Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Sorocaba

For one person, living is cheaper in Sorocaba: $831 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $16,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
Learn more

Lisbon Living Index
40

Cost of Living Index in Sorocaba
Learn more

Sorocaba Living Index

Jump to prices

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Sorocaba

🇧🇷 Brazil

$831

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Sorocaba

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $831 in Sorocaba.

Lisbon $2,210
Sorocaba $831

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $1,270 in Sorocaba.

Lisbon $3,275
Sorocaba $1,270

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $1,710 in Sorocaba.

Lisbon $4,341
Sorocaba $1,710

Living in Lisbon is roughly 166% more expensive than in Sorocaba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Sorocaba is 39% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.85

$6.14 R$33.36

171.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.1

$26.17 R$142

135.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.13

$7.47 R$40.60

52.07%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.65

$2.10 R$11.40

41.43%

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

$2.29 €2.04

$1.29 R$6.99

77.52%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.55

$0.73 R$3.98

138.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.04

$2.21 R$12.04

53.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.95

$3.77 R$20.52

-12.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.03

$0.91 R$4.97

27.47%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.71

$1.68 R$9.14

13.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.35

$0.96 R$5.22

57.29%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.59

$2.37 R$12.88

69.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.54

$8.32 R$45.25

55.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.94

$3.83 R$20.83

102.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.85

$7.29 R$39.65

143.62%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.06

$2.35 R$12.76

-2.13%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$1.68 R$9.14

2.98%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.03 R$5.62

80.58%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.31

$1.56 R$8.49

66.03%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.10 R$6.00

65.45%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$0.94 R$5.13

109.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$0.65 R$3.56

126.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.65 R$3.54

10.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.87

$2.72 R$14.76

141.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.00

$5.48 R$29.80

2.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.47 R$7.97

-7.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$1.78 R$9.68

20.22%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.08

$0.80 R$4.36

191.25%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €39.86

$38.51 R$209

16.02%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.43

$0.99 R$5.39

288.89%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.95

$0.34 R$1.85

214.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.69

$6.55 R$35.63

151.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.96

$1.18 R$6.43

86.44%

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

$34.2K €30.5K

$22.5K R$122.6K

51.68%

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

$38.7K €34.5K

$30.4K R$165.2K

27.42%

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

$161 €144

$78.0 R$424

106.80%

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

$18.41 €16.43

$11.67 R$63.4

57.75%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.21

$18.62 R$101

75.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €39.74

$24.12 R$131

84.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.04

$13.70 R$74.5

39.42%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.56

$7.45 R$40.52

28.86%

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

$668 €596

$325 R$1,765

105.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.7K

$3,643 R$19.8K

383.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.0

$38.70 R$210

163.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.67

$55.3 R$301

-19.60%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €87.9

$82.5 R$448

19.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €110

$69.8 R$380

77.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,435

$218 R$1,186

637.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,062

$229 R$1,244

420.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,509

$431 R$2,346

551.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,796

$378 R$2,054

432.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €6,994

$1,705 R$9,271

359.70%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,082

$1,188 R$6,458

285.23%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,405

$402 R$2,186

291.67%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

11.33

-66.02%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Sorocaba: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Sorocaba

$229 27.5% 80.8% $961

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Sorocaba

$177 21.2% 35.2% $96

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Sorocaba

$123 14.8% 49.2% $119

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Sorocaba

$108 13% 49% $104

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Sorocaba

$111 13.3% 33.2% $55

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Sorocaba

$39 4.7% 38.8% $25

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Sorocaba

$44 5.3% 29.7% $19

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $218 in Sorocaba. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays about 3.9 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $26 in Sorocaba for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $177 per month, with Sorocaba cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇧🇷 Sorocaba

🕒 Local time

13:37 1:37 PM

10:37 10:37 AM

3 h behind Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

723,682

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 BRL = 0.184 USD

1 BRL = 0.165 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lisbon Sorocaba 7,990 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Sorocaba

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 Sorocaba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $831 in Sorocaba, so Sorocaba is about 62% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Lisbon is about 3.9 times higher, 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 $218 in Sorocaba. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $325 in Sorocaba. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 54% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $831 in Sorocaba versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Sorocaba but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Sorocaba 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 Sorocaba gentler on the wallet – expenses run 62% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.