Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Shaab

For one person, living is cheaper in Shaab: $1,386 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $9,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
66

Cost of Living Index in Shaab
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Shaab Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Shaab

🇰🇼 Kuwait

$1,386

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Shaab

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $1,386 in Shaab.

Lisbon $2,210
Shaab $1,386

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $2,294 in Shaab.

Lisbon $3,275
Shaab $2,294

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $3,201 in Shaab.

Lisbon $4,341
Shaab $3,201

Living in Lisbon is roughly 59% more expensive than in Shaab, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, Shaab 2% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.95

$12.70 KWD 3.91

31.10%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$63.2 KWD 19.47

-2.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$8.88 KWD 2.74

27.93%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.12 KWD 0.96

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.97 KWD 1.53

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$5.21 KWD 1.61

-42.99%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$0.70 KWD 0.22

227.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.29 KWD 0.09

500.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.58 KWD 0.49

-26.58%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$1.46 KWD 0.45

30.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$1.98 KWD 0.61

-23.74%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$2.07 KWD 0.64

94.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

$4.42 KWD 1.36

192.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.98

$6.74 KWD 2.08

15.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.95

$10.17 KWD 3.13

74.63%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$2.52 KWD 0.78

-8.73%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$1.92 KWD 0.59

-9.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$1.87 KWD 0.58

-0.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$1.48 KWD 0.46

75.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$1.32 KWD 0.41

37.88%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$1.49 KWD 0.46

32.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$2.30 KWD 0.71

-36.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.57 KWD 0.18

26.32%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$3.15 KWD 0.97

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.04 KWD 0.32

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.39 KWD 0.43

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.91

$2.69 KWD 0.83

144.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

$0.81 KWD 0.25

187.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$4.87 KWD 1.50

-20.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$3.30 KWD 1.02

-67.58%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$15.86 KWD 4.89

3.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$0.35 KWD 0.11

528.57%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$23.6K KWD 7,262

45.06%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$19.5K KWD 6,015

98.35%

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

$161 €145

$66.5 KWD 20.47

142.62%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$22.82 KWD 7.03

-19.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$29.54 KWD 9.10

10.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.02

$102 KWD 31.37

-56.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$12.90 KWD 3.97

-25.58%

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

$668 €600

$503 KWD 155

32.64%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$9,302 KWD 2,866

89.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.6

$37.18 KWD 11.46

174.39%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.94

$39.66 KWD 12.22

12.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$97.4 KWD 30.01

1.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$87.5 KWD 26.94

41.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

$796 KWD 245

102.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

$617 KWD 190

92.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,526

$1,694 KWD 522

66.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,808

$1,320 KWD 407

52.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,042

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,110

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

$3,175 KWD 978

-50.39%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

6.53

-41.04%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Shaab: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Shaab

$617 44.5% 48.2% $573

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Shaab

$186 13.4% 31.7% $86

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Shaab

$195 14.1% 19.7% $48

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Shaab

$119 8.6% 44% $94

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Shaab

$118 8.5% 29% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Shaab

$128 9.2% 100% $64

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Shaab

$25 * 1.8% 61.1% $39

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 $796 in Shaab. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Shaab pays about 2 times 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 $63 in Shaab. Groceries flip the comparison at $272 vs $186, with Shaab cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇰🇼 Shaab

🕒 Local time

21:18 9:18 PM

00:18 12:18 AM

3 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

164,212

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Kuwaiti Dinar KWD د.ك

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1 KWD = 3.25 USD

1 KWD = 2.92 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Shaab 5,280 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Shaab

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 Shaab: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $1,386 in Shaab, so Shaab is about 37% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 50% 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 $796 in Shaab. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $503 in Shaab. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

All in, you’ll spend $2,210 per month in Lisbon versus $1,386 in Shaab – Shaab is about 37% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

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 Shaab are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.