Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Vilcabamba

For one person, living is cheaper in Vilcabamba: $943 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $15,200 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 Vilcabamba
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Vilcabamba Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Vilcabamba

🇪🇨 Ecuador

$943

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Vilcabamba

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $943 in Vilcabamba.

Lisbon $2,210
Vilcabamba $943

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $1,400 in Vilcabamba.

Lisbon $3,275
Vilcabamba $1,400

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $1,857 in Vilcabamba.

Lisbon $4,341
Vilcabamba $1,857

Living in Lisbon is roughly 134% more expensive than in Vilcabamba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Vilcabamba is 31% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.92

$3.53 $3.53

371.67%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.3

$29.95 $29.95

106.14%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.18

$8.06 $8.06

40.94%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.66

$2.20 $2.20

35.00%

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

$2.29 €2.05

$0.97 $0.97

136.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$1.07 $1.07

62.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.05

$2.03 $2.03

67.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$3.45 $3.45

-4.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.04 $1.04

11.54%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.71

$1.79 $1.79

6.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$1.47 $1.47

2.72%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.60

$2.48 $2.48

62.10%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.59

$8.29 $8.29

56.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.97

$5.14 $5.14

51.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.92

$7.24 $7.24

145.30%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.06

$1.87 $1.87

22.99%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$1.10 $1.10

57.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.21 $1.21

53.72%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.32

$1.13 $1.13

129.20%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$0.93 $0.93

95.70%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.09 $1.09

80.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$0.81 $0.81

81.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$1.02 $1.02

-29.41%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.90

$5.22 $5.22

26.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.02

$11.20 $11.20

-49.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.64 $1.64

-17.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$2.78 $2.78

-23.02%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.09

$0.34 $0.34

585.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.04

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.45

$1.40 $1.40

175.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$1.23 $1.23

-13.01%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.75

$10.09 $10.09

63.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.97

$0.68 $0.68

223.53%

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

$34.2K €30.6K

$22.9K $22.9K

49.48%

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

$38.7K €34.7K

$29.8K $29.8K

30.13%

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

$161 €144

$34.34 $34.34

369.48%

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

$18.41 €16.50

$13.49 $13.49

36.47%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.34

$36.53 $36.53

-10.38%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €39.92

$30.19 $30.19

47.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.11

$16.60 $16.60

15.06%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.60

$6.34 $6.34

51.42%

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

$668 €598

$341 $341

95.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$6,293 $6,293

179.90%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.4

$61.1 $61.1

67.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.85

$44.77 $44.77

-0.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.3

$92.3 $92.3

6.76%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$72.6 $72.6

70.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,441

$383 $383

319.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,066

$381 $381

212.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,520

$618 $618

355.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,804

$572 $572

252.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,025

$1,295 $1,295

505.17%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,100

$1,087 $1,087

320.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,411

$448 $448

251.69%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

10.09

-61.84%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Vilcabamba: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Vilcabamba

$381 40.4% 68% $809

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Vilcabamba

$200 21.2% 26.7% $73

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Vilcabamba

$104 11% 57.1% $139

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Vilcabamba

$84 9% 60.3% $128

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Vilcabamba

$122 12.9% 26.6% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Vilcabamba

$43 4.6% 32.8% $21

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Vilcabamba

$8.9 * 0.9% 85.9% $54

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 $383 in Vilcabamba. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays about 3.5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $30 in Vilcabamba for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $200 per month, with Vilcabamba cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇪🇨 Vilcabamba

🕒 Local time

05:06 5:06 AM

00:06 12:06 AM

5 h behind Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 USD = 0.896 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Vilcabamba 8,600 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

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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 Vilcabamba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $943 in Vilcabamba, so Vilcabamba is about 57% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Lisbon is about 3.5 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 $383 in Vilcabamba. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 36% 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 $943 in Vilcabamba – Vilcabamba is about 57% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Vilcabamba is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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

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