Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Watford

For one person, living is cheaper in Lisbon: $2,223 a month against $3,008 in Watford, rent and utilities included – about $9,400 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
147

Cost of Living Index in Watford
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Watford Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Watford

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,008

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Watford

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,223 in Lisbon versus $3,008 in Watford.

Lisbon $2,223
Watford $3,008

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,271 in Lisbon versus $4,956 in Watford.

Lisbon $3,271
Watford $4,956

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,319 in Lisbon versus $6,905 in Watford.

Lisbon $4,319
Watford $6,905

Living in Lisbon costs roughly 26% less than in Watford, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 65% above, Watford 123% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.50 €14.67

$20.92 £15.69

-21.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.3 €54.5

$90.3 £67.8

-32.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.27 €10.03

$10.39 £7.80

8.47%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$4.92 £3.69

-37.80%

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

$2.26 €2.01

$3.02 £2.27

-25.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.54

$1.83 £1.37

-5.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 €3.02

$7.93 £5.95

-57.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 €3.02

$6.54 £4.90

-48.01%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.58 £1.19

-29.11%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.65

$2.09 £1.57

-11.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$2.32 £1.74

-34.05%

Eggs

$3.96 €3.53

$4.44 £3.33

-10.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.76 €11.35

$9.48 £7.11

34.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.02

$9.60 £7.20

-17.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 €15.09

$16.61 £12.46

2.17%

Apples (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$3.15 £2.36

-27.94%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$1.42 £1.06

23.24%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$3.08 £2.31

-39.94%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.28

$3.38 £2.53

-23.96%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.60 £1.20

16.25%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.77 £1.33

14.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.39 £1.04

3.60%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$1.85 £1.38

-55.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.56 €5.83

$23.27 £17.45

-71.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.62 €5.00

$10.95 £8.21

-48.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.14

$3.19 £2.39

-59.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 €1.84

$4.02 £3.01

-48.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

$2.62 £1.97

-10.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

$45.34 £34.01

-2.56%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.99 €3.55

$5.41 £4.06

-26.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$2.68 £2.01

-59.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.64 €14.81

$49.42 £37.08

-66.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.03

$2.06 £1.55

10.68%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$37.8K £28.3K

-10.88%

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

$39.3K €35.0K

$40.0K £30.0K

-1.73%

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

$167 €149

$329 £247

-49.14%

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

$18.80 €16.72

$17.84 £13.39

5.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.09 €29.43

$40.20 £30.16

-17.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €40.93

$36.89 £27.68

24.72%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

$38.91 £29.19

-50.68%

Cinema Ticket

$9.84 €8.75

$17.48 £13.12

-43.71%

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

$677 €602

$2,586 £1,940

-73.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.9K €15.1K

$35.7K £26.8K

-52.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €90.1

$89.5 £67.1

13.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.76 €40.70

$52.4 £39.30

-12.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100.0 €88.9

$91.3 £68.5

9.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 €109

$128 £96.4

-4.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 €1,436

$1,757 £1,318

-8.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,065

$1,656 £1,242

-27.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,862 €2,545

$3,492 £2,620

-18.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,990 €1,770

$3,938 £2,954

-49.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,588 €1,412

$3,660 £2,746

-56.62%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

5.04

-23.61%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Last update for Watford: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9%

Watford

$1.7K 55.1% 38.3% $459

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$269 12.1%

Watford

$325 10.8% 20.8% $56

Eating Out

Lisbon

$242 10.9%

Watford

$330 11% 36.1% $87

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$219 9.9%

Watford

$387 12.9% 76.6% $168

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Watford

$163 5.4% 2.2% $3.7

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$66 3%

Watford

$72 2.4% 9.4% $6.2

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.8%

Watford

$75 2.5% 18.5% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,614 in Lisbon and $1,757 in Watford. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Watford pays 131% 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: $61.0 in Lisbon vs $90.0 in Watford for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $269 vs $325 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇬🇧 Watford

🕒 Local time

00:47 12:47 AM

Same time as Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

120,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Lisbon Watford 1,590 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
Watford

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 Watford: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Watford differ by about 35% in total monthly costs ($2,223 vs $3,008 including rent). Lisbon is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 131% lower in Watford. 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 $1,757 in Watford. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $677 in Lisbon versus $2,586 in Watford. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 21% higher in Watford. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,223 in Lisbon versus $3,008 in Watford, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Lisbon but tight or insufficient in Watford. The gap between the two cities makes Lisbon 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 Watford 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 Lisbon gentler on the wallet – expenses run 35% less than in Watford. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.