Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Vac

For one person, living is cheaper in Vac: $1,333 a month against $2,202 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $10,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
Learn more

Lisbon Living Index
64

Cost of Living Index in Vac
Learn more

Vac Living Index

Jump to prices

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,202

/mo nomad

Vac

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,333

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Vac

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,202 in Lisbon versus $1,333 in Vac.

Lisbon $2,202
Vac $1,333

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,274 in Lisbon versus $2,250 in Vac.

Lisbon $3,274
Vac $2,250

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,346 in Lisbon versus $3,167 in Vac.

Lisbon $4,346
Vac $3,167

Living in Lisbon is roughly 65% more expensive than in Vac, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Vac is 2% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.04 €15.15

$19.05 Ft 6,154

-10.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.3 €55.4

$111 Ft 35.9K

-43.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.02 €9.80

$9.10 Ft 2,939

21.10%

Cappuccino

$3.12 €2.78

$2.47 Ft 798

26.32%

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

$2.27 €2.02

$1.55 Ft 499

46.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.55

$1.25 Ft 405

39.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.42 €3.04

$2.29 Ft 739

49.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.74 €3.33

$2.34 Ft 755

59.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 €1.04

$1.27 Ft 409

-7.87%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.43 Ft 461

30.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 €1.37

$2.35 Ft 758

-34.47%

Eggs

$4.06 €3.61

$3.22 Ft 1,040

26.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.91 €11.49

$8.78 Ft 2,836

47.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.03

$6.01 Ft 1,941

31.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.64 €15.69

$16.46 Ft 5,319

7.17%

Apples (1kg)

$2.26 €2.01

$1.87 Ft 604

20.86%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$2.13 Ft 687

-17.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.89 €1.68

$2.08 Ft 673

-9.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.56 €2.27

$2.39 Ft 771

7.11%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$1.67 Ft 541

10.78%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$1.10 Ft 355

79.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.33 Ft 431

9.02%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 €0.69

$0.50 Ft 163

54.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.71 €5.97

$7.82 Ft 2,525

-14.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.67 €5.04

$5.08 Ft 1,642

11.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 €1.22

$0.84 Ft 272

63.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 €1.88

$2.23 Ft 720

-5.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.32 €2.07

$1.36 Ft 439

70.59%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.43 €39.52

$26.23 Ft 8,474

69.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.95 €3.51

$3.30 Ft 1,065

19.70%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.05 €0.93

$1.66 Ft 538

-36.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.15 €15.26

$19.40 Ft 6,268

-11.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.19 €1.95

$1.94 Ft 627

12.89%

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

$33.8K €30.0K

$25.6K Ft 8.3M

31.78%

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

$38.3K €34.0K

$38.3K Ft 12.4M

-0.19%

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

$164 €146

$154 Ft 49.7K

6.46%

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

$18.48 €16.43

$24.43 Ft 7,891

-24.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.96 €29.32

$21.58 Ft 6,971

52.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.87 €40.80

$52.9 Ft 17.1K

-13.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.68 €16.61

$19.41 Ft 6,272

-3.76%

Cinema Ticket

$9.75 €8.67

$7.92 Ft 2,559

23.11%

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

$684 €608

$250 Ft 80.8K

173.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.7K

$8,440 Ft 2.7M

108.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 €92.3

$88.8 Ft 28.7K

16.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.20 €41.09

$32.27 Ft 10.4K

43.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.7 €88.7

$86.1 Ft 27.8K

15.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$125 €111

$104 Ft 33.5K

20.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,589 €1,414

$514 Ft 165.9K

209.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,169 €1,040

$410 Ft 132.4K

185.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,851 €2,536

$838 Ft 270.7K

240.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,993 €1,773

$779 Ft 251.6K

155.95%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,793 €6,932

$3,061 Ft 989.0K

154.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,418 €3,930

$2,600 Ft 839.9K

69.94%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,600 €1,423

$1,398 Ft 451.6K

14.46%

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 19, 2026

Last update for Vac: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.1%

Vac

$410 30.8% 65% $759

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$273 12.4%

Vac

$235 17.6% 14% $38

Eating Out

Lisbon

$247 11.2%

Vac

$237 17.8% 4.4% $11

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$215 9.8%

Vac

$200 15% 7.1% $15

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.7%

Vac

$140 10.5% 17% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$65 3%

Vac

$69 5.2% 5.1% $3.3

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Vac

$43 3.3% 31.2% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,589 in Lisbon and $514 in Vac. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 14% 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: $62.0 in Lisbon vs $111 in Vac. Groceries flip the comparison at $273 vs $235, with Vac cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇭🇺 Vac

🕒 Local time

17:04 5:04 PM

18:04 6:04 PM

1 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

34,001

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lisbon Vac 2,480 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Vac

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 Vac: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Vac differ by about 65% in total monthly costs ($2,202 vs $1,333 including rent). Vac is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 14% 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: $1,589 in Lisbon versus $514 in Vac. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $684 in Lisbon versus $250 in Vac. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 16% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,333 in Vac versus $2,202 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Vac but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Vac 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 Vac 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 Vac gentler on the wallet – expenses run 65% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.