Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Santa Isabel

For one person, living is cheaper in Santa Isabel: $1,298 a month against $2,206 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $10,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Lisbon outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

106

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Santa Isabel
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Santa Isabel Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,206

/mo nomad

Santa Isabel

🇵🇷 Puerto Rico

$1,298

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Santa Isabel

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,206 in Lisbon versus $1,298 in Santa Isabel.

Lisbon $2,206
Santa Isabel $1,298

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,276 in Lisbon versus $2,045 in Santa Isabel.

Lisbon $3,276
Santa Isabel $2,045

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,346 in Lisbon versus $2,791 in Santa Isabel.

Lisbon $4,346
Santa Isabel $2,791

Living in Lisbon is roughly 70% more expensive than in Santa Isabel, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 63% above, Santa Isabel is 4% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.86 €15.00

$19.18 $19.18

-12.10%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.0 €54.3

$82.6 $82.6

-26.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.98 €9.77

$9.06 $9.06

21.19%

Cappuccino

$3.05 €2.71

$3.61 $3.61

-15.51%

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

$2.28 €2.03

$1.89 $1.89

20.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 €1.50

$1.51 $1.51

11.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.44 €3.06

$3.02 $3.02

13.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 €3.48

$5.07 $5.07

-22.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 €1.02

$1.31 $1.31

-12.21%

White Bread (500g)

$1.89 €1.68

$3.40 $3.40

-44.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 €1.34

$2.42 $2.42

-38.02%

Eggs

$4.12 €3.66

$6.21 $6.21

-33.66%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.01 €11.57

$12.41 $12.41

4.83%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.04 €7.16

$9.82 $9.82

-18.13%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.89 €15.92

$13.10 $13.10

36.56%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$5.01 $5.01

-54.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.74 €1.55

$2.54 $2.54

-31.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.82 €1.62

$4.94 $4.94

-63.16%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.69 €2.39

$4.67 $4.67

-42.40%

Potato (1kg)

$1.77 €1.57

$3.85 $3.85

-54.03%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 €1.72

$3.88 $3.88

-50.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.30

$3.37 $3.37

-56.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 €0.68

$1.65 $1.65

-53.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.66 €5.92

$12.04 $12.04

-44.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.64 €5.02

$15.50 $15.50

-63.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 €1.15

$3.14 $3.14

-58.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.90

$3.94 $3.94

-45.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.30 €2.05

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.02 €39.17

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.98 €3.54

$2.44 $2.44

63.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 €0.57

$0.66 $0.66

-3.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$18.93 €16.84

$39.69 $39.69

-52.31%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.09 $1.09

109.17%

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

$33.4K €29.7K

$35.1K $35.1K

-4.86%

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

$38.5K €34.3K

$27.9K $27.9K

37.89%

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

$158 €141

$318 $318

-50.20%

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

$17.54 €15.61

$68.5 $68.5

-74.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.18 €27.75

$71.1 $71.1

-56.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.64 €39.73

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.98 €16.89

Cinema Ticket

$9.58 €8.52

$10.62 $10.62

-9.79%

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

$674 €599

$826 $826

-18.46%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.7K €16.7K

$12.0K $12.0K

56.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €90.9

$56.7 $56.7

80.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.90 €40.85

$62.2 $62.2

-26.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 €91.0

$107 $107

-4.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 €109

$115 $115

5.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,641 €1,460

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,187 €1,057

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,825 €2,514

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,018 €1,796

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,836 €6,973

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,701 €4,183

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,687 €1,501

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.82

6.55

-41.68%

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

Last update for Lisbon: November 1, 2026

Last update for Santa Isabel: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Santa Isabel

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$275 12.5%

Santa Isabel

$398 30.6% 44.9% $123

Eating Out

Lisbon

$245 11.1%

Santa Isabel

$263 20.2% 7.2% $18

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$207 9.4%

Santa Isabel

$457 35.2% 121% $250

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.6%

Santa Isabel

$153 11.8% 8.4% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Santa Isabel

$21 * 1.6% 66.7% $43

Getting Around

Lisbon

$60 2.7%

Santa Isabel

$5.8 * 0.4% 90.5% $55

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $61 in Lisbon vs $83 in Santa Isabel for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $275 vs $398 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇵🇷 Santa Isabel

🕒 Local time

00:00 12:00 AM

20:00 8:00 PM

4 h behind Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

23,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 USD = 0.888 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lisbon Santa Isabel 5,950 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Santa Isabel

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 Santa Isabel: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,206 in Lisbon and $1,298 in Santa Isabel, so Santa Isabel is about 41% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,309 in Lisbon and $1,948 in Santa Isabel to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 31% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you’ll spend $2,206 per month in Lisbon versus $1,298 in Santa Isabel – Santa Isabel is about 41% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,298 in Santa Isabel versus $2,206 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Santa Isabel but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Santa Isabel 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 Santa Isabel are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.