Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Matola and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Matola: $995 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $14,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Matola
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Matola Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Matola

🇲🇿 Mozambique

$995

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $995 in Matola versus $2,223 in Lisbon.

Matola $995
Lisbon $2,223

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,520 in Matola versus $3,271 in Lisbon.

Matola $1,520
Lisbon $3,271

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,045 in Matola versus $4,319 in Lisbon.

Matola $2,045
Lisbon $4,319

Living in Matola costs roughly 55% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Matola is 26% below, Lisbon is 65% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.60 MZN 481

$16.50 €14.67

-53.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$63.4 MZN 4,010

$61.3 €54.5

3.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.32 MZN 463

$11.27 €10.03

-35.05%

Cappuccino

$1.58 MZN 99.9

$3.06 €2.72

-48.37%

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

$0.82 MZN 52.1

$2.26 €2.01

-63.72%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.74 MZN 46.85

$1.73 €1.54

-57.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.15 MZN 72.9

$3.39 €3.02

-66.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.52 MZN 96.3

$3.40 €3.02

-55.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.54 MZN 97.4

$1.12 €1.00

37.50%

White Bread (500g)

$0.99 MZN 62.8

$1.86 €1.65

-46.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.66 MZN 105

$1.53 €1.36

8.50%

Eggs

$1.84 MZN 117

$3.96 €3.53

-53.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.09 MZN 828

$12.76 €11.35

2.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.65 MZN 357

$7.90 €7.02

-28.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$4.55 MZN 288

$16.97 €15.09

-73.19%

Apples (1kg)

$2.07 MZN 131

$2.27 €2.02

-8.81%

Banana (1kg)

$0.59 MZN 37.08

$1.75 €1.55

-66.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.71 MZN 108

$1.85 €1.64

-7.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.07 MZN 67.9

$2.57 €2.28

-58.37%

Potato (1kg)

$0.99 MZN 62.7

$1.86 €1.65

-46.77%

Onion (1kg)

$0.82 MZN 51.8

$2.02 €1.80

-59.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.97 MZN 61.2

$1.44 €1.28

-32.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 MZN 33.63

$0.82 €0.73

-35.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.83 MZN 179

$6.56 €5.83

-56.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.98 MZN 442

$5.62 €5.00

24.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 MZN 57.2

$1.28 €1.14

-29.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.24 MZN 78.4

$2.07 €1.84

-40.10%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.59 MZN 101

$3.99 €3.55

-60.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.20 MZN 75.6

$1.09 €0.97

10.09%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.67 MZN 1,560

$16.64 €14.81

48.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 MZN 89.8

$2.28 €2.03

-37.72%

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

$32.2K MZN 2.0M

$33.7K €30.0K

-4.32%

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

$22.8K MZN 1.4M

$39.3K €35.0K

-41.90%

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

$39.72 MZN 2,512

$167 €149

-76.29%

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

$7.80 MZN 493

$18.80 €16.72

-58.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$77.3 MZN 4,891

$33.09 €29.43

133.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.53 MZN 2,500

$46.01 €40.93

-14.08%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

Cinema Ticket

$7.87 MZN 498

$9.84 €8.75

-20.02%

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

$130 MZN 8,234

$677 €602

-80.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,052 MZN 319.5K

$16.9K €15.1K

-70.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.07 MZN 3,104

$101 €90.1

-51.53%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.0 MZN 3,606

$45.76 €40.70

24.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.1 MZN 4,939

$100.0 €88.9

-21.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.4 MZN 5,019

$123 €109

-35.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$473 MZN 29.9K

$1,614 €1,436

-70.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$389 MZN 24.6K

$1,197 €1,065

-67.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$693 MZN 43.8K

$2,862 €2,545

-75.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$552 MZN 34.9K

$1,990 €1,770

-72.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$315 MZN 19.9K

$1,588 €1,412

-80.17%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

549.35%

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

Last update for Matola: October 11, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Matola

$389 39.1%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9% 208% $808

Groceries & Markets

Matola

$182 18.3%

Lisbon

$269 12.1% 47.7% $87

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Matola

$125 12.6%

Lisbon

$219 9.9% 75.7% $95

Clothing & Footwear

Matola

$119 11.9%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 40.3% $48

Eating Out

Matola

$117 11.7%

Lisbon

$242 10.9% 107% $125

Sport & Entertainment

Matola

$55 5.6%

Lisbon

$66 3% 18.9% $10

Getting Around

Matola

$7.6 * 0.8%

Lisbon

$63 2.8% 732% $55

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 $473 in Matola and $1,614 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 404% 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: $63.0 in Matola vs $61.0 in Lisbon. Groceries flip the comparison at $182 vs $269, with Matola cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇿 Matola

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

09:48 9:48 AM

08:48 8:48 AM

1 h behind Matola

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

675,422

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Mozambican Metical MZN MT

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MZN = 1.58 USD

100 MZN = 1.41 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MZN – Mozambican Metical Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇿 Mozambican Metical (MT)

Mozambican Metical exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 63.25 MZN (100 MZN = 1.58 USD). 1 EUR = 71.11 MZN (100 MZN = 1.41 EUR).

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

USD to MZN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Matola Lisbon 8,390 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Matola
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

Matola vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Matola and Lisbon differ by about 123% in total monthly costs ($995 vs $2,223 including rent). Matola is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 404% 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: $473 in Matola versus $1,614 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 48% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $995 per month in Matola versus $2,223 in Lisbon – a 123% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $995 in Matola versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Matola but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Matola 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, Matola 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 Matola gentler on the wallet – expenses run 123% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.