Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Surinam

For one person, living is cheaper in Surinam: $624 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $19,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Lisbon, Portugal
Surinam, Mauritius
Lisbon
🇵🇹 Portugal
$2,210
/mo nomad
Surinam
🇲🇺 Mauritius
$624
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Surinam

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $624 in Surinam.

  • Lisbon $2,210
  • Surinam $624

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $1,046 in Surinam.

  • Lisbon $3,275
  • Surinam $1,046

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $1,469 in Surinam.

  • Lisbon $4,341
  • Surinam $1,469

Living in Lisbon is roughly 254% more expensive than in Surinam, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Surinam is 54% below.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Lisbon
Surinam
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$16.65 €14.95
$5.90 MUR 280
182.20%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$61.7 €55.5
$38.29 MUR 1,816
61.24%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.36 €10.20
$7.48 MUR 354
51.87%
Cappuccino
$2.97 €2.67
$2.61 MUR 124
13.79%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.29 €2.06
$1.13 MUR 53.7
102.65%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.74 €1.56
$0.68 MUR 32.23
155.88%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.40 €3.06
$2.58 MUR 122
31.78%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.31 €2.97
$4.65 MUR 221
-28.82%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Lisbon
Surinam
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.16 €1.04
$1.60 MUR 75.7
-27.50%
White Bread (500g)
$1.91 €1.72
$0.74 MUR 35.16
158.11%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.51 €1.36
$1.16 MUR 55.0
30.17%
Eggs
$4.02 €3.61
$2.55 MUR 121
57.65%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$12.94 €11.62
$5.20 MUR 247
148.85%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.77 €6.98
$6.48 MUR 307
19.91%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$17.76 €15.95
$11.15 MUR 529
59.28%
Apples (1kg)
$2.30 €2.07
$2.79 MUR 132
-17.56%
Banana (1kg)
$1.73 €1.56
$2.71 MUR 129
-36.16%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.86 €1.67
$1.45 MUR 68.6
28.28%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.59 €2.33
$2.95 MUR 140
-12.20%
Potato (1kg)
$1.82 €1.64
$0.94 MUR 44.46
93.62%
Onion (1kg)
$1.97 €1.77
$1.01 MUR 48.10
95.05%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.47 €1.32
$0.75 MUR 35.39
96.00%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.72 €0.65
$0.84 MUR 40.02
-14.29%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$6.58 €5.91
$6.31 MUR 299
4.28%
Wine (Bottle)
$5.61 €5.04
$8.62 MUR 409
-34.92%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.36 €1.22
$1.65 MUR 78.0
-17.58%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.14 €1.92
$2.36 MUR 112
-9.32%
🚌 Getting Around
Lisbon
Surinam
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.33 €2.10
-
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$44.68 €40.14
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.85 €3.46
$4.27 MUR 202
-9.84%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.07 €0.96
$3.16 MUR 150
-66.14%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$16.46 €14.79
$20.84 MUR 988
-21.02%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$2.20 €1.98
$1.42 MUR 67.1
54.93%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$34.2K €30.7K
$37.1K MUR 1.8M
-7.74%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$38.7K €34.8K
$31.5K MUR 1.5M
22.97%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Lisbon
Surinam
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$161 €145
$44.96 MUR 2,132
258.59%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$18.41 €16.54
$10.55 MUR 500
74.50%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$32.74 €29.41
$29.52 MUR 1,399
10.91%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Lisbon
Surinam
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$44.55 €40.02
-
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$19.10 €17.16
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$9.60 €8.62
$6.49 MUR 308
47.92%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Lisbon
Surinam
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$668 €600
$128 MUR 6,091
419.68%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$17.6K €15.8K
$7,668 MUR 363.6K
129.71%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Lisbon
Surinam
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$102 €91.6
$76.3 MUR 3,616
33.74%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$44.46 €39.94
$73.5 MUR 3,486
-39.53%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$98.5 €88.5
$121 MUR 5,744
-18.69%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$124 €111
$77.9 MUR 3,693
58.75%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Lisbon
Surinam
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,608 €1,445
-
-
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,190 €1,069
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,812 €2,526
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$2,013 €1,808
-
-
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$7,839 €7,042
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$4,576 €4,110
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Lisbon
Surinam
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,575 €1,415
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
3.85
6.67
-42.28%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Surinam: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Lisbon
$1.2K
Surinam
- * 100%
Groceries & Markets
Lisbon
$272
Surinam
$219 19.7% $54
Eating Out
Lisbon
$243
Surinam
$130 46.2% $112
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Lisbon
$212
Surinam
$85 60% $127
Clothing & Footwear
Lisbon
$166
Surinam
$157 5.4% $8.9
Sport & Entertainment
Lisbon
$64
Surinam
$13 * 79.6% $51
Getting Around
Lisbon
$63
Surinam
$20 * 68.3% $43

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $38 in Surinam for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $219 per month, with Surinam cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇵🇹 Lisbon
🇲🇺 Surinam
🕒 Local time
23:45 11:45 PM
03:45 3:45 AM
4 h ahead of Lisbon
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
545,923 Capital
10,500
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

MUR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

Mauritian Rupee exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 47.41 MUR (100 MUR = 2.11 USD). 1 EUR = 52.78 MUR (100 MUR = 1.89 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Lisbon Surinam 9,560 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Lisbon
  • Surinam

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 Surinam: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Lisbon and in Surinam?
Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $624 in Surinam, so Surinam is about 72% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
What salary covers living expenses in Lisbon compared to Surinam?
You’d need roughly $3,315 in Lisbon and $936 in Surinam to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.
Which city has cheaper grocery shopping?
Supermarket bills run roughly 25% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.
Which city is more expensive overall: Lisbon or Surinam?
All in, you’ll spend $2,210 per month in Lisbon versus $624 in Surinam – Surinam is about 72% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.
Which city is more doable on $1,200 per month?
At $624 in Surinam versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Surinam but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Surinam the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Where should digital nomads live: Lisbon or Surinam?
Both work as nomad bases, but Surinam delivers better value at $624 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Surinam hard to pass up.
Is Lisbon or Surinam safer for residents?
Safety-wise, Lisbon and Surinam are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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