Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Side

For one person, living is cheaper in Side: $1,144 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $12,800 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
55

Cost of Living Index in Side
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Side Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Side

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,144

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Side

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $1,144 in Side.

Lisbon $2,210
Side $1,144

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $1,790 in Side.

Lisbon $3,275
Side $1,790

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $2,435 in Side.

Lisbon $4,341
Side $2,435

Living in Lisbon is roughly 93% more expensive than in Side, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Side is 16% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.95

$10.26 ₺511

62.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$29.76 ₺1,483

107.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$9.45 ₺471

20.21%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$3.44 ₺171

-13.66%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$2.19 ₺109

4.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.39 ₺19.48

346.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

$4.01 ₺200

-15.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$6.07 ₺303

-45.47%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.07 ₺53.1

8.41%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$0.97 ₺48.33

96.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$2.61 ₺130

-42.15%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$2.29 ₺114

75.55%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

$13.70 ₺683

-5.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.98

$6.16 ₺307

26.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.95

$26.79 ₺1,335

-33.71%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$1.57 ₺78.2

46.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$2.46 ₺123

-29.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$1.39 ₺69.1

33.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$1.27 ₺63.5

103.94%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$0.79 ₺39.51

130.38%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$0.71 ₺35.38

177.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.74 ₺87.0

-15.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.76 ₺37.63

-5.26%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.91

$2.78 ₺139

136.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$13.85 ₺690

-59.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.69 ₺84.1

-19.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$3.13 ₺156

-31.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

$0.69 ₺34.55

237.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$1.24 ₺61.7

210.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$1.00 ₺49.64

7.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$6.69 ₺333

146.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$1.51 ₺75.2

45.70%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$42.1K ₺2.1M

-18.78%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$38.2K ₺1.9M

1.24%

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

$161 €145

$76.7 ₺3,824

110.14%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$10.57 ₺527

74.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$23.12 ₺1,152

41.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.02

$52.8 ₺2,632

-15.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$8.06 ₺402

19.11%

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

$668 €600

$507 ₺25.3K

31.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$10.9K ₺544.1K

61.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.6

$46.20 ₺2,302

120.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.94

$58.9 ₺2,937

-24.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$157 ₺7,812

-37.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$117 ₺5,842

5.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

$420 ₺20.9K

283.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

$302 ₺15.1K

293.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,526

$761 ₺37.9K

269.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,808

$573 ₺28.5K

251.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,042

$1,431 ₺71.3K

447.84%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,110

$1,018 ₺50.7K

349.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

38.25

-89.93%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Side: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Side

$302 26.4% 74.6% $888

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Side

$289 25.3% 6.1% $17

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Side

$194 17% 19.9% $48

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Side

$110 9.7% 48% $102

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Side

$171 14.9% 2.8% $4.7

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Side

$69 6% 8.1% $5.2

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Side

$9 * 0.8% 85.8% $54

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 $420 in Side. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $30 in Side. Groceries flip the comparison at $272 vs $289, with Lisbon cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇹🇷 Side

🕒 Local time

20:26 8:26 PM

23:26 11:26 PM

3 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

12,500

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

100 TRY = 2.01 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Lisbon Side 3,540 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Side

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 Side: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $1,144 in Side, so Side is about 48% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,315 in Lisbon and $1,717 in Side 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: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $420 in Side. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 6% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you’ll spend $2,210 per month in Lisbon versus $1,144 in Side – Side is about 48% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,144 in Side versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Side but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Side 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 Side are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.