Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Santa Pola

For one person, living is cheaper in Santa Pola: $1,675 a month against $2,206 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $6,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

106

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Santa Pola
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Santa Pola Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,206

/mo nomad

Santa Pola

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,675

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,206 in Lisbon versus $1,675 in Santa Pola.

Lisbon $2,206
Santa Pola $1,675

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,276 in Lisbon versus $2,402 in Santa Pola.

Lisbon $3,276
Santa Pola $2,402

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,346 in Lisbon versus $3,129 in Santa Pola.

Lisbon $4,346
Santa Pola $3,129

Living in Lisbon is roughly 32% more expensive than in Santa Pola, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 63% above, Santa Pola 24% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.86 €15.01

$17.67 €15.74

-4.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.0 €54.4

$62.7 €55.8

-2.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.98 €9.78

$11.26 €10.03

-2.49%

Cappuccino

$3.05 €2.72

$2.52 €2.24

21.03%

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

$2.28 €2.03

$2.23 €1.99

2.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 €1.50

$1.83 €1.63

-8.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.44 €3.06

$3.17 €2.82

8.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 €3.48

$4.07 €3.62

-3.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 €1.02

$1.17 €1.04

-1.71%

White Bread (500g)

$1.89 €1.68

$1.46 €1.30

29.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 €1.34

$1.35 €1.20

11.11%

Eggs

$4.12 €3.66

$3.13 €2.79

31.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.01 €11.58

$13.88 €12.36

-6.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.04 €7.16

$8.19 €7.29

-1.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.89 €15.93

$15.13 €13.48

18.24%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$2.59 €2.30

-12.36%

Banana (1kg)

$1.74 €1.55

$1.63 €1.45

6.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.82 €1.62

$2.15 €1.92

-15.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.69 €2.39

$2.57 €2.28

4.67%

Potato (1kg)

$1.77 €1.57

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 €1.72

$1.90 €1.69

2.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.30

$1.20 €1.07

21.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 €0.68

$0.79 €0.70

-3.80%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.66 €5.93

$6.78 €6.04

-1.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.64 €5.02

$4.81 €4.29

17.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 €1.15

$1.35 €1.20

-4.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.90

$2.24 €2.00

-4.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.30 €2.05

$1.68 €1.50

36.90%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.02 €39.19

$28.54 €25.41

54.24%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.98 €3.55

$3.86 €3.44

3.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 €0.57

$1.15 €1.03

-44.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$18.93 €16.85

$23.43 €20.86

-19.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.80 €1.61

26.67%

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

$33.4K €29.7K

$36.2K €32.2K

-7.72%

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

$38.5K €34.3K

$34.4K €30.7K

11.82%

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

$158 €141

$137 €122

15.59%

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

$17.54 €15.62

$17.68 €15.75

-0.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.18 €27.77

$29.47 €26.24

5.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.64 €39.75

$44.47 €39.59

0.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.98 €16.90

$13.40 €11.93

41.64%

Cinema Ticket

$9.58 €8.53

$8.89 €7.92

7.76%

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

$674 €600

$419 €373

60.84%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.7K €16.7K

$8,498 €7,567

120.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.0

$96.8 €86.2

5.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.90 €40.87

$38.79 €34.54

18.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 €91.0

$80.5 €71.7

26.97%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 €109

$106 €94.5

14.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,641 €1,461

$886 €789

85.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,187 €1,057

$733 €653

61.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,825 €2,515

$1,338 €1,191

111.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,018 €1,797

$940 €837

114.78%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,836 €6,977

$3,295 €2,934

137.79%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,701 €4,186

$2,285 €2,034

105.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,687 €1,502

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.82

3.3

15.76%

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

Last update for Lisbon: November 1, 2026

Last update for Santa Pola: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Santa Pola

$733 43.8% 38.3% $454

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$275 12.5%

Santa Pola

$261 15.6% 5% $14

Eating Out

Lisbon

$245 11.1%

Santa Pola

$246 14.7% 0.1% $0.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$207 9.4%

Santa Pola

$184 11% 11.1% $23

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.6%

Santa Pola

$145 8.7% 13.4% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Santa Pola

$62 3.7% 2.4% $1.5

Getting Around

Lisbon

$60 2.7%

Santa Pola

$45 2.7% 25.7% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,641 in Lisbon and $886 in Santa Pola. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $61 in Lisbon vs $63 in Santa Pola. Groceries flip the comparison at $275 vs $261, with Santa Pola cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇪🇸 Santa Pola

🕒 Local time

16:03 4:03 PM

17:03 5:03 PM

1 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

37,816

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Santa Pola 750 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

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 Santa Pola: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,206 in Lisbon and $1,675 in Santa Pola, so Santa Pola is about 24% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,309 in Lisbon and $2,513 in Santa Pola 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,641 in Lisbon versus $886 in Santa Pola. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $674 in Lisbon versus $419 in Santa Pola. 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 $1,675 in Santa Pola versus $2,206 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Santa Pola but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Santa Pola 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 Pola are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.