Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Townsville

For one person, living is cheaper in Lisbon: $2,206 a month against $2,606 in Townsville, rent and utilities included – about $4,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

106

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
125

Cost of Living Index in Townsville
Learn more

Townsville Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,206

/mo nomad

Townsville

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,606

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Townsville

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,206 in Lisbon versus $2,606 in Townsville.

Lisbon $2,206
Townsville $2,606

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,276 in Lisbon versus $3,842 in Townsville.

Lisbon $3,276
Townsville $3,842

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,346 in Lisbon versus $5,078 in Townsville.

Lisbon $4,346
Townsville $5,078

Living in Lisbon costs roughly 15% less than in Townsville, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 63% above, Townsville 93% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.86 €15.02

$22.82 A$32.52

-26.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.0 €54.4

$70.4 A$100

-13.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.98 €9.78

$12.16 A$17.33

-9.70%

Cappuccino

$3.05 €2.72

$3.58 A$5.10

-14.80%

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

$2.28 €2.03

$2.64 A$3.76

-13.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 €1.50

$2.47 A$3.52

-31.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.44 €3.06

$8.53 A$12.16

-59.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 €3.48

$7.20 A$10.27

-45.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 €1.02

$1.77 A$2.53

-35.03%

White Bread (500g)

$1.89 €1.68

$2.27 A$3.23

-16.74%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 €1.34

$1.36 A$1.94

10.29%

Eggs

$4.12 €3.67

$5.23 A$7.45

-21.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.01 €11.59

$8.16 A$11.63

59.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.04 €7.17

$9.89 A$14.09

-18.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.89 €15.94

$13.37 A$19.06

33.81%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$4.13 A$5.89

-45.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.74 €1.55

$2.70 A$3.85

-35.56%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.82 €1.62

$3.58 A$5.10

-49.16%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.69 €2.39

$4.29 A$6.11

-37.30%

Potato (1kg)

$1.77 €1.57

$2.64 A$3.76

-32.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 €1.73

$2.85 A$4.07

-31.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.30

$2.30 A$3.28

-36.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 €0.68

$3.26 A$4.64

-76.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.66 €5.93

$30.58 A$43.58

-78.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.64 €5.02

$10.71 A$15.26

-47.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 €1.15

$6.93 A$9.88

-81.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$8.54 A$12.17

-74.94%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.30 €2.05

$2.11 A$3.01

9.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.02 €39.21

$55.2 A$78.7

-20.28%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.98 €3.55

$2.62 A$3.74

51.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 €0.57

$2.04 A$2.91

-68.63%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$18.93 €16.86

$44.02 A$62.7

-57.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.24 A$1.76

83.87%

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

$33.4K €29.7K

$28.1K A$40.1K

18.57%

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

$38.5K €34.3K

$27.8K A$39.7K

38.27%

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

$158 €141

$383 A$545

-58.67%

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

$17.54 €15.62

$36.42 A$51.9

-51.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.18 €27.78

$66.0 A$94.1

-52.77%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.64 €39.77

$55.4 A$78.9

-19.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.98 €16.91

$19.73 A$28.11

-3.80%

Cinema Ticket

$9.58 €8.53

$15.23 A$21.71

-37.10%

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

$674 €600

$2,084 A$2,970

-67.68%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.7K €16.7K

$12.2K A$17.5K

52.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.0

$92.5 A$132

10.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.90 €40.89

$70.1 A$99.9

-34.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 €91.0

$164 A$233

-37.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 €109

$131 A$187

-7.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,641 €1,461

$1,286 A$1,832

27.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,187 €1,058

$1,025 A$1,460

15.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,825 €2,516

$2,313 A$3,296

22.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,018 €1,798

$1,845 A$2,630

9.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,836 €6,980

$4,976 A$7,091

57.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,701 €4,188

$4,112 A$5,860

14.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,687 €1,503

$4,066 A$5,794

-58.51%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.82

5.68

-32.75%

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

Last update for Lisbon: November 1, 2026

Last update for Townsville: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Townsville

$1K 39.3% 13.7% $163

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$275 12.5%

Townsville

$389 14.9% 41.5% $114

Eating Out

Lisbon

$245 11.1%

Townsville

$340 13% 38.4% $94

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$207 9.4%

Townsville

$485 18.6% 135% $278

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.6%

Townsville

$206 7.9% 23% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Townsville

$86 3.3% 34.5% $22

Getting Around

Lisbon

$60 2.7%

Townsville

$77 2.9% 26.7% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,641 in Lisbon and $1,286 in Townsville. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Townsville pays about 2.4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $61 in Lisbon vs $70 in Townsville for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $275 vs $389 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇦🇺 Townsville

🕒 Local time

16:22 4:22 PM

02:22 2:22 AM

10 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

173,724

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 AUD = 0.702 USD

1 AUD = 0.624 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 0.891 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.702 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.624 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Townsville 16,850 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
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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 Townsville: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,206 in Lisbon and $2,606 in Townsville, so Lisbon is about 15% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 59% 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: $1,641 in Lisbon versus $1,286 in Townsville. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $674 in Lisbon versus $2,084 in Townsville. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 42% higher in Townsville. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Lisbon gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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 Townsville are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Lisbon wins on affordability, Townsville on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.