Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rome and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Rome: $1,998 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $2,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Lisbon outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

97

Cost of Living Index in Rome
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Rome Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Rome

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,998

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,998 in Rome versus $2,223 in Lisbon.

Rome $1,998
Lisbon $2,223

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,117 in Rome versus $3,271 in Lisbon.

Rome $3,117
Lisbon $3,271

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,236 in Rome versus $4,319 in Lisbon.

Rome $4,236
Lisbon $4,319

Living in Rome costs roughly 10% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Rome 48% above, Lisbon 65% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.84

$16.50 €14.67

1.15%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 €58.5

$61.3 €54.5

7.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.08 €9.85

$11.27 €10.03

-1.69%

Cappuccino

$2.10 €1.87

$3.06 €2.72

-31.37%

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

$2.91 €2.59

$2.26 €2.01

28.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.48 €1.32

$1.73 €1.54

-14.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.62 €5.00

$3.39 €3.02

65.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.68 €5.94

$3.40 €3.02

96.47%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 €1.53

$1.12 €1.00

53.57%

White Bread (500g)

$2.27 €2.02

$1.86 €1.65

22.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.99 €2.66

$1.53 €1.36

95.42%

Eggs

$4.75 €4.23

$3.96 €3.53

19.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.53 €12.92

$12.76 €11.35

13.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.63 €11.24

$7.90 €7.02

59.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.86 €17.67

$16.97 €15.09

17.03%

Apples (1kg)

$2.64 €2.35

$2.27 €2.02

16.30%

Banana (1kg)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.75 €1.55

30.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.46 €2.19

$1.85 €1.64

32.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.42 €2.15

$2.57 €2.28

-5.84%

Potato (1kg)

$1.38 €1.22

$1.86 €1.65

-25.81%

Onion (1kg)

$1.55 €1.38

$2.02 €1.80

-23.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.32 €1.17

$1.44 €1.28

-8.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$0.82 €0.73

-32.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.31 €6.50

$6.56 €5.83

11.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.44 €4.84

$5.62 €5.00

-3.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 €1.40

$1.28 €1.14

23.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.62 €2.33

$2.07 €1.84

26.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.63 €1.45

$2.35 €2.09

-30.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$39.26 €34.92

$44.18 €39.30

-11.14%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.51 €5.79

$3.99 €3.55

63.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.68 €1.50

$1.09 €0.97

54.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.24 €29.57

$16.64 €14.81

99.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.17 €1.93

$2.28 €2.03

-4.82%

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

$35.3K €31.4K

$33.7K €30.0K

4.97%

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

$35.4K €31.5K

$39.3K €35.0K

-9.85%

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

$203 €181

$167 €149

21.18%

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

$11.50 €10.22

$18.80 €16.72

-38.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.03 €28.49

$33.09 €29.43

-3.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$65.9 €58.6

$46.01 €40.93

43.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.89 €20.36

$19.19 €17.07

19.28%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$9.84 €8.75

14.13%

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

$484 €430

$677 €602

-28.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.7K

$16.9K €15.1K

-2.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.0 €63.1

$101 €90.1

-29.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.51 €32.47

$45.76 €40.70

-20.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.9 €75.5

$100.0 €88.9

-15.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 €108

$123 €109

-0.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,222 €1,087

$1,614 €1,436

-24.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$881 €784

$1,197 €1,065

-26.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,537 €2,257

$2,862 €2,545

-11.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,721 €1,530

$1,990 €1,770

-13.55%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,274 €7,360

$7,577 €6,740

9.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,084 €2,743

$4,307 €3,831

-28.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,942 €1,728

$1,588 €1,412

22.33%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.52

3.85

-8.57%

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

Last update for Rome: 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

Rome

$881 44.1%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9% 35.8% $316

Groceries & Markets

Rome

$329 16.5%

Lisbon

$269 12.1% 18.2% $60

Eating Out

Rome

$251 12.6%

Lisbon

$242 10.9% 3.5% $8.7

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rome

$246 12.3%

Lisbon

$219 9.9% 11% $27

Clothing & Footwear

Rome

$141 7.1%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 17.7% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Rome

$88 4.4%

Lisbon

$66 3% 25.6% $23

Getting Around

Rome

$61 3%

Lisbon

$63 2.8% 3.8% $2.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,222 in Rome and $1,614 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Rome pays 22% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $66.0 in Rome vs $61.0 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $329 vs $269 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇹 Rome

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

12:05 12:05 PM

11:05 11:05 AM

1 h behind Rome

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,848,084 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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Between locations

Rome Lisbon 1,860 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Rome
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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

Rome vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Rome and Lisbon differ by about 11% in total monthly costs ($1,998 vs $2,223 including rent). Rome is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 22% higher in Rome, 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: $1,222 in Rome versus $1,614 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $484 in Rome versus $677 in Lisbon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 22% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,998 in Rome versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Rome but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Rome 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, Rome 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 Rome gentler on the wallet – expenses run 11% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.