Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lucerne and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Lisbon: $2,210 a month against $3,843 in Lucerne, rent and utilities included – about $19,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

183

Cost of Living Index in Lucerne
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Lucerne Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Lucerne

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,843

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lucerne and in Lisbon

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Lucerne and in Lisbon actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,843 in Lucerne versus $2,210 in Lisbon.

Lucerne $3,843
Lisbon $2,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,632 in Lucerne versus $3,275 in Lisbon.

Lucerne $5,632
Lisbon $3,275

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,421 in Lucerne versus $4,341 in Lisbon.

Lucerne $7,421
Lisbon $4,341

Living in Lucerne is roughly 74% more expensive than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lucerne 182% above, Lisbon 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$33.67 CHF 27.94

$16.65 €14.95

102.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$122 CHF 101

$61.7 €55.5

97.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$16.07 CHF 13.33

$11.36 €10.20

41.46%

Cappuccino

$6.47 CHF 5.36

$2.97 €2.67

117.85%

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

$5.90 CHF 4.89

$2.29 €2.06

157.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.13 CHF 4.26

$1.74 €1.56

194.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.21 CHF 6.81

$3.40 €3.06

141.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.41 CHF 7.81

$3.31 €2.97

184.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.21 CHF 1.83

$1.16 €1.04

90.52%

White Bread (500g)

$3.42 CHF 2.84

$1.91 €1.72

79.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.36 CHF 3.62

$1.51 €1.36

188.74%

Eggs

$7.74 CHF 6.42

$4.02 €3.61

92.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$26.80 CHF 22.23

$12.94 €11.62

107.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$26.58 CHF 22.05

$7.77 €6.98

242.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$39.75 CHF 32.97

$17.76 €15.95

123.82%

Apples (1kg)

$3.45 CHF 2.86

$2.30 €2.07

50.00%

Banana (1kg)

$2.04 CHF 1.70

$1.73 €1.56

17.92%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.71 CHF 2.25

$1.86 €1.67

45.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.78 CHF 3.97

$2.59 €2.33

84.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.97 CHF 1.64

$1.82 €1.64

8.24%

Onion (1kg)

$2.27 CHF 1.88

$1.97 €1.77

15.23%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.34 CHF 1.94

$1.47 €1.32

59.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 CHF 1.18

$0.72 €0.65

97.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.79 CHF 8.95

$6.58 €5.91

63.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.37 CHF 11.09

$5.61 €5.04

138.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.25 CHF 1.87

$1.36 €1.22

65.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.46 CHF 2.87

$2.14 €1.92

61.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$5.60 CHF 4.64

$2.33 €2.10

140.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$98.5 CHF 81.7

$44.68 €40.14

120.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.58 CHF 6.29

$3.85 €3.46

96.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.73 CHF 3.93

$1.07 €0.96

342.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$88.5 CHF 73.4

$16.46 €14.79

437.36%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 CHF 1.83

$2.20 €1.98

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

$39.2K CHF 32.5K

$34.2K €30.7K

14.74%

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

$39.0K CHF 32.4K

$38.7K €34.8K

0.82%

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

$230 CHF 191

$161 €145

42.88%

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

$31.85 CHF 26.42

$18.41 €16.54

73.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$66.5 CHF 55.1

$32.74 €29.41

102.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$91.2 CHF 75.7

$44.55 €40.02

104.71%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$46.12 CHF 38.26

$19.10 €17.16

141.47%

Cinema Ticket

$24.48 CHF 20.31

$9.60 €8.62

155.00%

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

$2,958 CHF 2,454

$668 €600

342.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$43.4K CHF 36.0K

$17.6K €15.8K

146.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$137 CHF 114

$102 €91.6

34.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$88.4 CHF 73.3

$44.46 €39.94

98.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$144 CHF 119

$98.5 €88.5

45.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$169 CHF 141

$124 €111

36.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,373 CHF 1,969

$1,608 €1,445

47.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,897 CHF 1,574

$1,190 €1,069

59.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,715 CHF 3,082

$2,812 €2,526

32.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,873 CHF 2,384

$2,013 €1,808

42.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$19.0K CHF 15.8K

$7,839 €7,042

142.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$12.0K CHF 9,987

$4,576 €4,110

163.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,398 CHF 5,308

$1,575 €1,415

306.24%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

1.72

3.85

-55.32%

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

Last update for Lucerne: October 27, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lucerne

$1.9K 49.4%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8% 37.3% $707

Groceries & Markets

Lucerne

$583 15.2%

Lisbon

$272 12.3% 53.3% $311

Eating Out

Lucerne

$499 13%

Lisbon

$243 11% 51.4% $257

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lucerne

$329 8.6%

Lisbon

$212 9.6% 35.4% $116

Clothing & Footwear

Lucerne

$242 6.3%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 31.5% $76

Getting Around

Lucerne

$152 4%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 58.4% $89

Sport & Entertainment

Lucerne

$140 3.7%

Lisbon

$64 2.9% 54.5% $76

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,373 in Lucerne and $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lucerne pays about 4.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $122 in Lucerne vs $62 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $583 vs $272 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Lucerne

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

23:29 11:29 PM

22:29 10:29 PM

1 h behind Lucerne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

81,284

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.83 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.924 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

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

USD to CHF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lucerne Lisbon 1,690 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Lucerne
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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

Lucerne vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $3,843 in Lucerne and $2,210 in Lisbon, so Lisbon is about 42% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Lucerne is about 4.1 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: $2,373 in Lucerne versus $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,958 in Lucerne versus $668 in Lisbon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 114% higher in Lucerne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,210 in Lisbon versus $3,843 in Lucerne, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Lisbon but tight or insufficient in Lucerne. 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, Lucerne and Lisbon are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Lisbon gentler on the wallet – expenses run 42% less than in Lucerne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.