Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Sandakan, Sabah

For one person, living is cheaper in Sandakan, Sabah: $968 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $14,900 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
45

Cost of Living Index in Sandakan, Sabah
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Sandakan, Sabah Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Sandakan, Sabah

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$968

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Sandakan, Sabah

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $968 in Sandakan, Sabah.

Lisbon $2,210
Sandakan, Sabah $968

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $1,470 in Sandakan, Sabah.

Lisbon $3,275
Sandakan, Sabah $1,470

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $1,971 in Sandakan, Sabah.

Lisbon $4,341
Sandakan, Sabah $1,971

Living in Lisbon is roughly 128% more expensive than in Sandakan, Sabah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Sandakan, Sabah is 29% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.96

$3.65 MYR 14.91

356.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$19.26 MYR 78.7

220.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$4.56 MYR 18.63

149.12%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$3.07 MYR 12.56

-3.26%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$0.73 MYR 2.98

213.70%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.43 MYR 1.75

304.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

$4.24 MYR 17.35

-19.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$3.93 MYR 16.06

-15.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.99 MYR 8.13

-41.71%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$1.18 MYR 4.81

61.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$1.49 MYR 6.10

1.34%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$2.24 MYR 9.16

79.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

$11.79 MYR 48.20

9.75%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.99

$4.00 MYR 16.36

94.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.96

$9.55 MYR 39.02

85.97%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$2.84 MYR 11.59

-19.01%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$1.63 MYR 6.65

6.13%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$2.53 MYR 10.34

-26.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$1.56 MYR 6.39

66.03%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$1.39 MYR 5.68

30.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$1.38 MYR 5.65

42.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.27 MYR 5.17

15.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.48 MYR 1.94

50.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.92

$4.04 MYR 16.52

62.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$21.89 MYR 89.5

-74.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$3.12 MYR 12.77

-56.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$4.29 MYR 17.51

-50.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

$0.79 MYR 3.22

194.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

$10.67 MYR 43.60

318.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$1.32 MYR 5.41

191.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$0.63 MYR 2.58

69.84%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$8.09 MYR 33.08

103.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$0.82 MYR 3.33

168.29%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$46.8K MYR 191.1K

-26.87%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$39.7K MYR 162.1K

-2.39%

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

$161 €145

$48.86 MYR 200

229.96%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$10.09 MYR 41.24

82.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$28.65 MYR 117

14.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.03

$36.98 MYR 151

20.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

$7.38 MYR 30.16

158.81%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$5.08 MYR 20.77

88.98%

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

$668 €600

$242 MYR 990

175.71%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$7,062 MYR 28.9K

149.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.7

$63.1 MYR 258

61.60%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.95

$30.35 MYR 124

46.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$91.5 MYR 374

7.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$77.2 MYR 316

60.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

$379 MYR 1,549

324.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

$326 MYR 1,331

265.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,527

$631 MYR 2,577

346.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,809

$589 MYR 2,406

241.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,043

$2,010 MYR 8,215

289.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,111

$1,149 MYR 4,696

298.20%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

$1,210 MYR 4,946

30.14%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

4.06

-5.17%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Sandakan, Sabah: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Sandakan, Sabah

$326 33.6% 72.6% $864

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Sandakan, Sabah

$258 26.7% 5.2% $14

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Sandakan, Sabah

$113 11.7% 53.2% $129

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Sandakan, Sabah

$88 9.1% 58.7% $125

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Sandakan, Sabah

$118 12.2% 28.9% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Sandakan, Sabah

$47 4.9% 26% $17

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Sandakan, Sabah

$18 1.9% 71% $45

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $379 in Sandakan, Sabah. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 30% 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: $62 in Lisbon vs $19 in Sandakan, Sabah for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $258 per month, with Sandakan, Sabah cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇲🇾 Sandakan, Sabah

🕒 Local time

13:04 1:04 PM

21:04 9:04 PM

8 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

439,050

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MYR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 4.09 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.55 MYR (1 MYR = 0.22 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Lisbon Sandakan, Sabah 12,670 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Sandakan, Sabah

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 Sandakan, Sabah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Sandakan, Sabah differ by about 128% in total monthly costs ($2,210 vs $968 including rent). Sandakan, Sabah is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 30% 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: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $379 in Sandakan, Sabah. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $242 in Sandakan, Sabah. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 5% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $968 in Sandakan, Sabah versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Sandakan, Sabah but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Sandakan, Sabah 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 Sandakan, Sabah 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 Sandakan, Sabah gentler on the wallet – expenses run 56% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.