Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Warsaw

For one person, living is cheaper in Warsaw: $2,032 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $2,300 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
99

Cost of Living Index in Warsaw
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Warsaw Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Warsaw

🇵🇱 Poland

$2,032

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Warsaw

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,223 in Lisbon versus $2,032 in Warsaw.

Lisbon $2,223
Warsaw $2,032

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,271 in Lisbon versus $2,918 in Warsaw.

Lisbon $3,271
Warsaw $2,918

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,319 in Lisbon versus $3,804 in Warsaw.

Lisbon $4,319
Warsaw $3,804

Living in Lisbon is roughly 9% more expensive than in Warsaw, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 65% above, Warsaw 50% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.50 €14.67

$11.51 zł 44.72

43.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 €54.5

$60.6 zł 236

1.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.27 €10.03

$10.00 zł 38.87

12.70%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$4.17 zł 16.22

-26.62%

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

$2.26 €2.01

$2.27 zł 8.81

-0.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.54

$2.21 zł 8.61

-21.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 €3.02

$4.60 zł 17.87

-26.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 €3.02

$5.01 zł 19.47

-32.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.05 zł 4.07

6.67%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.52 zł 5.90

22.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$1.54 zł 6.00

-0.65%

Eggs

$3.96 €3.53

$3.76 zł 14.60

5.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.76 €11.35

$8.55 zł 33.22

49.24%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.02

$6.29 zł 24.43

25.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 €15.09

$14.54 zł 56.5

16.71%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$1.17 zł 4.55

94.02%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$1.73 zł 6.73

1.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$1.71 zł 6.66

8.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.28

$4.04 zł 15.71

-36.39%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$0.91 zł 3.53

104.40%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$0.86 zł 3.34

134.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.39 zł 5.39

3.60%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$0.69 zł 2.67

18.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.56 €5.83

$6.19 zł 24.04

5.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.62 €5.00

$6.46 zł 25.10

-13.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.14

$1.10 zł 4.28

16.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$1.63 zł 6.35

26.99%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

$1.11 zł 4.31

111.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

$28.52 zł 111

54.91%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.55

$2.47 zł 9.58

61.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$1.31 zł 5.08

-16.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.64 €14.81

$12.87 zł 50.0

29.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.75 zł 6.80

30.29%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$30.7K zł 119.4K

9.59%

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

$39.3K €35.0K

$30.8K zł 119.5K

27.76%

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

$167 €149

$341 zł 1,324

-50.87%

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

$18.80 €16.72

$9.00 zł 34.95

108.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.09 €29.43

$16.19 zł 62.9

104.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €40.93

$45.81 zł 178

0.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

$27.81 zł 108

-31.00%

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 €8.75

$9.04 zł 35.12

8.85%

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

$677 €602

$594 zł 2,306

14.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.1K

$14.3K zł 55.6K

18.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €90.1

$109 zł 424

-7.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 €40.70

$40.12 zł 156

14.06%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100.0 €88.9

$104 zł 405

-4.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €109

$111 zł 431

10.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 €1,436

$1,181 zł 4,587

36.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,065

$942 zł 3,659

27.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,862 €2,545

$2,074 zł 8,056

38.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,990 €1,770

$1,533 zł 5,958

29.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

$5,932 zł 23.0K

27.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

$3,836 zł 14.9K

12.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,588 €1,412

$2,049 zł 7,959

-22.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

6.68

-42.37%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Last update for Warsaw: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9%

Warsaw

$942 46.4% 21.3% $255

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$269 12.1%

Warsaw

$231 11.4% 14.3% $39

Eating Out

Lisbon

$242 10.9%

Warsaw

$223 11% 7.9% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$219 9.9%

Warsaw

$366 18% 66.9% $147

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Warsaw

$164 8.1% 1.4% $2.4

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$66 3%

Warsaw

$64 3.1% 2.7% $1.8

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

Warsaw

$42 2.1% 33.4% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,614 in Lisbon and $1,181 in Warsaw. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Warsaw 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: $61.0 in Lisbon vs $61.0 in Warsaw. Groceries flip the comparison at $269 vs $231, with Warsaw cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇵🇱 Warsaw

🕒 Local time

04:24 4:24 AM

05:24 5:24 AM

1 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

1,861,599 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Polish Złoty PLN zł

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 PLN = 0.257 USD

1 PLN = 0.229 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Warsaw 2,760 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Warsaw

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 Warsaw: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Warsaw differ by about 9% in total monthly costs ($2,223 vs $2,032 including rent). Warsaw is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 29% lower in Warsaw. 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: $1,614 in Lisbon versus $1,181 in Warsaw. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $677 in Lisbon versus $594 in Warsaw. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 17% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,032 in Warsaw versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Warsaw but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Warsaw 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 Warsaw are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Warsaw gentler on the wallet – expenses run 9% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.