Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Scottburgh

For one person, living is cheaper in Scottburgh: $1,105 a month against $2,206 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $13,200 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
52

Cost of Living Index in Scottburgh
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Scottburgh Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,206

/mo nomad

Scottburgh

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,105

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Scottburgh

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,206 in Lisbon versus $1,105 in Scottburgh.

Lisbon $2,206
Scottburgh $1,105

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,276 in Lisbon versus $1,736 in Scottburgh.

Lisbon $3,276
Scottburgh $1,736

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,346 in Lisbon versus $2,368 in Scottburgh.

Lisbon $4,346
Scottburgh $2,368

Living in Lisbon is roughly 100% more expensive than in Scottburgh, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 63% above, Scottburgh is 18% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.86 €15.04

$8.66 R 144

94.69%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.0 €54.5

$36.96 R 613

65.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.98 €9.80

$6.09 R 101

80.30%

Cappuccino

$3.05 €2.72

$2.59 R 43.05

17.76%

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

$2.28 €2.04

$1.10 R 18.28

107.27%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 €1.50

$0.82 R 13.53

104.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.44 €3.07

$2.35 R 38.98

46.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 €3.48

$2.34 R 38.83

67.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 €1.02

$1.24 R 20.50

-7.26%

White Bread (500g)

$1.89 €1.68

$0.96 R 15.91

96.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 €1.34

$1.49 R 24.70

0.67%

Eggs

$4.12 €3.67

$2.29 R 37.98

79.91%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.01 €11.60

$8.04 R 133

61.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.04 €7.18

$5.21 R 86.5

54.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.89 €15.96

$7.26 R 120

146.42%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.03

$1.97 R 32.71

15.23%

Banana (1kg)

$1.74 €1.56

$1.86 R 30.92

-6.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.94 R 32.24

-6.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.69 €2.40

$1.60 R 26.61

68.12%

Potato (1kg)

$1.77 €1.58

$1.51 R 25.03

17.22%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 €1.73

$1.37 R 22.69

41.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$1.16 R 19.20

25.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 €0.68

$1.18 R 19.62

-35.59%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.66 €5.94

$3.54 R 58.7

88.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.64 €5.03

$4.87 R 80.8

15.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 €1.15

$1.50 R 24.84

-14.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$2.02 R 33.51

5.94%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.30 €2.05

$1.88 R 31.26

22.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.02 €39.26

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.98 €3.55

$0.44 R 7.24

804.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 €0.57

$0.71 R 11.73

-9.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$18.93 €16.88

$7.73 R 128

144.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.50 R 24.85

52.00%

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

$33.4K €29.8K

$35.9K R 596.4K

-7.16%

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

$38.5K €34.3K

$34.1K R 565.6K

12.95%

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

$158 €141

$149 R 2,473

6.13%

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

$17.54 €15.64

$38.28 R 635

-54.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.18 €27.82

$39.10 R 649

-20.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.64 €39.82

$30.86 R 512

44.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.98 €16.93

$13.26 R 220

43.14%

Cinema Ticket

$9.58 €8.54

$7.54 R 125

27.06%

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

$674 €601

$311 R 5,166

116.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.7K €16.7K

$7,387 R 122.6K

153.54%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.2

$52.5 R 871

94.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.90 €40.94

$27.25 R 452

68.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 €91.2

$95.5 R 1,584

7.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 €109

$83.8 R 1,391

45.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,641 €1,463

$361 R 5,996

353.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,187 €1,059

$368 R 6,113

222.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,825 €2,519

$821 R 13.6K

243.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,018 €1,800

$792 R 13.1K

154.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,836 €6,989

$759 R 12.6K

932.43%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,701 €4,193

$715 R 11.9K

557.04%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,687 €1,505

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.82

11.7

-67.35%

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

Last update for Lisbon: November 1, 2026

Last update for Scottburgh: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Scottburgh

$368 33.4% 69% $819

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$275 12.5%

Scottburgh

$193 17.5% 29.6% $81

Eating Out

Lisbon

$245 11.1%

Scottburgh

$143 12.9% 41.8% $102

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$207 9.4%

Scottburgh

$226 20.5% 9.4% $20

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.6%

Scottburgh

$117 10.6% 30.4% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Scottburgh

$46 4.2% 28% $18

Getting Around

Lisbon

$60 2.7%

Scottburgh

$12 * 1% 80.9% $49

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 $1,641 in Lisbon and $361 in Scottburgh. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $61 in Lisbon vs $37 in Scottburgh for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $275 vs $193 per month, with Scottburgh cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇿🇦 Scottburgh

🕒 Local time

11:29 11:29 AM

13:29 1:29 PM

2 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

23,949

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ZAR = 6.03 USD

100 ZAR = 5.38 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 16.59 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.03 USD). 1 EUR = 18.6 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.38 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Scottburgh 8,710 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Scottburgh

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 Scottburgh: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,206 in Lisbon and $1,105 in Scottburgh, so Scottburgh is about 50% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,309 in Lisbon and $1,657 in Scottburgh 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 $361 in Scottburgh. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 42% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $2,206 per month in Lisbon versus $1,105 in Scottburgh – Scottburgh is about 50% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,105 in Scottburgh versus $2,206 in Lisbon, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Scottburgh but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Scottburgh 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.