Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Margate and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Margate: $889 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $16,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

43

Cost of Living Index in Margate
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Margate Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Margate

🇿🇦 South Africa

$889

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $889 in Margate versus $2,223 in Lisbon.

Margate $889
Lisbon $2,223

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,410 in Margate versus $3,271 in Lisbon.

Margate $1,410
Lisbon $3,271

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,932 in Margate versus $4,319 in Lisbon.

Margate $1,932
Lisbon $4,319

Living in Margate costs roughly 60% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Margate is 34% below, Lisbon is 65% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.83 R 129

$16.50 €14.67

-52.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.95 R 592

$61.3 €54.5

-41.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.97 R 98.4

$11.27 €10.03

-47.03%

Cappuccino

$1.80 R 29.58

$3.06 €2.72

-41.18%

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

$1.03 R 16.99

$2.26 €2.01

-54.42%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.76 R 12.60

$1.73 €1.54

-56.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.43 R 39.96

$3.39 €3.02

-28.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 R 37.38

$3.40 €3.02

-33.24%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.02 R 16.77

$1.12 €1.00

-8.93%

White Bread (500g)

$0.92 R 15.10

$1.86 €1.65

-50.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.05 R 17.37

$1.53 €1.36

-31.37%

Eggs

$2.36 R 38.87

$3.96 €3.53

-40.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.98 R 82.0

$12.76 €11.35

-60.97%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.37 R 55.6

$7.90 €7.02

-57.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.05 R 99.7

$16.97 €15.09

-64.35%

Apples (1kg)

$1.15 R 18.87

$2.27 €2.02

-49.34%

Banana (1kg)

$1.19 R 19.54

$1.75 €1.55

-32.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.05 R 17.37

$1.85 €1.64

-43.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.44 R 23.78

$2.57 €2.28

-43.97%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 R 17.78

$1.86 €1.65

-41.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.30 R 21.43

$2.02 €1.80

-35.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 R 17.96

$1.44 €1.28

-24.31%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.95 R 15.63

$0.82 €0.73

15.85%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.58 R 26.04

$6.56 €5.83

-75.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.49 R 57.5

$5.62 €5.00

-37.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 R 23.92

$1.28 €1.14

13.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.81 R 29.90

$2.07 €1.84

-12.56%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.52 R 25.09

$2.35 €2.09

-35.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.41 R 6.75

$3.99 €3.55

-89.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.74 R 12.23

$1.09 €0.97

-32.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.46 R 123

$16.64 €14.81

-55.17%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.35 R 22.31

$2.28 €2.03

-40.79%

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

$35.5K R 584.5K

$33.7K €30.0K

5.35%

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

$30.9K R 508.8K

$39.3K €35.0K

-21.40%

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

$60.9 R 1,003

$167 €149

-63.65%

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

$18.27 R 301

$18.80 €16.72

-2.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.36 R 550

$33.09 €29.43

0.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.27 R 532

$46.01 €40.93

-29.86%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.59 R 174

$19.19 €17.07

-44.82%

Cinema Ticket

$4.12 R 68.0

$9.84 €8.75

-58.13%

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

$304 R 5,016

$677 €602

-55.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,507 R 123.7K

$16.9K €15.1K

-55.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.2 R 893

$101 €90.1

-46.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$18.33 R 302

$45.76 €40.70

-59.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.8 R 1,183

$100.0 €88.9

-28.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$48.57 R 800

$123 €109

-60.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$396 R 6,527

$1,614 €1,436

-75.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$366 R 6,028

$1,197 €1,065

-69.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$741 R 12.2K

$2,862 €2,545

-74.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$722 R 11.9K

$1,990 €1,770

-63.75%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$888 R 14.6K

$7,577 €6,740

-88.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$666 R 11.0K

$4,307 €3,831

-84.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,528 R 25.2K

$1,588 €1,412

-3.74%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.78

3.85

205.97%

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

Last update for Margate: October 12, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Margate

$366 41.2%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9% 227% $831

Groceries & Markets

Margate

$147 16.5%

Lisbon

$269 12.1% 83.7% $123

Eating Out

Margate

$126 14.2%

Lisbon

$242 10.9% 92.3% $116

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Margate

$113 12.7%

Lisbon

$219 9.9% 95% $107

Clothing & Footwear

Margate

$87 9.8%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 91.7% $80

Sport & Entertainment

Margate

$41 4.6%

Lisbon

$66 3% 62.1% $25

Getting Around

Margate

$10 * 1.2%

Lisbon

$63 2.8% 517% $53

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $396 in Margate and $1,614 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 4% 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: $36.00 in Margate vs $61.0 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $147 vs $269 per month, with Margate cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Margate

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

09:12 9:12 AM

08:12 8:12 AM

1 h behind Margate

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

34,407

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Margate Lisbon 8,750 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Margate
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

Margate vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Margate and Lisbon differ by about 150% in total monthly costs ($889 vs $2,223 including rent). Margate is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 4% lower in Lisbon. 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: $396 in Margate versus $1,614 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 84% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $889 per month in Margate versus $2,223 in Lisbon – a 150% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $889 in Margate versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Margate but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Margate 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, Margate and Lisbon 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 Margate gentler on the wallet – expenses run 150% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.