,000 ISK = 7.33 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Reykjavik 2,950 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Reykjavik

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 Reykjavik: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Reykjavik differ by about 80% in total monthly costs ($2,223 vs $4,002 including rent). Lisbon is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 188% lower in Reykjavik. 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 $2,549 in Reykjavik. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $677 in Lisbon versus $1,194 in Reykjavik. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 131% higher in Reykjavik. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,223 in Lisbon versus $4,002 in Reykjavik, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Lisbon but tight or insufficient in Reykjavik. The gap between the two cities makes Lisbon 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 Reykjavik 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 Lisbon gentler on the wallet – expenses run 80% less than in Reykjavik. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.