Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Vratsa

For one person, living is cheaper in Vratsa: $826 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $16,600 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
40

Cost of Living Index in Vratsa
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Vratsa Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Vratsa

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$826

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Vratsa

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $826 in Vratsa.

Lisbon $2,210
Vratsa $826

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $1,255 in Vratsa.

Lisbon $3,275
Vratsa $1,255

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $1,684 in Vratsa.

Lisbon $4,341
Vratsa $1,684

Living in Lisbon is roughly 167% more expensive than in Vratsa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Vratsa is 39% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.85

$8.49 BGN 14.85

96.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.1

$28.23 BGN 49.41

118.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.13

$5.65 BGN 9.88

101.06%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.65

$2.22 BGN 3.88

33.78%

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

$2.29 €2.04

$1.56 BGN 2.73

46.79%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.55

$0.82 BGN 1.44

112.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.04

$1.68 BGN 2.94

102.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.95

$2.03 BGN 3.55

63.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.03

$1.33 BGN 2.32

-12.78%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.71

$0.84 BGN 1.47

127.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.35

$1.35 BGN 2.36

11.85%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.59

$2.28 BGN 3.99

76.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.54

$9.35 BGN 16.36

38.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.94

$5.62 BGN 9.83

38.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.85

$8.41 BGN 14.71

111.18%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.06

$1.25 BGN 2.19

84.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$1.64 BGN 2.87

5.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.11 BGN 1.94

67.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.31

$1.73 BGN 3.02

49.71%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.62

$0.98 BGN 1.72

85.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$0.71 BGN 1.25

177.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$0.56 BGN 0.98

162.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.54 BGN 0.95

33.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.87

$3.49 BGN 6.10

88.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.00

$5.22 BGN 9.13

7.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.08 BGN 1.90

25.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$1.74 BGN 3.04

22.99%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.08

$0.82 BGN 1.44

184.15%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €39.86

$25.24 BGN 44.17

77.02%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.43

$0.88 BGN 1.54

337.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.95

$0.62 BGN 1.08

72.58%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.69

$6.45 BGN 11.28

155.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.96

$1.56 BGN 2.73

41.03%

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

$34.2K €30.5K

$30.4K BGN 53.3K

12.34%

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

$38.7K €34.5K

$23.4K BGN 41.0K

65.41%

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

$161 €144

$94.3 BGN 165

70.91%

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

$18.41 €16.43

$12.63 BGN 22.09

45.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.21

$12.23 BGN 21.40

167.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €39.74

$22.92 BGN 40.11

94.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.04

$19.29 BGN 33.77

-0.98%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.56

$5.80 BGN 10.15

65.52%

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

$668 €596

$223 BGN 390

199.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.7K

$2,257 BGN 3,949

680.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.0

$30.65 BGN 53.6

232.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.67

$19.41 BGN 33.97

129.06%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €87.9

$64.4 BGN 113

52.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €110

$50.4 BGN 88.2

145.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,435

$337 BGN 590

376.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,062

$253 BGN 444

369.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,509

$550 BGN 962

411.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,796

$401 BGN 703

401.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €6,994

$1,309 BGN 2,291

498.81%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,082

$1,114 BGN 1,950

310.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,405

$1,080 BGN 1,890

45.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

2.99

28.76%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Vratsa: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Vratsa

$253 30.7% 78.7% $937

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Vratsa

$179 21.7% 34.2% $93

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Vratsa

$133 16.2% 45% $109

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Vratsa

$119 14.4% 43.9% $93

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Vratsa

$74 9% 55.3% $92

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Vratsa

$35 4.2% 45.8% $29

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Vratsa

$33 3.9% 48.6% $31

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $337 in Vratsa. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 46% 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 $28 in Vratsa for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $179 per month, with Vratsa cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇧🇬 Vratsa

🕒 Local time

13:52 1:52 PM

15:52 3:52 PM

2 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

60,877

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 BGN = 0.571 USD

1 BGN = 0.512 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Lisbon Vratsa 2,770 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

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City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

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Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Lisbon vs Vratsa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $826 in Vratsa, so Vratsa is about 63% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 46% 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: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $337 in Vratsa. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $223 in Vratsa. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 52% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $826 in Vratsa versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Vratsa but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Vratsa 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 Vratsa are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Vratsa gentler on the wallet – expenses run 63% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.