Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Zhangzhou

For one person, living is cheaper in Zhangzhou: $716 a month against $2,202 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $17,800 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
35

Cost of Living Index in Zhangzhou
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Zhangzhou Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,202

/mo nomad

Zhangzhou

🇨🇳 China

$716

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lisbon and in Zhangzhou

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,202 in Lisbon versus $716 in Zhangzhou.

Lisbon $2,202
Zhangzhou $716

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,274 in Lisbon versus $1,132 in Zhangzhou.

Lisbon $3,274
Zhangzhou $1,132

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,346 in Lisbon versus $1,547 in Zhangzhou.

Lisbon $4,346
Zhangzhou $1,547

Living in Lisbon is roughly 207% more expensive than in Zhangzhou, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lisbon is 62% above, Zhangzhou is 47% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.04 €15.15

$2.74 ¥18.35

521.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.3 €55.4

$21.73 ¥145

186.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.02 €9.80

$4.80 ¥32.11

129.58%

Cappuccino

$3.12 €2.78

$3.05 ¥20.39

2.30%

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

$2.27 €2.02

$0.47 ¥3.16

382.98%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.55

$0.27 ¥1.78

544.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.42 €3.04

$0.90 ¥6.01

280.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.74 €3.33

$2.06 ¥13.75

81.55%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.17 €1.04

$1.81 ¥12.13

-35.36%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.59 ¥10.65

16.98%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 €1.37

$0.90 ¥6.03

71.11%

Eggs

$4.06 €3.61

$1.55 ¥10.35

161.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.91 €11.49

$12.58 ¥84.1

2.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.90 €7.03

$3.15 ¥21.08

150.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.64 €15.69

$10.14 ¥67.8

73.96%

Apples (1kg)

$2.26 €2.01

$1.86 ¥12.45

21.51%

Banana (1kg)

$1.75 €1.55

$1.25 ¥8.36

40.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.89 €1.68

$1.48 ¥9.91

27.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.56 €2.27

$1.10 ¥7.38

132.73%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 €1.64

$0.73 ¥4.88

153.42%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$0.91 ¥6.11

116.48%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$0.55 ¥3.70

163.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 €0.69

$0.56 ¥3.72

37.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.71 €5.97

$3.06 ¥20.49

119.28%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.67 €5.04

$10.62 ¥71.0

-46.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.37 €1.22

$0.73 ¥4.89

87.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 €1.88

$1.58 ¥10.55

33.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.32 €2.07

$0.29 ¥1.95

700.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.43 €39.52

$16.89 ¥113

163.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.95 €3.51

$1.41 ¥9.43

180.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.05 €0.93

$0.32 ¥2.17

228.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.15 €15.26

$6.55 ¥43.79

161.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.19 €1.95

$1.12 ¥7.48

95.54%

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

$33.8K €30.0K

$19.1K ¥127.9K

76.64%

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

$38.3K €34.0K

$17.2K ¥115.3K

121.92%

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

$164 €146

$45.55 ¥305

259.63%

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

$18.48 €16.43

$9.74 ¥65.1

89.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.96 €29.32

$11.81 ¥79.0

179.09%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.87 €40.80

$41.19 ¥275

11.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.68 €16.61

$13.66 ¥91.4

36.75%

Cinema Ticket

$9.75 €8.67

$5.94 ¥39.75

64.14%

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

$684 €608

$337 ¥2,251

103.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.7K

$16.7K ¥111.4K

5.83%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 €92.3

$43.23 ¥289

139.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.20 €41.09

$30.11 ¥201

53.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.7 €88.7

$71.1 ¥476

40.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$125 €111

$72.8 ¥487

71.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,589 €1,414

$282 ¥1,886

463.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,169 €1,040

$196 ¥1,308

497.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,851 €2,536

$584 ¥3,902

388.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,993 €1,773

$361 ¥2,411

452.78%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,793 €6,932

$2,977 ¥19.9K

161.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,418 €3,930

$2,003 ¥13.4K

120.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,600 €1,423

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

3.89

-1.03%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 19, 2026

Last update for Zhangzhou: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.1%

Zhangzhou

$196 27.3% 83.3% $973

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$273 12.4%

Zhangzhou

$197 27.5% 27.8% $76

Eating Out

Lisbon

$247 11.2%

Zhangzhou

$85 11.8% 65.8% $163

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$215 9.8%

Zhangzhou

$67 9.4% 68.8% $148

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$168 7.7%

Zhangzhou

$98 13.7% 42% $71

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$65 3%

Zhangzhou

$53 7.4% 18.8% $12

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Zhangzhou

$21 2.9% 66.5% $42

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,589 in Lisbon and $282 in Zhangzhou. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $62.0 in Lisbon vs $22.00 in Zhangzhou for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $273 vs $197 per month, with Zhangzhou cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇨🇳 Zhangzhou

🕒 Local time

03:27 3:27 AM

10:27 10:27 AM

7 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

4,809,983

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Lisbon Zhangzhou 11,070 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

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Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

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Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Lisbon vs Zhangzhou: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Zhangzhou differ by about 207% in total monthly costs ($2,202 vs $716 including rent). Zhangzhou is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $3,302 in Lisbon and $1,074 in Zhangzhou to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,589 in Lisbon versus $282 in Zhangzhou. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $684 in Lisbon versus $337 in Zhangzhou. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 39% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $716 in Zhangzhou versus $2,202 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Zhangzhou but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Zhangzhou 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 Zhangzhou 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 Zhangzhou gentler on the wallet – expenses run 207% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.