Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between New Bedford, MA and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Lisbon: $2,206 a month against $2,774 in New Bedford, MA, rent and utilities included – about $6,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

132

Cost of Living Index in New Bedford, MA
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New Bedford, MA Living Index
106

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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New Bedford, MA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,774

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,206

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,774 in New Bedford, MA versus $2,206 in Lisbon.

New Bedford, MA $2,774
Lisbon $2,206

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,848 in New Bedford, MA versus $3,276 in Lisbon.

New Bedford, MA $3,848
Lisbon $3,276

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,921 in New Bedford, MA versus $4,346 in Lisbon.

New Bedford, MA $4,921
Lisbon $4,346

Living in New Bedford, MA is roughly 26% more expensive than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: New Bedford, MA 105% above, Lisbon 63% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.61 $19.61

$16.86 €15.00

16.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.5 $60.5

$61.0 €54.3

-0.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.83 $5.83

$10.98 €9.77

-46.90%

Cappuccino

$3.89 $3.89

$3.05 €2.71

27.54%

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

$2.26 $2.26

$2.28 €2.03

-0.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.29 $1.29

$1.68 €1.50

-23.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.97 $5.97

$3.44 €3.06

73.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 $3.91

$3.91 €3.48

Milk (1 liter)

$1.05 $1.05

$1.15 €1.02

-8.70%

White Bread (500g)

$4.48 $4.48

$1.89 €1.68

137.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$16.29 $16.29

$1.50 €1.34

986.00%

Eggs

$6.47 $6.47

$4.12 €3.66

57.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.42 $10.42

$13.01 €11.57

-19.91%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.47 $10.47

$8.04 €7.16

30.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.43 $19.43

$17.89 €15.92

8.61%

Apples (1kg)

$5.44 $5.44

$2.27 €2.02

139.65%

Banana (1kg)

$4.31 $4.31

$1.74 €1.55

147.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.33 $3.33

$1.82 €1.62

82.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.15 $3.15

$2.69 €2.39

17.10%

Potato (1kg)

$2.24 $2.24

$1.77 €1.57

26.55%

Onion (1kg)

$2.39 $2.39

$1.94 €1.72

23.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.63 $2.63

$1.46 €1.30

80.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.82 $2.82

$0.76 €0.68

271.05%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.74 $12.74

$6.66 €5.92

91.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.07 $17.07

$5.64 €5.02

202.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.81 $1.81

$1.29 €1.15

40.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 $2.75

$2.14 €1.90

28.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.30 €2.05

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.02 €39.17

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.71 $3.71

$3.98 €3.54

-6.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.19 $2.19

$0.64 €0.57

242.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$48.09 $48.09

$18.93 €16.84

154.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.08 $1.08

$2.28 €2.03

-52.63%

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

$27.3K $27.3K

$33.4K €29.7K

-18.13%

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

$26.3K $26.3K

$38.5K €34.3K

-31.73%

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

$196 $196

$158 €141

23.73%

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

$37.66 $37.66

$17.54 €15.61

114.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$61.1 $61.1

$31.18 €27.75

95.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.22 $29.22

$44.64 €39.73

-34.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.98 €16.89

Cinema Ticket

$12.30 $12.30

$9.58 €8.52

28.39%

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

$2,163 $2,163

$674 €599

221.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$34.0K $34.0K

$18.7K €16.7K

81.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$37.99 $37.99

$102 €90.9

-62.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.41 $16.41

$45.90 €40.85

-64.25%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.8 $98.8

$102 €91.0

-3.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 €109

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,798 $1,798

$1,641 €1,460

9.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,594 $1,594

$1,187 €1,057

34.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,647 $2,647

$2,825 €2,514

-6.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,369 $2,369

$2,018 €1,796

17.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,836 €6,973

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,701 €4,183

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,565 $4,565

$1,687 €1,501

170.63%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.42

3.82

41.88%

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

Last update for New Bedford, MA: October 31, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

New Bedford, MA

$1.6K 57.5%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8% 25.5% $407

Groceries & Markets

New Bedford, MA

$475 17.1%

Lisbon

$275 12.5% 42.2% $201

Monthly Utilities & Internet

New Bedford, MA

$294 10.6%

Lisbon

$207 9.4% 29.7% $88

Eating Out

New Bedford, MA

$273 9.8%

Lisbon

$245 11.1% 10.1% $28

Clothing & Footwear

New Bedford, MA

$69 * 2.5%

Lisbon

$168 7.6% 143% $99

Sport & Entertainment

New Bedford, MA

$54 1.9%

Lisbon

$64 2.9% 18.5% $10

Getting Around

New Bedford, MA

$15 * 0.5%

Lisbon

$60 2.7% 313% $46

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 $1,798 in New Bedford, MA and $1,641 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

New Bedford, MA pays about 2.7 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $60 in New Bedford, MA vs $61 in Lisbon. Groceries flip the comparison at $475 vs $275, with Lisbon cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇺🇸 New Bedford, MA

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

04:42 4:42 AM

09:42 9:42 AM

5 h ahead of New Bedford, MA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

92,538

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

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Between locations

New Bedford, MA Lisbon 5,150 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

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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

New Bedford, MA vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,774 in New Bedford, MA and $2,206 in Lisbon, so Lisbon is about 20% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in New Bedford, MA is about 2.7 times higher, 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: $1,798 in New Bedford, MA versus $1,641 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,163 in New Bedford, MA versus $674 in Lisbon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

All in, you’ll spend $2,774 per month in New Bedford, MA versus $2,206 in Lisbon – Lisbon is about 20% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Lisbon wins on affordability, New Bedford, MA on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.