Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Southwark

For one person, living is cheaper in Southwark: $1,486 a month against $2,202 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $8,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Lisbon outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
72

Cost of Living Index in Southwark
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Southwark Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,202

/mo nomad

Southwark

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$1,486

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Southwark

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,202 in Lisbon versus $1,486 in Southwark.

Lisbon $2,202
Southwark $1,486

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,274 in Lisbon versus $4,262 in Southwark.

Lisbon $3,274
Southwark $4,262

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,346 in Lisbon versus $7,038 in Southwark.

Lisbon $4,346
Southwark $7,038

Living in Lisbon is roughly 48% more expensive than in Southwark, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, Southwark 10% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.04 €15.15

$25.00 £18.76

-31.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.3 €55.4

$101 £75.6

-38.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.02 €9.80

$10.67 £8.00

3.28%

Cappuccino

$3.12 €2.78

$5.70 £4.28

-45.26%

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

$2.27 €2.02

$3.05 £2.29

-25.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.55

$2.60 £1.95

-33.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.42 €3.04

$9.29 £6.97

-63.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.74 €3.33

$8.28 £6.21

-54.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 €1.04

$1.92 £1.44

-39.06%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.66

$2.05 £1.54

-9.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 €1.37

$2.20 £1.65

-30.00%

Eggs

$4.06 €3.61

$4.38 £3.29

-7.31%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.91 €11.49

$11.90 £8.93

8.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.03

$9.07 £6.80

-12.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.64 €15.69

$15.57 £11.68

13.29%

Apples (1kg)

$2.26 €2.01

$3.05 £2.29

-25.90%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$1.44 £1.08

21.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.89 €1.68

$2.98 £2.24

-36.58%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.56 €2.27

$3.52 £2.64

-27.27%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$1.66 £1.25

11.45%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$1.79 £1.34

10.06%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.36 £1.02

6.62%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 €0.69

$1.86 £1.39

-58.60%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.71 €5.97

$23.44 £17.59

-71.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.67 €5.04

$12.16 £9.12

-53.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 €1.22

$3.05 £2.29

-55.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 €1.88

$3.22 £2.42

-34.47%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.32 €2.07

$3.89 £2.92

-40.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.43 €39.52

$157 £118

-71.68%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.95 €3.51

$4.97 £3.73

-20.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.05 €0.93

$2.72 £2.04

-61.40%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.15 €15.26

$39.66 £29.75

-56.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.19 €1.95

$2.15 £1.62

1.86%

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

$33.8K €30.0K

$37.9K £28.4K

-10.75%

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

$38.3K €34.0K

$39.9K £30.0K

-4.21%

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

$164 €146

$335 £251

-51.06%

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

$18.48 €16.43

$18.37 £13.78

0.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.96 €29.32

$40.35 £30.27

-18.31%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.87 €40.80

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.68 €16.61

Cinema Ticket

$9.75 €8.67

$18.05 £13.54

-45.98%

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

$684 €608

$2,557 £1,919

-73.25%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.7K

$30.4K £22.8K

-42.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 €92.3

$93.1 £69.9

11.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.20 €41.09

$46.53 £34.91

-0.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.7 €88.7

$103 £77.5

-3.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$125 €111

$90.0 £67.5

38.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,589 €1,414

$2,307 £1,731

-31.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,169 €1,040

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,851 €2,536

$5,586 £4,190

-48.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,993 €1,773

$3,792 £2,844

-47.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,793 €6,932

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,418 €3,930

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,600 €1,423

$4,185 £3,140

-61.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

5.12

-24.80%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 19, 2026

Last update for Southwark: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.1%

Southwark

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$273 12.4%

Southwark

$329 22.2% 20.7% $56

Eating Out

Lisbon

$247 11.2%

Southwark

$386 26% 56% $139

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$215 9.8%

Southwark

$393 26.5% 82.8% $178

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.7%

Southwark

$150 10.1% 11.1% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$65 3%

Southwark

$36 * 2.4% 44.8% $29

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Southwark

$191 12.9% 204% $128

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 $1,589 in Lisbon and $2,307 in Southwark. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Southwark pays 162% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $62.0 in Lisbon vs $101 in Southwark for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $273 vs $329 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇬🇧 Southwark

🕒 Local time

23:05 11:05 PM

Same time as Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

71,552

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Southwark 1,580 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
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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 Southwark: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Southwark differ by about 48% in total monthly costs ($2,202 vs $1,486 including rent). Southwark is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 162% lower in Southwark. 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: $1,589 in Lisbon versus $2,307 in Southwark. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $684 in Lisbon versus $2,557 in Southwark. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 21% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,486 in Southwark versus $2,202 in Lisbon, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Southwark but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Southwark 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 Southwark are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Southwark gentler on the wallet – expenses run 48% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.