Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Schwerin

For one person, living is cheaper in Schwerin: $1,525 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $8,200 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Lisbon outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Schwerin
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Schwerin Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Schwerin

🇩🇪 Germany

$1,525

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Schwerin

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $1,525 in Schwerin.

Lisbon $2,210
Schwerin $1,525

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $2,461 in Schwerin.

Lisbon $3,275
Schwerin $2,461

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $3,397 in Schwerin.

Lisbon $4,341
Schwerin $3,397

Living in Lisbon is roughly 45% more expensive than in Schwerin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, Schwerin 12% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.85

$13.28 €11.85

25.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.1

$111 €99.2

-44.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.13

$14.99 €13.37

-24.22%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.65

$3.80 €3.39

-21.84%

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

$2.29 €2.04

$2.89 €2.58

-20.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.55

$2.26 €2.01

-23.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.04

$4.48 €4.00

-24.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.95

$4.01 €3.58

-17.46%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.03

$1.25 €1.11

-7.20%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.71

$2.42 €2.16

-21.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.35

$3.65 €3.25

-58.63%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.59

$3.33 €2.97

20.72%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.54

$14.47 €12.91

-10.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.94

$10.94 €9.76

-28.98%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.85

$18.87 €16.84

-5.88%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.06

$3.32 €2.96

-30.72%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$1.85 €1.65

-6.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$2.07 €1.85

-10.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.31

$4.29 €3.83

-39.63%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.37 €1.22

32.85%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.19 €1.06

65.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$1.68 €1.50

-12.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.65 €0.58

10.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.87

$9.69 €8.65

-32.09%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.00

$6.78 €6.05

-17.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.02 €0.91

33.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$1.20 €1.07

78.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.08

$2.71 €2.42

-14.02%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €39.86

$64.9 €57.9

-31.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.43

$8.92 €7.96

-56.84%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.95

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.69

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.96

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

$34.2K €30.5K

$30.3K €27.1K

12.74%

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

$38.7K €34.5K

$38.2K €34.1K

1.37%

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

$161 €144

$212 €189

-23.97%

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

$18.41 €16.43

$33.25 €29.67

-44.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.21

$40.28 €35.94

-18.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €39.74

$29.12 €25.98

52.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.04

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.56

$13.50 €12.04

-28.89%

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

$668 €596

$769 €686

-13.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.7K

$3,689 €3,291

377.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.0

$103 €91.5

-0.51%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.67

$44.26 €39.49

0.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €87.9

$76.9 €68.6

28.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €110

$100 €89.4

23.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,435

$442 €394

264.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,062

$386 €344

208.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,509

$877 €782

220.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,796

$669 €597

200.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €6,994

$4,153 €3,705

88.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,082

$3,121 €2,785

46.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,405

$2,721 €2,427

-42.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

3.96

-2.78%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Schwerin: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Schwerin

$386 25.3% 67.6% $804

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Schwerin

$319 20.9% 17.1% $46

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Schwerin

$248 16.3% 2.2% $5.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Schwerin

$286 18.7% 34.5% $73

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Schwerin

$146 9.6% 12.2% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Schwerin

$56 3.7% 12% $7.6

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Schwerin

$85 * 5.6% 33.9% $21

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $442 in Schwerin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Schwerin pays 73% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $111 in Schwerin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $319 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇩🇪 Schwerin

🕒 Local time

03:08 3:08 AM

04:08 4:08 AM

1 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

98,596

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Schwerin 2,280 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

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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 Schwerin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $1,525 in Schwerin, so Schwerin is about 31% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 42% lower in Lisbon. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $442 in Schwerin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $769 in Schwerin. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 15% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,525 in Schwerin versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Schwerin but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Schwerin 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 Schwerin are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.