Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Montanita and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Montanita: $894 a month against $2,206 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $15,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

43

Cost of Living Index in Montanita
Learn more

Montanita Living Index
106

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
Learn more

Lisbon Living Index

Jump to prices

Montanita

🇪🇨 Ecuador

$894

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,206

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $894 in Montanita versus $2,206 in Lisbon.

Montanita $894
Lisbon $2,206

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,349 in Montanita versus $3,276 in Lisbon.

Montanita $1,349
Lisbon $3,276

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,805 in Montanita versus $4,346 in Lisbon.

Montanita $1,805
Lisbon $4,346

Living in Montanita costs roughly 59% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Montanita is 34% below, Lisbon is 63% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.45 $3.45

$16.86 €15.01

-79.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$28.46 $28.46

$61.0 €54.4

-53.37%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.47 $7.47

$10.98 €9.78

-31.97%

Cappuccino

$2.52 $2.52

$3.05 €2.72

-17.38%

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

$0.87 $0.87

$2.28 €2.03

-61.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.67 $0.67

$1.68 €1.50

-60.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.05 $2.05

$3.44 €3.06

-40.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.59 $3.59

$3.91 €3.48

-8.18%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.09 $1.09

$1.15 €1.02

-5.22%

White Bread (500g)

$1.62 $1.62

$1.89 €1.68

-14.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.56 $1.56

$1.50 €1.34

4.00%

Eggs

$2.18 $2.18

$4.12 €3.66

-47.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.60 $5.60

$13.01 €11.58

-56.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.46 $5.46

$8.04 €7.16

-32.09%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.14 $6.14

$17.89 €15.93

-65.68%

Apples (1kg)

$2.08 $2.08

$2.27 €2.02

-8.37%

Banana (1kg)

$1.20 $1.20

$1.74 €1.55

-31.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.08 $1.08

$1.82 €1.62

-40.66%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.09 $1.09

$2.69 €2.39

-59.48%

Potato (1kg)

$1.44 $1.44

$1.77 €1.57

-18.64%

Onion (1kg)

$1.08 $1.08

$1.94 €1.72

-44.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.48 $0.48

$1.46 €1.30

-67.12%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 $0.99

$0.76 €0.68

30.26%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.18 $6.18

$6.66 €5.93

-7.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.87 $9.87

$5.64 €5.02

75.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.52 $1.52

$1.29 €1.15

17.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.44 $2.44

$2.14 €1.90

14.02%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.34 $0.34

$2.30 €2.05

-85.22%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$23.63 $23.63

$44.02 €39.19

-46.32%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.47 $1.47

$3.98 €3.55

-63.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 $0.99

$0.64 €0.57

54.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.96 $9.96

$18.93 €16.85

-47.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.63 $0.63

$2.28 €2.03

-72.37%

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

$24.7K $24.7K

$33.4K €29.7K

-26.08%

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

$28.5K $28.5K

$38.5K €34.3K

-26.03%

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

$39.32 $39.32

$158 €141

-75.14%

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

$13.65 $13.65

$17.54 €15.62

-22.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 $30.74

$31.18 €27.77

-1.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.35 $30.35

$44.64 €39.75

-32.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.74 $14.74

$18.98 €16.90

-22.34%

Cinema Ticket

$7.39 $7.39

$9.58 €8.53

-22.86%

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

$254 $254

$674 €600

-62.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,701 $5,701

$18.7K €16.7K

-69.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.1 $56.1

$102 €91.0

-45.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.64 $43.64

$45.90 €40.87

-4.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.0 $99.0

$102 €91.0

-3.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$75.9 $75.9

$122 €109

-37.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$342 $342

$1,641 €1,461

-79.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$322 $322

$1,187 €1,057

-72.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$632 $632

$2,825 €2,515

-77.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$507 $507

$2,018 €1,797

-74.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,259 $1,259

$7,836 €6,977

-83.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,013 $1,013

$4,701 €4,186

-78.46%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,687 €1,502

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.82

161.78%

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

Last update for Montanita: November 1, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Montanita

$322 36%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8% 269% $866

Groceries & Markets

Montanita

$184 20.6%

Lisbon

$275 12.5% 48.8% $90

Clothing & Footwear

Montanita

$124 13.8%

Lisbon

$168 7.6% 35.5% $44

Eating Out

Montanita

$104 11.6%

Lisbon

$245 11.1% 136% $141

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Montanita

$84 9.4%

Lisbon

$207 9.4% 147% $123

Sport & Entertainment

Montanita

$45 5.1%

Lisbon

$64 2.9% 41.3% $19

Getting Around

Montanita

$31 3.5%

Lisbon

$60 2.7% 92.5% $29

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $342 in Montanita and $1,641 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $28 in Montanita vs $61 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $184 vs $275 per month, with Montanita cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇨 Montanita

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

07:32 7:32 AM

12:32 12:32 PM

5 h ahead of Montanita

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,000

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Montanita Lisbon 8,550 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Montanita
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

Montanita vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $894 in Montanita and $2,206 in Lisbon, so Montanita is about 59% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,341 in Montanita and $3,309 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: $342 in Montanita versus $1,641 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $254 in Montanita versus $674 in Lisbon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 49% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $894 in Montanita versus $2,206 in Lisbon, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Montanita but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Montanita 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.

Expats usually find Montanita gentler on the wallet – expenses run 59% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.