Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Zenica

For one person, living is cheaper in Zenica: $856 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $16,200 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
41

Cost of Living Index in Zenica
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Zenica Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Zenica

🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina

$856

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Zenica

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $856 in Zenica.

Lisbon $2,210
Zenica $856

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $1,251 in Zenica.

Lisbon $3,275
Zenica $1,251

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $1,646 in Zenica.

Lisbon $4,341
Zenica $1,646

Living in Lisbon is roughly 158% more expensive than in Zenica, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Zenica is 37% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.95

$6.91 BAM 12.14

140.96%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.5

$18.19 BAM 31.95

239.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.20

$3.89 BAM 6.84

192.03%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.67

$1.61 BAM 2.83

84.47%

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

$2.29 €2.06

$1.76 BAM 3.09

30.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$1.19 BAM 2.09

46.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.06

$1.99 BAM 3.49

70.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$2.02 BAM 3.55

63.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.31 BAM 2.30

-11.45%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.72

$0.93 BAM 1.63

105.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$1.77 BAM 3.11

-14.69%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$2.73 BAM 4.79

47.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.62

$7.80 BAM 13.69

65.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.98

$7.13 BAM 12.52

8.98%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.95

$12.57 BAM 22.08

41.29%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$1.37 BAM 2.40

67.88%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.56

$1.66 BAM 2.92

4.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$1.50 BAM 2.63

24.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.33

$1.83 BAM 3.21

41.53%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.64

$0.96 BAM 1.69

89.58%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$1.26 BAM 2.20

56.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$0.59 BAM 1.03

149.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.74 BAM 1.29

-2.70%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.91

$3.33 BAM 5.86

97.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$5.61 BAM 9.86

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$0.88 BAM 1.55

54.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$0.91 BAM 1.60

135.16%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.10

$0.89 BAM 1.57

161.80%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.14

$31.85 BAM 55.9

40.28%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.46

$1.60 BAM 2.80

140.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$0.84 BAM 1.47

27.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.79

$8.65 BAM 15.20

90.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.98

$1.53 BAM 2.69

43.79%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$30.7K BAM 53.9K

11.29%

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

$38.7K €34.8K

$20.8K BAM 36.5K

86.22%

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

$161 €145

$163 BAM 286

-0.89%

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

$18.41 €16.54

$18.42 BAM 32.34

-0.05%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.41

$23.62 BAM 41.49

38.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €40.02

$23.76 BAM 41.73

87.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

$13.13 BAM 23.06

45.47%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.62

$4.55 BAM 7.99

110.99%

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

$668 €600

$134 BAM 235

399.46%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$18.5K BAM 32.4K

-4.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.6

$49.45 BAM 86.8

106.31%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.94

$30.23 BAM 53.1

47.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.5

$91.0 BAM 160

8.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$88.7 BAM 156

39.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,445

$190 BAM 334

746.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,069

$145 BAM 255

720.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,526

$267 BAM 469

953.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,808

$204 BAM 358

888.81%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,042

$1,599 BAM 2,808

390.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,110

$1,264 BAM 2,220

261.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

$645 BAM 1,132

144.32%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

28.33%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Zenica: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Zenica

$145 17% 87.8% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Zenica

$203 23.7% 25.4% $69

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Zenica

$112 13.1% 53.8% $130

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Zenica

$205 23.9% 3.6% $7.7

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Zenica

$117 13.6% 29.7% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Zenica

$33 3.8% 48.4% $31

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Zenica

$41 4.8% 34.8% $22

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $190 in Zenica. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays about 2.4 times 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 $18 in Zenica for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $203 per month, with Zenica cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇧🇦 Zenica

🕒 Local time

22:59 10:59 PM

23:59 11:59 PM

1 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

70,533

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Bosnia and Herzegovina Convertible Mark BAM KM

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1 BAM = 0.569 USD

1 BAM = 0.512 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BAM, 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).

Bosnia and Herzegovina Convertible Mark exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.76 BAM (1 BAM = 0.569 USD). 1 EUR = 1.95 BAM (1 BAM = 0.512 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

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Lisbon Zenica 2,320 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

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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 Zenica: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,210 in Lisbon and $856 in Zenica, so Zenica is about 61% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Lisbon is about 2.4 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 $190 in Zenica. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $134 in Zenica. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 34% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Zenica 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 Zenica are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Zenica gentler on the wallet – expenses run 61% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.