Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Messina and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Messina: $1,379 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $10,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

66

Cost of Living Index in Messina
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Messina Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Messina

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,379

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,379 in Messina versus $2,210 in Lisbon.

Messina $1,379
Lisbon $2,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,392 in Messina versus $3,275 in Lisbon.

Messina $2,392
Lisbon $3,275

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,404 in Messina versus $4,341 in Lisbon.

Messina $3,404
Lisbon $4,341

Living in Messina costs roughly 38% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.90 €15.14

$16.65 €14.91

1.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.8 €60.7

$61.7 €55.3

9.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.41 €11.12

$11.36 €10.17

9.24%

Cappuccino

$1.97 €1.77

$2.97 €2.66

-33.67%

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

$2.36 €2.11

$2.29 €2.05

3.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.19 €1.07

$1.74 €1.56

-31.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.55 €4.07

$3.40 €3.05

33.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.33 €2.98

$3.31 €2.96

0.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.17

$1.16 €1.04

12.07%

White Bread (500g)

$1.84 €1.65

$1.91 €1.71

-3.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.74 €2.45

$1.51 €1.35

81.46%

Eggs

$2.89 €2.58

$4.02 €3.60

-28.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.49 €12.97

$12.94 €11.59

11.98%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.55 €9.45

$7.77 €6.96

35.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.82 €15.06

$17.76 €15.91

-5.29%

Apples (1kg)

$2.91 €2.61

$2.30 €2.06

26.52%

Banana (1kg)

$1.65 €1.47

$1.73 €1.55

-4.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.14 €1.02

$1.86 €1.66

-38.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.40 €3.04

$2.59 €2.32

31.27%

Potato (1kg)

$0.65 €0.58

$1.82 €1.63

-64.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.52 €1.36

$1.97 €1.76

-22.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.42 €1.27

$1.47 €1.32

-3.40%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.40 €0.36

$0.72 €0.65

-44.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.15

$6.58 €5.90

4.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.75 €5.15

$5.61 €5.02

2.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.67 €1.50

$1.36 €1.22

22.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.32 €2.08

$2.14 €1.91

8.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.65 €1.47

$2.33 €2.09

-29.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.21 €36.91

$44.68 €40.01

-7.77%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.72 €5.12

$3.85 €3.45

48.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.14 €1.02

$1.07 €0.96

6.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$38.73 €34.68

$16.46 €14.74

135.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.05 €1.84

$2.20 €1.97

-6.82%

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

$34.9K €31.3K

$34.2K €30.6K

2.19%

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

$31.2K €28.0K

$38.7K €34.7K

-19.36%

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

$178 €159

$161 €144

10.24%

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

$10.17 €9.11

$18.41 €16.49

-44.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.62 €22.94

$32.74 €29.32

-21.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.70 €41.83

$44.55 €39.90

4.83%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.57 €14.84

$19.10 €17.10

-13.25%

Cinema Ticket

$9.57 €8.58

$9.60 €8.60

-0.31%

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

$337 €302

$668 €598

-49.57%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,512 €4,936

$17.6K €15.8K

-68.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.2 €63.8

$102 €91.4

-30.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.95 €27.72

$44.46 €39.82

-30.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$86.9 €77.8

$98.5 €88.2

-11.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$125 €112

$124 €111

1.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$522 €468

$1,608 €1,440

-67.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$373 €334

$1,190 €1,066

-68.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,199 €1,074

$2,812 €2,519

-57.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,096 €981

$2,013 €1,803

-45.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,011 €1,801

$7,839 €7,021

-74.35%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,655 €1,482

$4,576 €4,098

-63.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,675 €1,500

$1,575 €1,411

6.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.39

3.85

-11.95%

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

Last update for Messina: October 25, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Messina

$373 27.1%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8% 219% $817

Groceries & Markets

Messina

$287 20.8%

Lisbon

$272 12.3% 4.9% $14

Eating Out

Messina

$240 17.4%

Lisbon

$243 11% 1.2% $2.9

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Messina

$214 15.5%

Lisbon

$212 9.6% 0.5% $1.2

Clothing & Footwear

Messina

$142 10.3%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 17.2% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Messina

$66 4.8%

Lisbon

$64 2.9% 3.2% $2.1

Getting Around

Messina

$59 4.3%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 6.7% $4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $522 in Messina and $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Messina pays 6% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $68 in Messina vs $62 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $287 vs $272 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇹 Messina

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

22:13 10:13 PM

21:13 9:13 PM

1 h behind Messina

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

217,734

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Messina Lisbon 2,140 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Messina
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

Messina vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,379 in Messina and $2,210 in Lisbon, so Messina is about 38% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 6% higher in Messina, 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: $522 in Messina versus $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $337 in Messina versus $668 in Lisbon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 5% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Messina is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.