Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Split

For one person, living is cheaper in Split: $1,822 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $4,800 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
89

Cost of Living Index in Split
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Split Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Split

🇭🇷 Croatia

$1,822

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Split

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,223 in Lisbon versus $1,822 in Split.

Lisbon $2,223
Split $1,822

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,271 in Lisbon versus $2,797 in Split.

Lisbon $3,271
Split $2,797

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,319 in Lisbon versus $3,771 in Split.

Lisbon $4,319
Split $3,771

Living in Lisbon is roughly 22% more expensive than in Split, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 65% above, Split 35% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.50 €14.67

$16.50 €14.68

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 €54.5

$73.4 €65.3

-16.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.27 €10.03

$11.32 €10.07

-0.44%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.74 €2.44

11.68%

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

$2.26 €2.01

$4.10 €3.65

-44.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.54

$2.87 €2.55

-39.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 €3.02

$4.63 €4.12

-26.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 €3.02

$5.15 €4.58

-33.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.27 €1.13

-11.81%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.65

$2.13 €1.89

-12.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$3.59 €3.19

-57.38%

Eggs

$3.96 €3.53

$4.15 €3.70

-4.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.76 €11.35

$13.87 €12.34

-8.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.02

$9.59 €8.53

-17.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 €15.09

$13.18 €11.73

28.76%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$2.13 €1.90

6.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$1.84 €1.64

-4.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$1.89 €1.68

-2.12%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.28

$2.86 €2.54

-10.14%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.59 €1.42

16.98%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.15 €1.02

75.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.30 €1.15

10.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$1.25 €1.11

-34.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.56 €5.83

$5.72 €5.09

14.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.62 €5.00

$9.09 €8.08

-38.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.14

$1.74 €1.55

-26.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$2.31 €2.05

-10.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

$1.65 €1.47

42.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

$39.56 €35.19

11.68%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.55

$3.59 €3.20

11.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$2.10 €1.87

-48.10%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.64 €14.81

$29.27 €26.04

-43.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.85 €1.64

23.24%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$28.2K €25.1K

19.51%

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

$39.3K €35.0K

$24.9K €22.1K

57.89%

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

$167 €149

$207 €184

-18.91%

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

$18.80 €16.72

$19.93 €17.73

-5.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.09 €29.43

$41.20 €36.65

-19.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €40.93

$62.2 €55.3

-25.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

$12.92 €11.50

48.53%

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 €8.75

$9.15 €8.14

7.54%

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

$677 €602

$604 €537

12.18%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.1K

$11.9K €10.5K

42.70%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €90.1

$92.3 €82.1

9.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 €40.70

$40.17 €35.73

13.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100.0 €88.9

$112 €99.7

-10.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €109

$96.1 €85.5

27.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 €1,436

$1,024 €911

57.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,065

$704 €626

70.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,862 €2,545

$1,942 €1,728

47.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,990 €1,770

$1,275 €1,134

56.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

$7,185 €6,391

5.45%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

$5,032 €4,476

-14.41%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,588 €1,412

$1,576 €1,402

0.72%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

3.44

11.92%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Last update for Split: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9%

Split

$704 38.6% 41.2% $493

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$269 12.1%

Split

$296 16.3% 10% $27

Eating Out

Lisbon

$242 10.9%

Split

$260 14.3% 7.4% $18

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$219 9.9%

Split

$268 14.7% 22% $48

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Split

$153 8.4% 7.8% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$66 3%

Split

$80 4.4% 22.5% $15

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

Split

$60 3.3% 4.4% $2.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,614 in Lisbon and $1,024 in Split. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 1% 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: $61.0 in Lisbon vs $73.0 in Split for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $269 vs $296 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇭🇷 Split

🕒 Local time

16:40 4:40 PM

17:40 5:40 PM

1 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

149,830

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Split 2,200 km ≈ 3 h 15 min 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 Split: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Split differ by about 22% in total monthly costs ($2,223 vs $1,822 including rent). Split is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 1% 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: $1,614 in Lisbon versus $1,024 in Split. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $677 in Lisbon versus $604 in Split. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 10% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,822 in Split versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Split but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Split 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 Split 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 Split gentler on the wallet – expenses run 22% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.