Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and San Salvador

For one person, living is cheaper in San Salvador: $1,629 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $7,000 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
78

Cost of Living Index in San Salvador
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San Salvador Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

San Salvador

🇸🇻 El Salvador

$1,629

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in San Salvador

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $1,629 in San Salvador.

Lisbon $2,210
San Salvador $1,629

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $2,449 in San Salvador.

Lisbon $3,275
San Salvador $2,449

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $3,269 in San Salvador.

Lisbon $4,341
San Salvador $3,269

Living in Lisbon is roughly 36% more expensive than in San Salvador, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, San Salvador 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.95

$6.58 $6.58

153.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$44.57 $44.57

38.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$7.06 $7.06

60.91%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$3.62 $3.62

-17.96%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$1.13 $1.13

102.65%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.79 $0.79

120.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

$1.97 $1.97

72.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$3.50 $3.50

-5.43%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.79 $1.79

-35.20%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$2.91 $2.91

-34.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$1.37 $1.37

10.22%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$2.99 $2.99

34.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

$7.81 $7.81

65.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.98

$6.92 $6.92

12.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.95

$10.07 $10.07

76.37%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$4.93 $4.93

-53.35%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$1.42 $1.42

21.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$2.54 $2.54

-26.77%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$3.54 $3.54

-26.84%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$2.98 $2.98

-38.93%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$3.26 $3.26

-39.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$0.95 $0.95

54.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.93 $0.93

-22.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.91

$4.05 $4.05

62.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$11.77 $11.77

-52.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$2.28 $2.28

-40.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$2.92 $2.92

-26.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

$0.31 $0.31

651.61%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

$14.77 $14.77

202.51%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$5.97 $5.97

-35.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$3.04 $3.04

-64.80%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$19.88 $19.88

-17.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$1.25 $1.25

76.00%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$25.5K $25.5K

34.26%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$26.7K $26.7K

44.93%

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

$161 €145

$129 $129

25.13%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$20.87 $20.87

-11.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$42.10 $42.10

-22.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.02

$29.34 $29.34

51.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

$21.36 $21.36

-10.58%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$5.13 $5.13

87.13%

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

$668 €600

$161 $161

315.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$4,729 $4,729

272.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.6

$66.4 $66.4

53.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.94

$47.50 $47.50

-6.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$120 $120

-17.87%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$117 $117

5.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

$893 $893

80.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

$776 $776

53.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,526

$1,792 $1,792

56.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,808

$1,366 $1,366

47.37%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,042

$2,817 $2,817

178.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,110

$1,839 $1,839

148.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

$376 $376

319.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

8.5

-54.71%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for San Salvador: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

San Salvador

$776 47.7% 34.8% $414

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

San Salvador

$285 17.5% 4.6% $13

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

San Salvador

$142 8.7% 41.6% $101

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

San Salvador

$192 11.8% 9.7% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

San Salvador

$158 9.7% 4.8% $8

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

San Salvador

$40 2.4% 37.9% $24

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

San Salvador

$37 2.3% 41.2% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $893 in San Salvador. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays about 4.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $45 in San Salvador. Groceries flip the comparison at $272 vs $285, with Lisbon cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇸🇻 San Salvador

🕒 Local time

13:05 1:05 PM

07:05 7:05 AM

6 h behind Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

316,090 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1 USD = 0.899 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon San Salvador 8,210 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

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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 San Salvador: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and San Salvador differ by about 36% in total monthly costs ($2,210 vs $1,629 including rent). San Salvador is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Lisbon is about 4.2 times higher, 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: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $893 in San Salvador. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $161 in San Salvador. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 4% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,629 in San Salvador versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in San Salvador but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes San Salvador 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.

It comes down to priorities – San Salvador wins on affordability, Lisbon on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.