Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Shenyang

For one person, living is cheaper in Shenyang: $708 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $18,000 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
34

Cost of Living Index in Shenyang
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Shenyang Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Shenyang

🇨🇳 China

$708

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Shenyang

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $708 in Shenyang.

Lisbon $2,210
Shenyang $708

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $1,046 in Shenyang.

Lisbon $3,275
Shenyang $1,046

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $1,384 in Shenyang.

Lisbon $4,341
Shenyang $1,384

Living in Lisbon is roughly 212% more expensive than in Shenyang, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Shenyang is 48% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.95

$2.97 ¥19.75

460.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$22.45 ¥149

175.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$5.40 ¥35.94

110.37%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$2.50 ¥16.67

18.80%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$0.47 ¥3.11

387.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.39 ¥2.57

346.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

$0.86 ¥5.73

295.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$1.89 ¥12.55

75.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$2.00 ¥13.33

-42.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$2.38 ¥15.82

-19.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$1.08 ¥7.19

39.81%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$1.07 ¥7.10

275.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.98

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.95

$11.93 ¥79.4

48.87%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$1.79 ¥11.92

28.49%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$1.17 ¥7.76

47.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$1.47 ¥9.77

76.19%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$0.62 ¥4.12

137.10%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.64 ¥4.29

12.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.91

$3.69 ¥24.56

78.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$16.70 ¥111

-66.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$0.68 ¥4.54

100.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$1.13 ¥7.53

89.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

$0.29 ¥1.91

703.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

$14.87 ¥99.0

200.47%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$1.38 ¥9.16

178.99%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$0.31 ¥2.07

245.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$3.06 ¥20.34

437.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$1.30 ¥8.65

69.23%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$19.4K ¥128.9K

76.49%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$17.5K ¥116.1K

121.90%

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

$161 €145

$76.2 ¥507

111.66%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$15.50 ¥103

18.77%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$14.86 ¥98.9

120.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.02

$22.51 ¥150

97.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

$10.68 ¥71.1

78.84%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$5.88 ¥39.10

63.27%

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

$668 €600

$549 ¥3,655

21.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$21.9K ¥145.6K

-19.50%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.6

$42.33 ¥282

141.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.94

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$60.9 ¥405

61.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$70.1 ¥467

76.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

$226 ¥1,501

613.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

$228 ¥1,516

422.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,526

$538 ¥3,583

422.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,808

$344 ¥2,290

485.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,042

$1,814 ¥12.1K

332.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,110

$1,102 ¥7,333

315.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

$1,082 ¥7,201

45.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

4.37

-11.90%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Shenyang: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Shenyang

$228 32.2% 80.9% $962

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Shenyang

$161 * 22.7% 41% $112

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Shenyang

$81 11.5% 66.4% $161

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Shenyang

$107 15.1% 49.8% $106

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Shenyang

$78 * 11% 53% $88

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Shenyang

$34 4.8% 46.3% $29

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Shenyang

$19 2.7% 70% $44

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 $226 in Shenyang. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 46% 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 in Lisbon vs $22 in Shenyang for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $161 per month, with Shenyang cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇨🇳 Shenyang

🕒 Local time

23:45 11:45 PM

07:45 7:45 AM

8 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

9,199,601

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Shenyang 9,860 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

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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 Shenyang: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $708 in Shenyang, so Shenyang is about 68% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 46% 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: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $226 in Shenyang. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $549 in Shenyang. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 69% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $708 in Shenyang versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $800 budget is realistic in Shenyang but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Shenyang 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.

Expats usually find Shenyang gentler on the wallet – expenses run 68% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.