Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Taiyuan

For one person, living is cheaper in Taiyuan: $589 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $19,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
28

Cost of Living Index in Taiyuan
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Taiyuan Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Taiyuan

🇨🇳 China

$589

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Taiyuan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,223 in Lisbon versus $589 in Taiyuan.

Lisbon $2,223
Taiyuan $589

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,271 in Lisbon versus $913 in Taiyuan.

Lisbon $3,271
Taiyuan $913

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,319 in Lisbon versus $1,238 in Taiyuan.

Lisbon $4,319
Taiyuan $1,238

Living in Lisbon is roughly 278% more expensive than in Taiyuan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 65% above, Taiyuan is 56% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.50 €14.67

$2.28 ¥15.23

623.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 €54.5

$14.73 ¥98.5

315.82%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.27 €10.03

$4.40 ¥29.41

156.14%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.64 ¥17.62

15.91%

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

$2.26 €2.01

$0.47 ¥3.12

380.85%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.54

$0.29 ¥1.92

496.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 €3.02

$1.22 ¥8.13

177.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 €3.02

$2.15 ¥14.38

58.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 €1.00

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.65

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$0.83 ¥5.52

84.34%

Eggs

$3.96 €3.53

$1.01 ¥6.76

292.08%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.76 €11.35

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.02

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 €15.09

$13.02 ¥87.0

30.34%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$1.87 ¥12.52

21.39%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$1.38 ¥9.21

26.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$0.81 ¥5.41

128.40%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.28

$1.16 ¥7.77

121.55%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$0.48 ¥3.20

287.50%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$0.29 ¥1.91

596.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$0.46 ¥3.08

78.26%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.56 €5.83

$2.95 ¥19.75

122.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.62 €5.00

$7.56 ¥50.6

-25.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.14

$0.87 ¥5.80

47.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$1.45 ¥9.72

42.76%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

$0.31 ¥2.08

658.06%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

$13.65 ¥91.3

223.66%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.55

$1.18 ¥7.90

238.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$0.23 ¥1.53

373.91%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.64 €14.81

$3.73 ¥24.91

346.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.25 ¥8.34

82.40%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$20.0K ¥133.6K

68.54%

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

$39.3K €35.0K

$17.5K ¥117.3K

124.06%

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

$167 €149

$94.3 ¥631

77.58%

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

$18.80 €16.72

$10.27 ¥68.7

83.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.09 €29.43

$12.74 ¥85.2

159.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €40.93

$45.17 ¥302

1.86%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

$8.76 ¥58.6

119.06%

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 €8.75

$6.64 ¥44.37

48.19%

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

$677 €602

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.1K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €90.1

$27.60 ¥185

266.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 €40.70

$67.2 ¥449

-31.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100.0 €88.9

$74.0 ¥495

35.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €109

$59.4 ¥397

106.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 €1,436

$223 ¥1,491

623.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,065

$114 ¥760

952.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,862 €2,545

$556 ¥3,719

414.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,990 €1,770

$259 ¥1,733

667.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

$2,629 ¥17.6K

188.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

$1,252 ¥8,368

244.14%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,588 €1,412

$928 ¥6,202

71.16%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

3.83

0.52%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Last update for Taiyuan: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9%

Taiyuan

$114 19.3% 90.5% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$269 12.1%

Taiyuan

$103 * 17.5% 61.8% $166

Eating Out

Lisbon

$242 10.9%

Taiyuan

$76 13% 68.4% $166

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$219 9.9%

Taiyuan

$117 19.9% 46.5% $102

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Taiyuan

$103 17.4% 38.3% $64

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$66 3%

Taiyuan

$58 9.9% 11% $7.3

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

Taiyuan

$17 2.9% 72.7% $46

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 $1,614 in Lisbon and $223 in Taiyuan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 71% 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 $15.00 in Taiyuan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $269 vs $103 per month, with Taiyuan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇨🇳 Taiyuan

🕒 Local time

13:39 1:39 PM

20:39 8:39 PM

7 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

3,525,300

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Taiyuan 9,620 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

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City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

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Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Lisbon vs Taiyuan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Taiyuan differ by about 278% in total monthly costs ($2,223 vs $589 including rent). Taiyuan is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 71% 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 $223 in Taiyuan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 162% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,223 per month in Lisbon versus $589 in Taiyuan – a 278% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $589 in Taiyuan versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Taiyuan but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Taiyuan 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 Taiyuan 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 Taiyuan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 278% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.