Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Varnamo

For one person, living is cheaper in Varnamo: $1,692 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $6,200 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Lisbon outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
81

Cost of Living Index in Varnamo
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Varnamo Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Varnamo

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,692

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Varnamo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $1,692 in Varnamo.

Lisbon $2,210
Varnamo $1,692

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $2,672 in Varnamo.

Lisbon $3,275
Varnamo $2,672

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $3,652 in Varnamo.

Lisbon $4,341
Varnamo $3,652

Living in Lisbon is roughly 31% more expensive than in Varnamo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, Varnamo 24% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.91

$13.01 SEK 128

27.98%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.3

$89.7 SEK 880

-31.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.17

$12.23 SEK 120

-7.11%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.66

$4.68 SEK 45.91

-36.54%

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

$2.29 €2.05

$2.72 SEK 26.67

-15.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$2.13 SEK 20.90

-18.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.05

$7.81 SEK 76.7

-56.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.96

$7.08 SEK 69.5

-53.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.71 SEK 16.83

-32.16%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.71

$2.50 SEK 24.51

-23.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.35

$3.54 SEK 34.78

-57.34%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.60

$4.63 SEK 45.42

-13.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.59

$12.57 SEK 123

2.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.96

$11.73 SEK 115

-33.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.91

$15.69 SEK 154

13.19%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.06

$3.11 SEK 30.55

-26.05%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$2.55 SEK 25.01

-32.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$2.82 SEK 27.66

-34.04%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.32

$4.52 SEK 44.35

-42.70%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$1.72 SEK 16.92

5.81%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.41 SEK 13.85

39.72%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$2.57 SEK 25.23

-42.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$1.52 SEK 14.95

-52.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.90

$7.81 SEK 76.7

-15.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.02

$11.14 SEK 109

-49.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.93 SEK 18.99

-29.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$2.64 SEK 25.94

-18.94%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.09

$3.19 SEK 31.33

-26.96%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.01

$74.7 SEK 733

-40.20%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.45

$5.04 SEK 49.48

-23.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$1.08 SEK 10.58

-0.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.74

$41.06 SEK 403

-59.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.97

$1.72 SEK 16.87

27.91%

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

$34.2K €30.6K

$33.6K SEK 329.5K

1.83%

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

$38.7K €34.7K

$34.2K SEK 336.1K

13.07%

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

$161 €144

$77.0 SEK 755

109.51%

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

$18.41 €16.49

$17.22 SEK 169

6.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.32

$30.45 SEK 299

7.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €39.90

$39.03 SEK 383

14.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.10

$22.33 SEK 219

-14.46%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.60

$15.36 SEK 151

-37.50%

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

$668 €598

$157 SEK 1,539

325.68%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$4,450 SEK 43.7K

295.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.4

$80.4 SEK 789

26.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.82

$56.8 SEK 557

-21.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.2

$99.9 SEK 980

-1.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$123 SEK 1,208

0.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,440

$794 SEK 7,795

102.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,066

$612 SEK 6,003

94.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,519

$1,178 SEK 11.6K

138.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,803

$985 SEK 9,664

104.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,021

$4,023 SEK 39.5K

94.83%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,098

$2,853 SEK 28.0K

60.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,411

$2,032 SEK 19.9K

-22.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

3.03

27.06%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Varnamo: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Varnamo

$612 36.2% 48.6% $578

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Varnamo

$357 21.1% 31% $84

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Varnamo

$269 15.9% 11.1% $27

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Varnamo

$125 7.4% 41.3% $88

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Varnamo

$162 9.6% 2.3% $3.8

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Varnamo

$70 4.1% 9.4% $6

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Varnamo

$98 5.8% 54.9% $35

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $794 in Varnamo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Varnamo pays 29% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $90 in Varnamo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $357 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇸🇪 Varnamo

🕒 Local time

17:47 5:47 PM

18:47 6:47 PM

1 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

19,778

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 SEK = 10.19 USD

100 SEK = 9.13 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Varnamo 2,660 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Varnamo

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 Varnamo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $1,692 in Varnamo, so Varnamo is about 23% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 22% 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: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $794 in Varnamo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $157 in Varnamo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 24% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Varnamo 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 Varnamo are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.