Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Tema

For one person, living is cheaper in Tema: $734 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $17,900 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
36

Cost of Living Index in Tema
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Tema Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Tema

🇬🇭 Ghana

$734

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Tema

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,223 in Lisbon versus $734 in Tema.

Lisbon $2,223
Tema $734

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,271 in Lisbon versus $1,166 in Tema.

Lisbon $3,271
Tema $1,166

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,319 in Lisbon versus $1,598 in Tema.

Lisbon $4,319
Tema $1,598

Living in Lisbon is roughly 203% more expensive than in Tema, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 65% above, Tema is 46% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.50 €14.67

$6.64 GHS 77.2

148.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 €54.5

$28.26 GHS 329

116.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.27 €10.03

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$4.97 GHS 57.9

-38.43%

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

$2.26 €2.01

$0.88 GHS 10.23

156.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.54

$0.28 GHS 3.25

517.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 €3.02

$3.22 GHS 37.45

5.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 €3.02

$2.57 GHS 29.85

32.30%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 €1.00

$3.11 GHS 36.13

-63.99%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.52 GHS 17.72

22.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$2.02 GHS 23.45

-24.26%

Eggs

$3.96 €3.53

$2.33 GHS 27.08

69.96%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.76 €11.35

$4.27 GHS 49.67

198.83%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.02

$3.12 GHS 36.31

153.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 €15.09

$3.48 GHS 40.50

387.64%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$2.52 GHS 29.29

-9.92%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$2.18 GHS 25.37

-19.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$2.08 GHS 24.19

-11.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.28

$3.32 GHS 38.65

-22.59%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$3.43 GHS 39.94

-45.77%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$2.78 GHS 32.37

-27.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

$0.40 GHS 4.64

260.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$0.71 GHS 8.30

15.49%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.56 €5.83

$1.24 GHS 14.37

429.03%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.62 €5.00

$8.72 GHS 101

-35.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.14

$2.15 GHS 24.97

-40.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$2.95 GHS 34.30

-29.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

$1.72 GHS 20.06

36.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

$40.78 GHS 474

8.34%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.55

$2.18 GHS 25.35

83.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$0.44 GHS 5.11

147.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.64 €14.81

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.19 GHS 13.84

91.60%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

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

$39.3K €35.0K

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

$167 €149

$77.4 GHS 900

116.42%

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

$18.80 €16.72

$14.74 GHS 171

27.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.09 €29.43

$80.4 GHS 935

-58.85%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €40.93

$23.40 GHS 272

96.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 €8.75

$8.70 GHS 101

13.10%

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

$677 €602

$167 GHS 1,946

304.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.1K

$2,522 GHS 29.3K

570.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €90.1

$13.00 GHS 151

678.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 €40.70

$15.35 GHS 179

198.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100.0 €88.9

$42.57 GHS 495

134.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €109

$31.35 GHS 365

291.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 €1,436

$129 GHS 1,503

1149.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,065

$70.7 GHS 823

1592.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,862 €2,545

$433 GHS 5,037

560.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,990 €1,770

$206 GHS 2,401

863.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

$10.2K GHS 118.1K

-25.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

$6,098 GHS 70.9K

-29.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,588 €1,412

$423 GHS 4,924

275.00%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

-89.00%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Last update for Tema: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9%

Tema

$71 9.6% 94.1% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$269 12.1%

Tema

$213 29.1% 20.8% $56

Eating Out

Lisbon

$242 10.9%

Tema

$139 * 18.9% 42.8% $104

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$219 9.9%

Tema

$173 23.5% 21.4% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Tema

$46 6.3% 72.3% $120

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$66 3%

Tema

$41 5.6% 37.9% $25

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

Tema

$52 7.1% 17.4% $11

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 $129 in Tema. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 275% 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 $28.00 in Tema for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $269 vs $213 per month, with Tema cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇬🇭 Tema

🕒 Local time

13:33 1:33 PM

12:33 12:33 PM

1 h behind Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

160,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Ghanaian Cedi GHS ₵

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 GHS = 8.6 USD

100 GHS = 7.65 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GHS, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Ghanaian Cedi exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 11.63 GHS (100 GHS = 8.6 USD). 1 EUR = 13.07 GHS (100 GHS = 7.65 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lisbon Tema 3,790 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Tema

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 Tema: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Tema differ by about 203% in total monthly costs ($2,223 vs $734 including rent). Tema is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 275% 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 $129 in Tema. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $677 in Lisbon versus $167 in Tema. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 26% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $734 in Tema versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Tema but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Tema 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 Tema 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 Tema gentler on the wallet – expenses run 203% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.