Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Vredenburg

For one person, living is cheaper in Vredenburg: $983 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $14,700 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
47

Cost of Living Index in Vredenburg
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Vredenburg Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Vredenburg

🇿🇦 South Africa

$983

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Vredenburg

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $983 in Vredenburg.

Lisbon $2,210
Vredenburg $983

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $1,558 in Vredenburg.

Lisbon $3,275
Vredenburg $1,558

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $2,134 in Vredenburg.

Lisbon $4,341
Vredenburg $2,134

Living in Lisbon is roughly 125% more expensive than in Vredenburg, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Vredenburg is 28% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.95

$10.74 R 179

55.03%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$46.13 R 769

33.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$5.32 R 88.6

113.53%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$1.50 R 24.97

98.00%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$0.88 R 14.60

160.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$0.38 R 6.38

357.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

$1.24 R 20.69

174.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$1.92 R 32.07

72.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$0.95 R 15.82

22.11%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$1.28 R 21.28

49.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$0.93 R 15.42

62.37%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$2.13 R 35.46

88.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

$6.23 R 104

107.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.98

$3.73 R 62.2

108.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.95

$5.02 R 83.6

253.78%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$1.60 R 26.62

43.75%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$1.56 R 26.05

10.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$1.68 R 28.07

10.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$1.55 R 25.84

67.10%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$1.55 R 25.76

17.42%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$1.18 R 19.74

66.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.32 R 21.96

11.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.87 R 14.53

-17.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.91

$3.54 R 59.0

85.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$5.89 R 98.2

-4.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.26 R 20.92

7.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$1.56 R 25.99

37.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

$1.50 R 24.94

55.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

$36.25 R 604

23.26%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$0.63 R 10.57

511.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$1.20 R 20.00

-10.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$4.96 R 82.7

231.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$1.41 R 23.51

56.03%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$35.6K R 593.4K

-3.99%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$33.0K R 549.7K

17.40%

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

$161 €145

$115 R 1,917

40.14%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$29.34 R 489

-37.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$23.42 R 390

39.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.02

$32.91 R 548

35.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

$10.82 R 180

76.52%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$7.11 R 118

35.02%

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

$668 €600

$122 R 2,034

446.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$6,778 R 112.9K

159.90%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.6

$15.41 R 257

562.04%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.94

$21.13 R 352

110.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$42.36 R 706

132.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$30.95 R 516

299.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

$389 R 6,482

313.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

$372 R 6,194

220.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,526

$741 R 12.3K

279.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,808

$737 R 12.3K

173.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,042

$865 R 14.4K

805.83%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,110

$691 R 11.5K

562.59%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

$917 R 15.3K

71.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

10.97

-64.90%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Vredenburg: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Vredenburg

$372 37.8% 68.8% $818

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Vredenburg

$163 16.6% 40.3% $110

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Vredenburg

$135 13.7% 44.4% $108

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Vredenburg

$168 17.1% 21% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Vredenburg

$49 5% 70.2% $116

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Vredenburg

$47 4.8% 26.1% $17

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Vredenburg

$49 5% 22.7% $14

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $389 in Vredenburg. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 72% 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 $46 in Vredenburg for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $163 per month, with Vredenburg cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇿🇦 Vredenburg

🕒 Local time

18:47 6:47 PM

20:47 8:47 PM

2 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

45,986

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

100 ZAR = 6 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 16.66 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6 USD). 1 EUR = 18.55 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Vredenburg 8,440 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

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 Vredenburg: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Vredenburg differ by about 125% in total monthly costs ($2,210 vs $983 including rent). Vredenburg is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 72% 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 $389 in Vredenburg. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $122 in Vredenburg. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 67% 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.

Expats usually find Vredenburg gentler on the wallet – expenses run 56% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.