Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mamaia and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Mamaia: $1,039 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $14,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

50

Cost of Living Index in Mamaia
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Mamaia Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Mamaia

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,039

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mamaia 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 Mamaia and in Lisbon actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,039 in Mamaia versus $2,210 in Lisbon.

Mamaia $1,039
Lisbon $2,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,585 in Mamaia versus $3,275 in Lisbon.

Mamaia $1,585
Lisbon $3,275

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,132 in Mamaia versus $4,341 in Lisbon.

Mamaia $2,132
Lisbon $4,341

Living in Mamaia costs roughly 53% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mamaia is 24% below, Lisbon is 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.00 RON 47.93

$16.65 €14.92

-39.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.70 RON 224

$61.7 €55.3

-24.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.73 RON 37.08

$11.36 €10.18

-31.95%

Cappuccino

$2.70 RON 12.93

$2.97 €2.66

-9.09%

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

$2.00 RON 9.59

$2.29 €2.05

-12.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.71 RON 8.21

$1.74 €1.56

-1.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.28 RON 10.95

$3.40 €3.05

-32.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.69 RON 12.92

$3.31 €2.97

-18.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 RON 7.36

$1.16 €1.04

31.90%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 RON 5.99

$1.91 €1.71

-34.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 RON 7.73

$1.51 €1.36

6.62%

Eggs

$3.33 RON 15.98

$4.02 €3.60

-17.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.34 RON 39.99

$12.94 €11.59

-35.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.76 RON 32.42

$7.77 €6.97

-13.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.83 RON 47.15

$17.76 €15.92

-44.65%

Apples (1kg)

$1.13 RON 5.43

$2.30 €2.06

-50.87%

Banana (1kg)

$1.57 RON 7.54

$1.73 €1.55

-9.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 RON 7.66

$1.86 €1.66

-13.98%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.19 RON 10.51

$2.59 €2.32

-15.44%

Potato (1kg)

$0.86 RON 4.13

$1.82 €1.63

-52.75%

Onion (1kg)

$0.95 RON 4.58

$1.97 €1.76

-51.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 RON 4.29

$1.47 €1.32

-39.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.84 RON 4.03

$0.72 €0.65

16.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.03 RON 28.92

$6.58 €5.90

-8.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.16 RON 29.56

$5.61 €5.02

9.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.06 RON 5.10

$1.36 €1.22

-22.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 RON 8.05

$2.14 €1.91

-21.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.67 RON 3.22

$2.33 €2.09

-71.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.09 RON 96.3

$44.68 €40.04

-55.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.78 RON 3.72

$3.85 €3.45

-79.74%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.76 RON 3.63

$1.07 €0.96

-28.97%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.75 RON 32.36

$16.46 €14.75

-58.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.60 RON 7.67

$2.20 €1.97

-27.27%

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

$27.6K RON 132.2K

$34.2K €30.6K

-19.39%

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

$27.6K RON 132.3K

$38.7K €34.7K

-28.77%

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

$145 RON 694

$161 €144

-10.18%

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

$7.99 RON 38.32

$18.41 €16.50

-56.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.19 RON 44.09

$32.74 €29.34

-71.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.87 RON 201

$44.55 €39.92

-6.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.21 RON 92.1

$19.10 €17.11

0.58%

Cinema Ticket

$7.03 RON 33.73

$9.60 €8.60

-26.77%

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

$434 RON 2,081

$668 €598

-35.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,018 RON 33.7K

$17.6K €15.8K

-60.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$67.1 RON 322

$102 €91.4

-34.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.98 RON 197

$44.46 €39.85

-7.83%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.5 RON 357

$98.5 €88.3

-24.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$94.4 RON 453

$124 €111

-23.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$386 RON 1,853

$1,608 €1,441

-75.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$294 RON 1,410

$1,190 €1,066

-75.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$585 RON 2,807

$2,812 €2,520

-79.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$444 RON 2,128

$2,013 €1,804

-77.96%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,887 RON 9,050

$7,839 €7,025

-75.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,480 RON 7,099

$4,576 €4,100

-67.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,411

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.5

3.85

68.83%

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

Last update for Mamaia: October 24, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mamaia

$294 28.3%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8% 305% $896

Groceries & Markets

Mamaia

$208 20%

Lisbon

$272 12.3% 31.2% $65

Eating Out

Mamaia

$167 16.1%

Lisbon

$243 11% 45.1% $75

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mamaia

$162 15.6%

Lisbon

$212 9.6% 31.1% $50

Clothing & Footwear

Mamaia

$125 12%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 33.1% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Mamaia

$56 5.4%

Lisbon

$64 2.9% 13.9% $7.8

Getting Around

Mamaia

$27 2.6%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 131% $36

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $386 in Mamaia and $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $47 in Mamaia vs $62 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $208 vs $272 per month, with Mamaia cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Mamaia

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

08:27 8:27 AM

06:27 6:27 AM

2 h behind Mamaia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

441

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.209 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 4.8 RON (1 RON = 0.209 USD). 1 EUR = 5.34 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mamaia Lisbon 3,180 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Mamaia
Lisbon

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

Mamaia vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,039 in Mamaia and $2,210 in Lisbon, so Mamaia is about 53% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,558 in Mamaia and $3,315 in Lisbon 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: $386 in Mamaia versus $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $434 in Mamaia 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 31% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,039 in Mamaia versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mamaia but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Mamaia the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Mamaia is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Lisbon, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Mamaia gentler on the wallet – expenses run 53% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.