Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Podgorica and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Podgorica: $1,328 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $10,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Podgorica
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Podgorica Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Podgorica

🇲🇪 Montenegro

$1,328

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,328 in Podgorica versus $2,223 in Lisbon.

Podgorica $1,328
Lisbon $2,223

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,094 in Podgorica versus $3,271 in Lisbon.

Podgorica $2,094
Lisbon $3,271

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,860 in Podgorica versus $4,319 in Lisbon.

Podgorica $2,860
Lisbon $4,319

Living in Podgorica costs roughly 40% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Podgorica is 2% below, Lisbon is 65% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.37 €10.12

$16.50 €14.67

-31.09%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.91 €39.95

$61.3 €54.5

-26.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.41 €9.26

$11.27 €10.03

-7.63%

Cappuccino

$2.23 €1.98

$3.06 €2.72

-27.12%

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

$2.57 €2.29

$2.26 €2.01

13.72%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.25

$1.73 €1.54

-18.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.14 €2.79

$3.39 €3.02

-7.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.39 €3.02

$3.40 €3.02

-0.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.16

$1.12 €1.00

16.96%

White Bread (500g)

$0.93 €0.83

$1.86 €1.65

-50.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.98 €1.76

$1.53 €1.36

29.41%

Eggs

$3.53 €3.14

$3.96 €3.53

-10.86%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.84 €7.86

$12.76 €11.35

-30.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.09 €7.19

$7.90 €7.02

2.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.95 €10.63

$16.97 €15.09

-29.58%

Apples (1kg)

$1.56 €1.39

$2.27 €2.02

-31.28%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 €1.45

$1.75 €1.55

-6.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.78 €1.59

$1.85 €1.64

-3.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.38 €2.11

$2.57 €2.28

-7.39%

Potato (1kg)

$0.95 €0.84

$1.86 €1.65

-48.92%

Onion (1kg)

$1.02 €0.90

$2.02 €1.80

-49.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.44 €1.28

0.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.78 €0.69

$0.82 €0.73

-4.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 €3.79

$6.56 €5.83

-35.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.72 €5.08

$5.62 €5.00

1.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 €0.96

$1.28 €1.14

-15.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 €1.51

$2.07 €1.84

-18.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.01 €0.90

$2.35 €2.09

-57.02%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$33.57 €29.86

$44.18 €39.30

-24.02%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 €0.68

$3.99 €3.55

-80.70%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.76 €0.67

$1.09 €0.97

-30.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.32 €10.07

$16.64 €14.81

-31.97%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.66

$2.28 €2.03

-18.42%

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

$30.9K €27.5K

$33.7K €30.0K

-8.31%

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

$25.9K €23.0K

$39.3K €35.0K

-34.17%

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

$126 €112

$167 €149

-24.75%

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

$18.89 €16.80

$18.80 €16.72

0.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.22 €27.77

$33.09 €29.43

-5.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.05 €42.74

$46.01 €40.93

4.43%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.53 €12.03

$19.19 €17.07

-29.49%

Cinema Ticket

$6.34 €5.64

$9.84 €8.75

-35.57%

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

$335 €298

$677 €602

-50.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,336 €6,525

$16.9K €15.1K

-56.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.8 €77.2

$101 €90.1

-14.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.78 €41.61

$45.76 €40.70

2.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.4 €87.5

$100.0 €88.9

-1.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 €95.0

$123 €109

-13.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$647 €576

$1,614 €1,436

-59.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$485 €431

$1,197 €1,065

-59.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,317 €1,172

$2,862 €2,545

-53.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$979 €871

$1,990 €1,770

-50.81%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,975 €2,646

$7,577 €6,740

-60.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,252 €2,003

$4,307 €3,831

-47.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,162 €1,034

$1,588 €1,412

-26.81%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.22

3.85

35.58%

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

Last update for Podgorica: October 12, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Podgorica

$485 36.5%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9% 147% $712

Groceries & Markets

Podgorica

$224 16.9%

Lisbon

$269 12.1% 20.2% $45

Eating Out

Podgorica

$187 14.1%

Lisbon

$242 10.9% 29.3% $55

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Podgorica

$176 13.3%

Lisbon

$219 9.9% 24.6% $43

Clothing & Footwear

Podgorica

$152 11.5%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 9.1% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Podgorica

$61 4.6%

Lisbon

$66 3% 8.2% $5

Getting Around

Podgorica

$42 3.2%

Lisbon

$63 2.8% 49.4% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $647 in Podgorica and $1,614 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 37% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $45.00 in Podgorica vs $61.0 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $224 vs $269 per month, with Podgorica cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇪 Podgorica

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

09:48 9:48 AM

08:48 8:48 AM

1 h behind Podgorica

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

150,799 Capital

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Podgorica Lisbon 2,420 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Podgorica
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

Podgorica vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Podgorica and Lisbon differ by about 67% in total monthly costs ($1,328 vs $2,223 including rent). Podgorica is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 37% lower in Lisbon. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $647 in Podgorica versus $1,614 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $335 in Podgorica versus $677 in Lisbon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 20% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,328 in Podgorica versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Podgorica but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Podgorica 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, Podgorica 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 Podgorica gentler on the wallet – expenses run 67% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.