Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Rolleston

For one person, living is cheaper in Rolleston: $1,142 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $13,000 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
56

Cost of Living Index in Rolleston
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Rolleston Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Rolleston

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,142

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Rolleston

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,223 in Lisbon versus $1,142 in Rolleston.

Lisbon $2,223
Rolleston $1,142

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,271 in Lisbon versus $2,160 in Rolleston.

Lisbon $3,271
Rolleston $2,160

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,319 in Lisbon versus $3,178 in Rolleston.

Lisbon $4,319
Rolleston $3,178

Living in Lisbon is roughly 95% more expensive than in Rolleston, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 65% above, Rolleston is 15% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.50 €14.67

$14.22 NZ$25.14

16.03%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 €54.5

$68.1 NZ$120

-10.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.27 €10.03

$8.79 NZ$15.54

28.21%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$3.28 NZ$5.81

-6.71%

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

$2.26 €2.01

$2.13 NZ$3.77

6.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.54

$1.76 NZ$3.12

-1.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 €3.02

$6.62 NZ$11.70

-48.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 €3.02

$6.18 NZ$10.93

-44.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.65 NZ$2.92

-32.12%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.81 NZ$3.19

2.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$1.50 NZ$2.66

2.00%

Eggs

$3.96 €3.53

$5.66 NZ$10.02

-30.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.76 €11.35

$7.09 NZ$12.53

79.97%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.02

$9.38 NZ$16.58

-15.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 €15.09

$13.71 NZ$24.25

23.78%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$2.57 NZ$4.55

-11.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$2.32 NZ$4.11

-24.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$2.73 NZ$4.82

-32.23%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.28

$5.10 NZ$9.01

-49.61%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.79 NZ$3.16

3.91%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.45 NZ$2.57

39.31%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

$2.29 NZ$4.05

-37.12%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$0.59 NZ$1.05

38.98%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.56 €5.83

$23.39 NZ$41.36

-71.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.62 €5.00

$8.16 NZ$14.43

-31.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.14

$3.33 NZ$5.89

-61.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$3.30 NZ$5.83

-37.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

$1.14 NZ$2.02

106.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.55

$2.44 NZ$4.32

63.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$1.71 NZ$3.02

-36.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.64 €14.81

$27.51 NZ$48.65

-39.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.74 NZ$3.07

31.03%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$24.8K NZ$43.8K

35.85%

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

$39.3K €35.0K

$24.0K NZ$42.5K

63.68%

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

$167 €149

$108 NZ$191

54.97%

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

$18.80 €16.72

$22.38 NZ$39.58

-16.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.09 €29.43

$45.15 NZ$79.9

-26.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €40.93

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 €8.75

$10.08 NZ$17.82

-2.38%

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

$677 €602

$341 NZ$602

98.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.1K

$6,755 NZ$11.9K

150.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €90.1

$57.5 NZ$102

75.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 €40.70

$35.21 NZ$62.3

29.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100.0 €88.9

$89.5 NZ$158

11.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €109

$122 NZ$215

1.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 €1,436

$278 NZ$491

481.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,065

$254 NZ$449

371.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,862 €2,545

$1,025 NZ$1,813

179.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,990 €1,770

$1,082 NZ$1,914

83.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

$2,022 NZ$3,576

274.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

$1,805 NZ$3,192

138.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,588 €1,412

$4,358 NZ$7,707

-63.56%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

5.91

-34.86%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Last update for Rolleston: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9%

Rolleston

$254 22.2% 78.8% $943

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$269 12.1%

Rolleston

$300 26.3% 11.3% $30

Eating Out

Lisbon

$242 10.9%

Rolleston

$241 21.1% 0.7% $1.7

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$219 9.9%

Rolleston

$176 15.4% 19.9% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Rolleston

$137 12% 17.8% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$66 3%

Rolleston

$20 * 1.8% 69.3% $46

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

Rolleston

$16 * 1.4% 75.3% $47

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 $278 in Rolleston. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Rolleston pays 174% 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 $68.0 in Rolleston for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $269 vs $300 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇳🇿 Rolleston

🕒 Local time

06:50 6:50 AM

18:50 6:50 PM

12 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

28,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NZD, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.77 NZD (1 NZD = 0.565 USD). 1 EUR = 1.99 NZD (1 NZD = 0.503 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Rolleston 19,460 km ≈ 25 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Rolleston

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 Rolleston: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Rolleston differ by about 95% in total monthly costs ($2,223 vs $1,142 including rent). Rolleston is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 174% lower in Rolleston. 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 $278 in Rolleston. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 11% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $2,223 per month in Lisbon versus $1,142 in Rolleston – a 95% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,142 in Rolleston versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Rolleston but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Rolleston 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 Rolleston 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 Rolleston gentler on the wallet – expenses run 95% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.