Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and St Thomas

For one person, living is cheaper in Lisbon: $2,202 a month against $4,391 in St Thomas, rent and utilities included – about $26,300 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
212

Cost of Living Index in St Thomas
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St Thomas Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,202

/mo nomad

St Thomas

🇻🇮 U.S. Virgin Islands

$4,391

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,202 in Lisbon versus $4,391 in St Thomas.

Lisbon $2,202
St Thomas $4,391

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,274 in Lisbon versus $7,217 in St Thomas.

Lisbon $3,274
St Thomas $7,217

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,346 in Lisbon versus $10.0K in St Thomas.

Lisbon $4,346
St Thomas $10.0K

Living in Lisbon costs roughly 50% less than in St Thomas, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, St Thomas 224% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.04 €15.15

$22.90 $22.90

-25.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.3 €55.4

$171 $171

-63.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.02 €9.80

$13.62 $13.62

-19.09%

Cappuccino

$3.12 €2.78

$5.98 $5.98

-47.83%

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

$2.27 €2.02

$3.95 $3.95

-42.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.55

$3.39 $3.39

-48.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.42 €3.04

$5.07 $5.07

-32.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.74 €3.33

$6.92 $6.92

-45.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 €1.04

$2.77 $2.77

-57.76%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.66

$6.67 $6.67

-72.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 €1.37

$18.43 $18.43

-91.64%

Eggs

$4.06 €3.61

$8.95 $8.95

-54.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.91 €11.49

$11.19 $11.19

15.37%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.03

$28.68 $28.68

-72.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.64 €15.69

$39.99 $39.99

-55.89%

Apples (1kg)

$2.26 €2.01

$12.11 $12.11

-81.34%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$11.00 $11.00

-84.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.89 €1.68

$12.23 $12.23

-84.55%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.56 €2.27

$19.61 $19.61

-86.95%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$1.95 $1.95

-5.13%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$9.04 $9.04

-78.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$8.08 $8.08

-82.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 €0.69

$5.40 $5.40

-85.74%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.71 €5.97

Wine (Bottle)

$5.67 €5.04

$25.24 $25.24

-77.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 €1.22

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 €1.88

$6.17 $6.17

-65.80%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.32 €2.07

$1.96 $1.96

18.37%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.43 €39.52

$61.0 $61.0

-27.12%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.95 €3.51

$19.69 $19.69

-79.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.05 €0.93

$3.18 $3.18

-66.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.15 €15.26

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.19 €1.95

$1.42 $1.42

54.23%

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

$33.8K €30.0K

$54.6K $54.6K

-38.11%

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

$38.3K €34.0K

$48.6K $48.6K

-21.19%

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

$164 €146

$463 $463

-64.62%

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

$18.48 €16.43

$102 $102

-81.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.96 €29.32

$150 $150

-77.97%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.87 €40.80

$162 $162

-71.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.68 €16.61

Cinema Ticket

$9.75 €8.67

$10.03 $10.03

-2.79%

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

$684 €608

$1,477 $1,477

-53.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.7K

$22.4K $22.4K

-21.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 €92.3

$113 $113

-8.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.20 €41.09

$147 $147

-68.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.7 €88.7

$199 $199

-49.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$125 €111

$151 $151

-17.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,589 €1,414

$1,584 $1,584

0.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,169 €1,040

$1,793 $1,793

-34.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,851 €2,536

$3,222 $3,222

-11.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,993 €1,773

$4,208 $4,208

-52.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,793 €6,932

$4,853 $4,853

60.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,418 €3,930

$10.9K $10.9K

-59.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,600 €1,423

$2,792 $2,792

-42.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

9.45

-59.26%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 19, 2026

Last update for St Thomas: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.1%

St Thomas

$1.8K 40.8% 53.4% $624

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$273 12.4%

St Thomas

$958 * 21.8% 251% $685

Eating Out

Lisbon

$247 11.2%

St Thomas

$364 8.3% 47.3% $117

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$215 9.8%

St Thomas

$714 16.3% 232% $499

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.7%

St Thomas

$274 6.3% 62.9% $106

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$65 3%

St Thomas

$182 4.2% 179% $117

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

St Thomas

$104 2.4% 65.9% $41

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 $1,584 in St Thomas. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

St Thomas pays 75% 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: $62.0 in Lisbon vs $171 in St Thomas for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $273 vs $958 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇻🇮 St Thomas

🕒 Local time

17:56 5:56 PM

12:56 12:56 PM

5 h behind Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

20,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Lisbon St Thomas 5,800 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
St Thomas

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 Thomas: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and St Thomas differ by about 99% in total monthly costs ($2,202 vs $4,391 including rent). Lisbon is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 75% lower in St Thomas. 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 $1,584 in St Thomas. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $684 in Lisbon versus $1,477 in St Thomas. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 251% higher in St Thomas. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,202 in Lisbon versus $4,391 in St Thomas, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Lisbon but tight or insufficient in St Thomas. The gap between the two cities makes Lisbon 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 Thomas 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 Lisbon gentler on the wallet – expenses run 99% less than in St Thomas. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.