Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and St Helens

For one person, living is cheaper in St Helens: $1,993 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 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
97

Cost of Living Index in St Helens
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St Helens Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

St Helens

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$1,993

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in St Helens

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,223 in Lisbon versus $1,993 in St Helens.

Lisbon $2,223
St Helens $1,993

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,271 in Lisbon versus $3,045 in St Helens.

Lisbon $3,271
St Helens $3,045

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,319 in Lisbon versus $4,098 in St Helens.

Lisbon $4,319
St Helens $4,098

Living in Lisbon is roughly 12% more expensive than in St Helens, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 65% above, St Helens 48% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.50 €14.67

$26.90 £20.18

-38.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 €54.5

$78.6 £59.0

-22.04%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.27 €10.03

$10.48 £7.86

7.54%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$4.08 £3.06

-25.00%

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

$2.26 €2.01

$2.37 £1.78

-4.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.54

$1.99 £1.50

-13.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 €3.02

$5.36 £4.02

-36.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 €3.02

$4.54 £3.41

-25.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.34 £1.01

-16.42%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.77 £1.33

5.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$1.94 £1.46

-21.13%

Eggs

$3.96 €3.53

$4.01 £3.01

-1.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.76 €11.35

$9.00 £6.75

41.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.02

$8.28 £6.21

-4.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 €15.09

$10.66 £7.99

59.19%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$3.25 £2.44

-30.15%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$1.30 £0.97

34.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$3.03 £2.27

-38.94%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.28

$3.45 £2.59

-25.51%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.15 £0.86

61.74%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.83 £1.37

10.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.30 £0.98

10.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$1.30 £0.98

-36.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.56 €5.83

$19.59 £14.70

-66.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.62 €5.00

$9.96 £7.47

-43.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.14

$2.86 £2.14

-55.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$2.61 £1.95

-20.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

$2.65 £1.99

-11.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

$100 £75.1

-55.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.55

$3.37 £2.53

18.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$2.07 £1.56

-47.34%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.64 €14.81

$15.82 £11.87

5.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.94 £1.46

17.53%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$26.4K £19.8K

27.50%

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

$39.3K €35.0K

$33.6K £25.2K

16.80%

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

$167 €149

$365 £274

-54.06%

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

$18.80 €16.72

$17.20 £12.91

9.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.09 €29.43

$43.87 £32.91

-24.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €40.93

$26.94 £20.21

70.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

$3.85 £2.89

398.44%

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 €8.75

$13.42 £10.07

-26.68%

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

$677 €602

$805 £604

-15.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.1K

$6,625 £4,971

155.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €90.1

$65.0 £48.78

55.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 €40.70

$39.08 £29.32

17.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100.0 €88.9

$72.3 £54.3

38.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €109

$109 £81.7

12.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 €1,436

$797 £598

102.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,065

$636 £477

88.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,862 €2,545

$1,503 £1,128

90.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,990 €1,770

$1,257 £943

58.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

$3,315 £2,487

128.56%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

$2,308 £1,731

86.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,588 €1,412

$1,863 £1,398

-14.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

5.21

-26.10%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Last update for St Helens: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9%

St Helens

$636 31.9% 46.9% $561

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$269 12.1%

St Helens

$276 13.9% 2.5% $6.7

Eating Out

Lisbon

$242 10.9%

St Helens

$349 17.5% 44% $107

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$219 9.9%

St Helens

$426 21.4% 94% $206

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

St Helens

$128 6.4% 22.8% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$66 3%

St Helens

$54 2.7% 18.1% $12

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

St Helens

$124 6.2% 97.5% $61

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,614 in Lisbon and $797 in St Helens. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

St Helens pays 17% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $61.0 in Lisbon vs $79.0 in St Helens for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $269 vs $276 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇬🇧 St Helens

🕒 Local time

00:29 12:29 AM

Same time as Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

183,200

💱 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

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Between locations

Lisbon St Helens 1,710 km ≈ 2 h 45 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 St Helens: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and St Helens differ by about 12% in total monthly costs ($2,223 vs $1,993 including rent). St Helens is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 17% lower in St Helens. 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: $1,614 in Lisbon versus $797 in St Helens. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $677 in Lisbon versus $805 in St Helens. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 2% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,993 in St Helens versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $2,500 budget is realistic in St Helens but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes St Helens 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 St Helens 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 St Helens gentler on the wallet – expenses run 12% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.