Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Oxford and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Lisbon: $2,210 a month against $3,210 in Oxford, rent and utilities included – about $12,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

153

Cost of Living Index in Oxford
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Oxford Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Oxford

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,210

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,210 in Oxford versus $2,210 in Lisbon.

Oxford $3,210
Lisbon $2,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,477 in Oxford versus $3,275 in Lisbon.

Oxford $4,477
Lisbon $3,275

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,743 in Oxford versus $4,341 in Lisbon.

Oxford $5,743
Lisbon $4,341

Living in Oxford is roughly 45% more expensive than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Oxford 136% above, Lisbon 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.95 £18.61

$16.65 €14.85

49.85%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$104 £77.5

$61.7 €55.1

68.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.60 £7.90

$11.36 €10.13

-6.69%

Cappuccino

$4.94 £3.68

$2.97 €2.65

66.33%

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

$4.46 £3.32

$2.29 €2.04

94.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.19 £1.64

$1.74 €1.55

25.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.04 £6.74

$3.40 €3.04

165.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.55 £6.38

$3.31 €2.95

158.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.69 £1.26

$1.16 €1.03

45.69%

White Bread (500g)

$1.70 £1.26

$1.91 €1.71

-10.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.97 £1.47

$1.51 €1.35

30.46%

Eggs

$4.06 £3.03

$4.02 €3.59

1.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.74 £10.25

$12.94 €11.54

6.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.58 £6.40

$7.77 €6.94

10.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.83 £11.06

$17.76 €15.85

-16.50%

Apples (1kg)

$3.33 £2.49

$2.30 €2.06

44.78%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 £1.26

$1.73 €1.55

-1.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.01 £2.24

$1.86 €1.66

61.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.73 £2.78

$2.59 €2.31

44.02%

Potato (1kg)

$1.73 £1.29

$1.82 €1.62

-4.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.76 £1.31

$1.97 €1.76

-10.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.21 £0.90

$1.47 €1.31

-17.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 £1.20

$0.72 €0.65

123.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.70 £17.67

$6.58 €5.87

260.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.30 £8.43

$5.61 €5.00

101.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.26 £2.43

$1.36 €1.22

139.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.39 £2.53

$2.14 €1.91

58.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.89 £2.90

$2.33 €2.08

66.95%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$110 £81.9

$44.68 €39.86

145.75%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.98 £3.71

$3.85 €3.43

29.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.18 £2.37

$1.07 €0.95

197.20%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$42.14 £31.42

$16.46 €14.69

156.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.11 £1.57

$2.20 €1.96

-4.09%

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

$38.4K £28.7K

$34.2K €30.5K

12.42%

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

$41.1K £30.7K

$38.7K €34.5K

6.18%

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

$361 £269

$161 €144

123.88%

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

$18.08 £13.48

$18.41 €16.43

-1.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.18 £32.94

$32.74 €29.21

34.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.85 £31.20

$44.55 €39.74

-6.06%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.49 £8.56

$19.10 €17.04

-39.84%

Cinema Ticket

$16.03 £11.95

$9.60 €8.56

66.98%

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

$2,254 £1,680

$668 €596

237.57%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.2K £11.4K

$17.6K €15.7K

-13.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$98.8 £73.7

$102 €91.0

-3.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.09 £34.36

$44.46 €39.67

3.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 £76.3

$98.5 €87.9

3.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 £77.6

$124 €110

-15.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,187 £1,631

$1,608 €1,435

35.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,706 £1,272

$1,190 €1,062

43.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,231 £2,409

$2,812 €2,509

14.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,464 £1,837

$2,013 €1,796

22.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,794 £6,556

$7,839 €6,994

12.18%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,600 £4,921

$4,576 €4,082

44.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,032 £3,006

$1,575 €1,405

155.99%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.79

3.85

24.42%

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

Last update for Oxford: 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

Oxford

$1.7K 53.2%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8% 30.2% $516

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Oxford

$423 13.2%

Lisbon

$212 9.6% 49.8% $211

Eating Out

Oxford

$380 11.8%

Lisbon

$243 11% 36.1% $137

Groceries & Markets

Oxford

$323 10.1%

Lisbon

$272 12.3% 15.6% $50

Clothing & Footwear

Oxford

$158 4.9%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 4.9% $7.8

Getting Around

Oxford

$146 4.6%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 56.8% $83

Sport & Entertainment

Oxford

$74 2.3%

Lisbon

$64 2.9% 13.8% $10

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,187 in Oxford and $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Oxford pays about 2.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $104 in Oxford vs $62 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $323 vs $272 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Oxford

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

21:59 9:59 PM

Same time as Oxford

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

165,000

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.746 GBP (1 GBP = 1.34 USD). 1 EUR = 0.836 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Oxford Lisbon 1,570 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Oxford
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

Oxford vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $3,210 in Oxford and $2,210 in Lisbon, so Lisbon is about 31% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Oxford is about 2.6 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: $2,187 in Oxford versus $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,254 in Oxford versus $668 in Lisbon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 18% higher in Oxford. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,210 in Lisbon versus $3,210 in Oxford, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Lisbon but tight or insufficient in Oxford. The gap between the two cities makes Lisbon 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, Oxford and Lisbon are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Lisbon gentler on the wallet – expenses run 31% less than in Oxford. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.