Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Swansea

For one person, living costs are similar in Lisbon and in Swansea: $2,210 and $2,196 a month, rent and utilities included.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
106

Cost of Living Index in Swansea
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Swansea Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Swansea

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,196

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Swansea

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $2,196 in Swansea.

Lisbon $2,210
Swansea $2,196

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $3,130 in Swansea.

Lisbon $3,275
Swansea $3,130

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $4,065 in Swansea.

Lisbon $4,341
Swansea $4,065

Monthly costs are close between Lisbon and Swansea; which city is cheaper depends on the spending category.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, Swansea 61% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.92

$20.41 £15.25

-18.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.3

$63.1 £47.11

-2.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.18

$10.47 £7.82

8.50%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.66

$4.76 £3.56

-37.61%

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

$2.29 €2.05

$2.36 £1.76

-2.97%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$1.26 £0.94

38.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.05

$5.89 £4.40

-42.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$6.38 £4.77

-48.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.34 £1.00

-13.43%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.71

$2.05 £1.53

-6.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$2.06 £1.54

-26.70%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.60

$3.52 £2.63

14.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.59

$7.78 £5.82

66.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.97

$8.33 £6.22

-6.72%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.92

$12.87 £9.61

38.00%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.06

$2.32 £1.73

-0.86%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$1.24 £0.93

39.52%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$2.87 £2.14

-35.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.32

$3.57 £2.67

-27.45%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$2.25 £1.68

-19.11%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$3.05 £2.28

-35.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.27 £0.95

15.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$2.29 £1.71

-68.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.90

$23.23 £17.35

-71.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.02

$10.63 £7.94

-47.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$2.33 £1.74

-41.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$3.40 £2.54

-37.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.09

$4.12 £3.08

-43.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.04

$97.1 £72.5

-53.97%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.45

$3.95 £2.95

-2.53%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$2.68 £2.01

-60.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.75

$33.33 £24.90

-50.62%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.97

$1.95 £1.46

12.82%

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

$34.2K €30.6K

$38.9K £29.1K

-12.13%

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

$38.7K €34.7K

$40.5K £30.2K

-4.31%

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

$161 €144

$306 £229

-47.39%

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

$18.41 €16.50

$14.81 £11.07

24.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.34

$43.20 £32.27

-24.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €39.92

$33.28 £24.87

33.86%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.11

$15.52 £11.60

23.07%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.60

$9.85 £7.36

-2.54%

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

$668 €598

$1,777 £1,327

-62.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.4

$89.7 £67.0

13.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.85

$48.22 £36.03

-7.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.3

$122 £91.3

-19.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$82.6 £61.7

49.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,441

$1,112 £831

44.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,066

$891 £666

33.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,520

$1,500 £1,120

87.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,804

$1,337 £999

50.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,025

$3,563 £2,662

120.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,100

$2,615 £1,953

75.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,411

$3,263 £2,437

-51.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

6.04

-36.26%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Swansea: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Swansea

$891 40.6% 25.1% $299

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Swansea

$293 13.4% 7.7% $21

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Swansea

$309 14.1% 27.2% $66

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Swansea

$364 16.6% 71.6% $152

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Swansea

$154 7% 7.1% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Swansea

$53 2.4% 16.9% $11

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Swansea

$131 6% 107% $68

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $1,112 in Swansea. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Swansea pays about 2.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $63 in Swansea for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $293 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇬🇧 Swansea

🕒 Local time

08:31 8:31 AM

Same time as Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

239,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Swansea 1,490 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Swansea

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 Swansea: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

On paper, salaries run 52% lower in Lisbon. 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: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $1,112 in Swansea. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $1,777 in Swansea. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 7% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,000. Swansea is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both work as nomad bases, but Swansea delivers better value at $2,196 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Swansea hard to pass up.