Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between New Plymouth and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in New Plymouth: $1,820 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $4,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

88

Cost of Living Index in New Plymouth
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New Plymouth Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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New Plymouth

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,820

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,820 in New Plymouth versus $2,210 in Lisbon.

New Plymouth $1,820
Lisbon $2,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,828 in New Plymouth versus $3,275 in Lisbon.

New Plymouth $2,828
Lisbon $3,275

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,836 in New Plymouth versus $4,341 in Lisbon.

New Plymouth $3,836
Lisbon $4,341

Living in New Plymouth costs roughly 18% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: New Plymouth 34% above, Lisbon 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.43 NZ$22.06

$16.65 €14.91

-25.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.9 NZ$121

$61.7 €55.3

9.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.44 NZ$14.98

$11.36 €10.17

-25.70%

Cappuccino

$3.34 NZ$5.93

$2.97 €2.66

12.46%

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

$2.12 NZ$3.76

$2.29 €2.05

-7.42%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 NZ$3.28

$1.74 €1.56

6.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.32 NZ$9.45

$3.40 €3.05

56.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.65 NZ$10.02

$3.31 €2.96

70.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 NZ$2.55

$1.16 €1.04

24.14%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 NZ$2.22

$1.91 €1.71

-34.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.65 NZ$2.92

$1.51 €1.35

9.27%

Eggs

$5.53 NZ$9.82

$4.02 €3.60

37.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.52 NZ$9.79

$12.94 €11.59

-57.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.19 NZ$12.76

$7.77 €6.96

-7.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.42 NZ$20.28

$17.76 €15.91

-35.70%

Apples (1kg)

$2.63 NZ$4.67

$2.30 €2.06

14.35%

Banana (1kg)

$1.86 NZ$3.29

$1.73 €1.55

7.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.93 NZ$5.20

$1.86 €1.66

57.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.12 NZ$10.86

$2.59 €2.32

136.29%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 NZ$3.53

$1.82 €1.63

9.34%

Onion (1kg)

$1.41 NZ$2.51

$1.97 €1.76

-28.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.88 NZ$3.33

$1.47 €1.32

27.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.32 NZ$2.35

$0.72 €0.65

83.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.12 NZ$41.04

$6.58 €5.90

251.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.73 NZ$15.51

$5.61 €5.02

55.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.03 NZ$5.37

$1.36 €1.22

122.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.78 NZ$6.72

$2.14 €1.91

76.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.68 NZ$2.99

$2.33 €2.09

-27.90%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$74.6 NZ$133

$44.68 €40.01

67.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.68 NZ$6.53

$3.85 €3.45

-4.42%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.74

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.67 NZ$2.97

$2.20 €1.97

-24.09%

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

$28.7K NZ$50.9K

$34.2K €30.6K

-16.14%

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

$22.8K NZ$40.5K

$38.7K €34.7K

-41.15%

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

$130 NZ$231

$161 €144

-19.46%

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

$27.85 NZ$49.44

$18.41 €16.49

51.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$48.35 NZ$85.8

$32.74 €29.32

47.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.29 NZ$76.9

$44.55 €39.90

-2.83%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.10

Cinema Ticket

$8.20 NZ$14.55

$9.60 €8.60

-14.58%

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

$680 NZ$1,206

$668 €598

1.77%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.1K NZ$41.0K

$17.6K €15.8K

31.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.3 NZ$109

$102 €91.4

-39.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.74 NZ$68.8

$44.46 €39.82

-12.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.6 NZ$161

$98.5 €88.2

-8.04%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 NZ$188

$124 €111

-14.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$907 NZ$1,611

$1,608 €1,440

-43.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$836 NZ$1,485

$1,190 €1,066

-29.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,740 NZ$3,089

$2,812 €2,519

-38.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,589 NZ$2,821

$2,013 €1,803

-21.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,209 NZ$5,697

$7,839 €7,021

-59.07%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,622 NZ$4,655

$4,576 €4,098

-42.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,787 NZ$4,948

$1,575 €1,411

76.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.93

3.85

54.03%

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

Last update for New Plymouth: October 26, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

New Plymouth

$836 45.9%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8% 42.3% $354

Groceries & Markets

New Plymouth

$281 15.5%

Lisbon

$272 12.3% 3.2% $8.9

Eating Out

New Plymouth

$219 12%

Lisbon

$243 11% 11% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

New Plymouth

$206 11.3%

Lisbon

$212 9.6% 3.1% $6.3

Clothing & Footwear

New Plymouth

$133 7.3%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 24.4% $32

Getting Around

New Plymouth

$85 * 4.7%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 25.7% $22

Sport & Entertainment

New Plymouth

$60 3.3%

Lisbon

$64 2.9% 6.8% $4.1

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 $907 in New Plymouth and $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

New Plymouth pays 77% 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 New Plymouth vs $62 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $281 vs $272 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇿 New Plymouth

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

20:46 8:46 PM

07:46 7:46 AM

13 h behind New Plymouth

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

58,400

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.563 USD

1 NZD = 0.504 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to NZD – New Zealand Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇿 New Zealand Dollar ($)

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 1.78 NZD (1 NZD = 0.563 USD). 1 EUR = 1.98 NZD (1 NZD = 0.504 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to NZD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

New Plymouth Lisbon 19,730 km ≈ 25 h nonstop flight

From you

New Plymouth
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

New Plymouth vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,820 in New Plymouth and $2,210 in Lisbon, so New Plymouth is about 18% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 77% higher in New Plymouth, 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: $907 in New Plymouth versus $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $680 in New Plymouth 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 3% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though New Plymouth gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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, New Plymouth and Lisbon are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.