Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Riyadh

For one person, living is cheaper in Riyadh: $1,738 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $5,700 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
83

Cost of Living Index in Riyadh
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Riyadh Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Riyadh

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,738

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Riyadh

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $1,738 in Riyadh.

Lisbon $2,210
Riyadh $1,738

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $2,587 in Riyadh.

Lisbon $3,275
Riyadh $2,587

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $3,437 in Riyadh.

Lisbon $4,341
Riyadh $3,437

Living in Lisbon is roughly 27% more expensive than in Riyadh, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, Riyadh 28% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.92

$8.09 SAR 30.37

105.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.3

$65.3 SAR 245

-5.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.18

$8.18 SAR 30.68

38.88%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.16 SAR 8.12

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.97 SAR 11.16

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.66

$4.30 SAR 16.13

-30.93%

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

$2.29 €2.05

$0.85 SAR 3.18

169.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.30 SAR 1.12

480.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.05

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.83 SAR 6.85

-36.61%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.71

$1.31 SAR 4.93

45.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$2.37 SAR 8.88

-36.29%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.60

$3.04 SAR 11.41

32.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.59

$10.77 SAR 40.40

20.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.97

$9.38 SAR 35.17

-17.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.92

$14.98 SAR 56.2

18.56%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.06

$2.85 SAR 10.70

-19.30%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$1.90 SAR 7.13

-8.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$2.47 SAR 9.25

-24.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.32

$1.71 SAR 6.43

51.46%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$1.18 SAR 4.43

54.24%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.28 SAR 4.82

53.91%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.78 SAR 6.69

-17.42%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.58 SAR 2.16

24.14%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$8.15 SAR 30.58

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 SAR 6.83

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.47 SAR 9.28

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.90

$7.85 SAR 29.45

-16.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.02

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.09

$1.04 SAR 3.91

124.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.04

$38.07 SAR 143

17.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.45

$3.13 SAR 11.74

23.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$1.91 SAR 7.16

-43.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.75

$13.31 SAR 49.91

23.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.97

$0.60 SAR 2.26

266.67%

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

$34.2K €30.6K

$26.2K SAR 98.2K

30.55%

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

$38.7K €34.7K

$22.2K SAR 83.4K

74.20%

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

$161 €144

$108 SAR 403

49.90%

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

$18.41 €16.50

$29.62 SAR 111

-37.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.34

$71.0 SAR 266

-53.85%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €39.92

$83.0 SAR 311

-46.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.11

$57.3 SAR 215

-66.65%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.60

$13.31 SAR 49.94

-27.87%

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

$668 €598

$554 SAR 2,077

20.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$10.1K SAR 37.8K

74.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.4

$57.7 SAR 216

76.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.85

$54.4 SAR 204

-18.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.3

$104 SAR 391

-5.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$105 SAR 393

18.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,441

$1,149 SAR 4,310

39.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,066

$833 SAR 3,127

42.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,520

$2,166 SAR 8,125

29.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,804

$1,276 SAR 4,786

57.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,025

$2,779 SAR 10.4K

182.12%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,100

$1,718 SAR 6,443

166.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,411

$2,052 SAR 7,699

-23.26%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

5.54

-30.51%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Riyadh: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Riyadh

$833 48% 30% $357

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Riyadh

$241 13.9% 11.4% $31

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Riyadh

$145 8.4% 40% $97

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Riyadh

$208 12% 2% $4.2

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Riyadh

$144 8.3% 12.9% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Riyadh

$110 6.3% 72% $46

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Riyadh

$55 3.2% 13.1% $8.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $1,149 in Riyadh. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Riyadh pays 30% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $65 in Riyadh. Groceries flip the comparison at $272 vs $241, with Riyadh cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇸🇦 Riyadh

🕒 Local time

06:27 6:27 AM

09:27 9:27 AM

3 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

5,188,286 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 SAR = 0.267 USD

1 SAR = 0.239 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Riyadh 5,420 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

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Lisbon
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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 Riyadh: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $1,738 in Riyadh, so Riyadh is about 21% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 23% lower in Lisbon. 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: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $1,149 in Riyadh. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $554 in Riyadh. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 13% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Riyadh gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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 Riyadh are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.