Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Van

For one person, living is cheaper in Van: $956 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $15,000 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
46

Cost of Living Index in Van
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Van Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Van

🇹🇷 Turkey

$956

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Van

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $956 in Van.

Lisbon $2,210
Van $956

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $1,536 in Van.

Lisbon $3,275
Van $1,536

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $2,116 in Van.

Lisbon $4,341
Van $2,116

Living in Lisbon is roughly 131% more expensive than in Van, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Van is 30% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.95

$7.48 ₺373

122.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$34.59 ₺1,724

78.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$7.93 ₺395

43.25%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$3.57 ₺178

-16.81%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$1.14 ₺56.6

100.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.42 ₺21.18

314.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

$3.33 ₺166

2.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$3.10 ₺154

6.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$0.96 ₺47.68

20.83%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$1.00 ₺49.81

91.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$2.25 ₺112

-32.89%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$1.48 ₺73.9

171.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

$8.99 ₺448

43.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.98

$4.07 ₺203

90.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.95

$22.62 ₺1,127

-21.49%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$1.82 ₺90.9

26.37%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$1.83 ₺91.1

-5.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$1.09 ₺54.4

70.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$1.15 ₺57.4

125.22%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$0.52 ₺25.74

250.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$0.35 ₺17.45

462.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$0.74 ₺36.88

98.65%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.61 ₺30.54

18.03%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.91

$2.16 ₺108

204.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$10.36 ₺516

-45.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$2.01 ₺100.0

-32.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$2.79 ₺139

-23.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

$0.73 ₺36.60

219.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$1.30 ₺64.6

196.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$0.76 ₺37.86

40.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$7.21 ₺359

128.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$1.28 ₺64.0

71.88%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$42.2K ₺2.1M

-19.06%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$38.9K ₺1.9M

-0.47%

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

$161 €145

$79.9 ₺3,982

101.78%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$10.46 ₺522

76.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$13.39 ₺667

144.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.02

$57.0 ₺2,842

-21.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$6.49 ₺324

47.92%

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

$668 €600

$624 ₺31.1K

6.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$11.4K ₺566.2K

55.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.6

$45.86 ₺2,285

122.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.94

$33.35 ₺1,662

33.31%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$79.7 ₺3,970

23.65%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$88.8 ₺4,426

39.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

$469 ₺23.4K

242.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

$278 ₺13.9K

327.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,526

$816 ₺40.7K

244.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,808

$586 ₺29.2K

243.51%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,042

$1,491 ₺74.3K

425.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,110

$968 ₺48.2K

372.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

41.33

-90.68%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Van: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Van

$278 29.1% 76.6% $912

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Van

$229 23.9% 16% $44

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Van

$156 16.3% 35.9% $87

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Van

$104 10.9% 51.1% $109

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Van

$111 11.7% 32.8% $54

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Van

$70 7.3% 9.8% $6.3

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Van

$8 * 0.8% 87.3% $55

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 $1,608 in Lisbon and $469 in Van. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $35 in Van for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $229 per month, with Van cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇹🇷 Van

🕒 Local time

13:00 1:00 PM

16:00 4:00 PM

3 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

1,141,015

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

100 TRY = 2.01 USD

100 TRY = 1.8 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Van 4,500 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Van

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 Van: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Van differ by about 131% in total monthly costs ($2,210 vs $956 including rent). Van is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,315 in Lisbon and $1,434 in Van to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $469 in Van. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 19% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $2,210 per month in Lisbon versus $956 in Van – a 131% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

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 Van are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.