Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Scarborough

For one person, living costs are similar in Lisbon and in Scarborough: $2,202 and $2,130 a month, rent and utilities included.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
103

Cost of Living Index in Scarborough
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Scarborough Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,202

/mo nomad

Scarborough

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,130

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Scarborough

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,202 in Lisbon versus $2,130 in Scarborough.

Lisbon $2,202
Scarborough $2,130

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,274 in Lisbon versus $3,096 in Scarborough.

Lisbon $3,274
Scarborough $3,096

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,346 in Lisbon versus $4,062 in Scarborough.

Lisbon $4,346
Scarborough $4,062

Living in Lisbon is roughly 3% more expensive than in Scarborough, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, Scarborough 57% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.04 €15.15

$15.36 £11.53

10.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.3 €55.4

$71.1 £53.4

-12.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.02 €9.80

$12.12 £9.09

-9.08%

Cappuccino

$3.12 €2.78

$3.51 £2.63

-11.11%

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

$2.27 €2.02

$2.05 £1.53

10.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.55

$1.02 £0.77

70.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.42 €3.04

$4.58 £3.44

-25.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.74 €3.33

$4.29 £3.22

-12.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 €1.04

$1.29 £0.97

-9.30%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.37 £1.03

35.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 €1.37

$1.08 £0.81

42.59%

Eggs

$4.06 €3.61

$3.60 £2.70

12.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.91 €11.49

$7.92 £5.94

63.01%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.03

$7.18 £5.39

10.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.64 €15.69

$13.94 £10.46

26.54%

Apples (1kg)

$2.26 €2.01

$3.13 £2.35

-27.80%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$1.99 £1.49

-12.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.89 €1.68

$2.65 £1.99

-28.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.56 €2.27

$2.09 £1.57

22.49%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$1.74 £1.30

6.32%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$1.62 £1.21

21.60%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.15 £0.87

26.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 €0.69

$1.91 £1.43

-59.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.71 €5.97

$22.58 £16.94

-70.28%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.67 €5.04

$9.59 £7.19

-40.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 €1.22

$3.65 £2.74

-62.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 €1.88

$3.60 £2.70

-41.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.32 €2.07

$3.30 £2.48

-29.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.43 €39.52

$86.0 £64.5

-48.35%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.95 €3.51

$5.73 £4.30

-31.06%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.05 €0.93

$4.97 £3.73

-78.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.15 €15.26

$33.58 £25.19

-48.93%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.19 €1.95

$1.98 £1.48

10.61%

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

$33.8K €30.0K

$36.0K £27.0K

-6.08%

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

$38.3K €34.0K

$39.9K £29.9K

-4.13%

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

$164 €146

$356 £267

-53.99%

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

$18.48 €16.43

$25.99 £19.50

-28.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.96 €29.32

$32.74 £24.56

0.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.87 €40.80

$66.1 £49.59

-30.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.68 €16.61

$12.67 £9.50

47.43%

Cinema Ticket

$9.75 €8.67

$10.66 £7.99

-8.54%

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

$684 €608

$1,804 £1,353

-62.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.7K

$14.7K £11.1K

19.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 €92.3

$66.3 £49.73

56.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.20 €41.09

$35.54 £26.66

29.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.7 €88.7

$108 £81.3

-7.94%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$125 €111

$114 £85.2

9.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,589 €1,414

$867 £651

83.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,169 €1,040

$831 £624

40.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,851 €2,536

$1,524 £1,143

87.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,993 €1,773

$1,365 £1,024

45.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,793 €6,932

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,418 €3,930

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,600 €1,423

$910 £683

75.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

5.53

-30.38%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 19, 2026

Last update for Scarborough: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.1%

Scarborough

$831 39% 28.9% $338

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$273 12.4%

Scarborough

$276 13% 1.1% $3

Eating Out

Lisbon

$247 11.2%

Scarborough

$245 11.5% 0.9% $2.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$215 9.8%

Scarborough

$415 19.5% 92.7% $200

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.7%

Scarborough

$146 6.8% 13.5% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$65 3%

Scarborough

$87 4.1% 33.7% $22

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Scarborough

$130 6.1% 106% $67

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,589 in Lisbon and $867 in Scarborough. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 76% 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: $62.0 in Lisbon vs $71.0 in Scarborough for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $273 vs $276 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇬🇧 Scarborough

🕒 Local time

06:42 6:42 AM

Same time as Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

61,749

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Scarborough 1,850 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

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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 Scarborough: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Scarborough differ by about 3% in total monthly costs ($2,202 vs $2,130 including rent). Scarborough is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 76% 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: $1,589 in Lisbon versus $867 in Scarborough. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $684 in Lisbon versus $1,804 in Scarborough. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 1% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $2,130 in Scarborough versus $2,202 in Lisbon, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Scarborough but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Scarborough 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 Scarborough 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 Scarborough gentler on the wallet – expenses run 3% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.