Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Veles

For one person, living is cheaper in Veles: $766 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $17,300 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
37

Cost of Living Index in Veles
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Veles Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Veles

🇲🇰 North Macedonia

$766

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Veles

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $766 in Veles.

Lisbon $2,210
Veles $766

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $1,137 in Veles.

Lisbon $3,275
Veles $1,137

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $1,507 in Veles.

Lisbon $4,341
Veles $1,507

Living in Lisbon is roughly 188% more expensive than in Veles, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Veles is 44% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.92

$8.78 MKD 483

89.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.3

$18.09 MKD 995

241.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.18

$5.43 MKD 299

109.21%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.66

$1.56 MKD 85.7

90.38%

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

$2.29 €2.05

$1.33 MKD 73.3

72.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.82 MKD 45.00

112.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.05

$1.47 MKD 81.1

131.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$3.11 MKD 171

6.43%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.03 MKD 56.6

12.62%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.71

$0.53 MKD 29.29

260.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$1.51 MKD 83.3

Eggs

$4.02 €3.60

$2.48 MKD 136

62.10%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.59

$2.97 MKD 163

335.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.97

$3.93 MKD 216

97.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.92

$15.02 MKD 826

18.24%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.06

$1.44 MKD 79.1

59.72%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$1.46 MKD 80.4

18.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.34 MKD 73.7

38.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.32

$1.89 MKD 104

37.04%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$0.90 MKD 49.68

102.22%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$0.83 MKD 45.91

137.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$0.59 MKD 32.73

149.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.60 MKD 32.90

20.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.90

$3.23 MKD 178

103.72%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.02

$6.22 MKD 342

-9.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.02 MKD 56.2

33.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$1.44 MKD 79.3

48.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.09

$0.80 MKD 43.93

191.25%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.04

$23.73 MKD 1,306

88.28%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.45

$1.10 MKD 60.7

250.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$0.58 MKD 31.70

84.48%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.75

$7.67 MKD 422

114.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.97

$1.40 MKD 76.8

57.14%

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

$34.2K €30.6K

$26.5K MKD 1.5M

29.00%

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

$38.7K €34.7K

$24.8K MKD 1.4M

56.21%

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

$161 €144

$108 MKD 5,963

48.74%

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

$18.41 €16.50

$16.80 MKD 924

9.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.34

$12.21 MKD 672

168.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €39.92

$25.03 MKD 1,377

77.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.11

$17.81 MKD 980

7.24%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.60

$3.37 MKD 185

184.87%

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

$668 €598

$214 MKD 11.8K

211.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$5,661 MKD 311.5K

211.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.4

$21.40 MKD 1,177

376.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.85

$18.01 MKD 991

146.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.3

$73.6 MKD 4,047

33.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$109 MKD 5,977

13.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,441

$223 MKD 12.2K

622.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,066

$169 MKD 9,289

604.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,520

$290 MKD 15.9K

871.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,804

$232 MKD 12.8K

768.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,025

$1,181 MKD 65.0K

563.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,100

$940 MKD 51.7K

386.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,411

$586 MKD 32.2K

168.85%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

4.23

-8.98%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Veles: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Veles

$169 22% 85.8% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Veles

$170 22.2% 37.4% $102

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Veles

$127 16.6% 47.5% $115

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Veles

$137 17.9% 35.3% $75

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Veles

$100 13% 39.9% $66

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Veles

$32 4.1% 50.2% $32

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Veles

$31 4% 51.1% $32

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $223 in Veles. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays about 2.7 times 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 in Lisbon vs $18 in Veles for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $170 per month, with Veles cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇲🇰 Veles

🕒 Local time

03:08 3:08 AM

04:08 4:08 AM

1 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

43,716

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

North Macedonian Denar MKD ден

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MKD = 1.82 USD

100 MKD = 1.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MKD, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

North Macedonian Denar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 55.02 MKD (100 MKD = 1.82 USD). 1 EUR = 61.25 MKD (100 MKD = 1.63 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Veles 2,630 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

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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 Veles: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $766 in Veles, so Veles is about 65% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Lisbon is about 2.7 times higher, 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: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $223 in Veles. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $214 in Veles. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 60% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

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

Expats usually find Veles 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.