Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Moscow and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Moscow: $1,793 a month against $2,203 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $4,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

88

Cost of Living Index in Moscow
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Moscow Living Index
108

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
Learn more

Lisbon Living Index

Jump to prices

Moscow

🇷🇺 Russia

$1,793

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,203

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,793 in Moscow versus $2,203 in Lisbon.

Moscow $1,793
Lisbon $2,203

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,813 in Moscow versus $3,237 in Lisbon.

Moscow $2,813
Lisbon $3,237

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,833 in Moscow versus $4,272 in Lisbon.

Moscow $3,833
Lisbon $4,272

Living in Moscow costs roughly 19% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Moscow 34% above, Lisbon 64% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.81 ₽1,004

$17.01 €15.17

-30.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.9 ₽4,925

$62.7 €55.9

-7.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.25 ₽617

$11.42 €10.18

-36.51%

Cappuccino

$3.64 ₽310

$3.09 €2.75

17.80%

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

$1.65 ₽140

$2.37 €2.11

-30.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.81 ₽68.7

$1.66 €1.48

-51.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.72 ₽401

$3.46 €3.08

36.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.42 ₽461

$3.29 €2.93

64.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 ₽106

$1.17 €1.04

6.84%

White Bread (500g)

$1.00 ₽85.4

$1.87 €1.66

-46.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.71 ₽146

$1.52 €1.35

12.50%

Eggs

$1.91 ₽163

$3.88 €3.46

-50.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.59 ₽1,241

$12.87 €11.48

13.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.65 ₽566

$7.94 €7.08

-16.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.46 ₽1,229

$17.63 €15.72

-17.98%

Apples (1kg)

$2.03 ₽173

$2.26 €2.01

-10.18%

Banana (1kg)

$1.86 ₽158

$1.76 €1.57

5.68%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.03 ₽173

$1.88 €1.68

7.98%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.93 ₽334

$2.47 €2.20

59.11%

Potato (1kg)

$0.93 ₽78.7

$1.86 €1.66

-50.00%

Onion (1kg)

$0.70 ₽59.8

$2.07 €1.85

-66.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.55 ₽132

$1.39 €1.24

11.51%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 ₽81.4

$0.81 €0.72

18.52%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.41 ₽290

$6.89 €6.15

-50.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.56 ₽983

$5.53 €4.93

109.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 ₽102

$1.33 €1.19

-9.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.49 ₽212

$2.17 €1.93

14.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.95 ₽80.9

$2.24 €2.00

-57.59%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.22 ₽3,419

$45.14 €40.25

-10.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.56 ₽302

$4.00 €3.57

-11.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.86 ₽72.9

$1.07 €0.95

-19.63%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.77 ₽1,001

$16.53 €14.74

-28.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.90 ₽76.1

$2.26 €2.02

-60.18%

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

$38.7K ₽3.3M

$33.5K €29.9K

15.51%

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

$38.0K ₽3.2M

$40.5K €36.1K

-6.10%

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

$191 ₽16.2K

$164 €146

16.65%

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

$8.72 ₽741

$18.54 €16.53

-52.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.98 ₽848

$33.21 €29.61

-69.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.15 ₽3,584

$46.01 €41.02

-8.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$45.14 ₽3,838

$18.80 €16.77

140.11%

Cinema Ticket

$9.31 ₽792

$9.47 €8.44

-1.69%

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

$811 ₽68.9K

$690 €615

17.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$27.0K ₽2.3M

$16.9K €15.0K

60.08%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$110 ₽9,356

$105 €93.3

5.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$63.4 ₽5,386

$45.27 €40.37

39.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$146 ₽12.4K

$99.0 €88.2

47.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$184 ₽15.6K

$124 €111

48.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,469 ₽124.9K

$1,583 €1,411

-7.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$820 ₽69.7K

$1,209 €1,078

-32.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,026 ₽257.3K

$2,833 €2,526

6.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,494 ₽127.1K

$1,964 €1,751

-23.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$9,853 ₽837.7K

$7,643 €6,815

28.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,613 ₽392.2K

$4,431 €3,951

4.10%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,741 ₽148.0K

$1,573 €1,402

10.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

19.56

3.79

416.09%

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

Last update for Moscow: October 5, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Moscow

$820 44.7%

Lisbon

$1.2K 54% 47.5% $389

Groceries & Markets

Moscow

$263 14.3%

Lisbon

$272 12.1% 3.6% $9.4

Clothing & Footwear

Moscow

$226 12.3%

Lisbon

$168 7.5% 25.9% $59

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Moscow

$210 11.4%

Lisbon

$215 9.6% 2.8% $5.8

Eating Out

Moscow

$204 11.1%

Lisbon

$247 11% 21.1% $43

Sport & Entertainment

Moscow

$61 3.3%

Lisbon

$65 2.9% 6.9% $4.2

Getting Around

Moscow

$52 2.8%

Lisbon

$63 2.8% 22.3% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,469 in Moscow and $1,583 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Moscow pays 11% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $58.0 in Moscow vs $63.0 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $263 vs $272 per month, with Moscow cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇺 Moscow

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

09:21 9:21 AM

07:21 7:21 AM

2 h behind Moscow

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

12,700,000 Capital

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Russian Ruble RUB ₽

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 RUB = 1.18 USD

100 RUB = 1.05 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to RUB – Russian Ruble Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇺 Russian Ruble (₽)

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 85.02 RUB (100 RUB = 1.18 USD). 1 EUR = 95.36 RUB (100 RUB = 1.05 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to RUB in detail →

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Between locations

Moscow Lisbon 3,910 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Moscow
Lisbon

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated March 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Moscow vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Moscow and Lisbon differ by about 23% in total monthly costs ($1,793 vs $2,203 including rent). Moscow is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 11% higher in Moscow, 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: $1,469 in Moscow versus $1,583 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $811 in Moscow versus $690 in Lisbon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 4% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,793 in Moscow versus $2,203 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Moscow but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Moscow 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, Moscow 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 Moscow gentler on the wallet – expenses run 23% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.