Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Salamanca and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Salamanca: $1,129 a month against $2,202 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $12,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

55

Cost of Living Index in Salamanca
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Salamanca Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Salamanca

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,129

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,129 in Salamanca versus $2,202 in Lisbon.

Salamanca $1,129
Lisbon $2,202

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,817 in Salamanca versus $3,274 in Lisbon.

Salamanca $1,817
Lisbon $3,274

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,505 in Salamanca versus $4,346 in Lisbon.

Salamanca $2,505
Lisbon $4,346

Living in Salamanca costs roughly 49% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Salamanca is 17% below, Lisbon is 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.91 MX$202

$17.04 €15.15

-35.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.23 MX$799

$62.3 €55.4

-30.60%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.45 MX$156

$11.02 €9.80

-23.32%

Cappuccino

$3.50 MX$64.7

$3.12 €2.78

12.18%

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

$1.39 MX$25.70

$2.27 €2.02

-38.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.05 MX$19.49

$1.74 €1.55

-39.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.44 MX$45.16

$3.42 €3.04

-28.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.99 MX$73.7

$3.74 €3.33

6.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 MX$29.14

$1.17 €1.04

35.04%

White Bread (500g)

$2.57 MX$47.44

$1.86 €1.66

38.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.73 MX$31.94

$1.54 €1.37

12.34%

Eggs

$2.50 MX$46.17

$4.06 €3.61

-38.42%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.25 MX$152

$12.91 €11.49

-36.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.36 MX$155

$7.90 €7.03

5.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.63 MX$215

$17.64 €15.69

-34.07%

Apples (1kg)

$2.76 MX$51.0

$2.26 €2.01

22.12%

Banana (1kg)

$1.52 MX$28.18

$1.75 €1.55

-13.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.95 MX$36.05

$1.89 €1.68

3.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.77 MX$32.67

$2.56 €2.27

-30.86%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 MX$35.89

$1.85 €1.64

4.86%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 MX$34.84

$1.97 €1.75

-4.06%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.41 MX$26.08

$1.45 €1.29

-2.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 MX$19.98

$0.77 €0.69

40.26%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.28 MX$79.0

$6.71 €5.97

-36.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.50 MX$194

$5.67 €5.04

85.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.83 MX$33.83

$1.37 €1.22

33.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.16 MX$58.4

$2.11 €1.88

49.76%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.64 MX$11.77

$2.32 €2.07

-72.41%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.43 €39.52

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.64 MX$48.77

$3.95 €3.51

-33.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.94 MX$35.86

$1.05 €0.93

84.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.84 MX$200

$17.15 €15.26

-36.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 MX$27.66

$2.19 €1.95

-31.51%

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

$21.6K MX$399.3K

$33.8K €30.0K

-36.03%

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

$24.4K MX$450.4K

$38.3K €34.0K

-36.31%

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

$57.5 MX$1,062

$164 €146

-64.92%

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

$23.04 MX$426

$18.48 €16.43

24.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.82 MX$551

$32.96 €29.32

-9.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.77 MX$624

$45.87 €40.80

-26.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.34 MX$376

$18.68 €16.61

8.89%

Cinema Ticket

$5.35 MX$98.8

$9.75 €8.67

-45.13%

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

$221 MX$4,089

$684 €608

-67.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,578 MX$84.6K

$17.6K €15.7K

-74.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.9 MX$1,014

$104 €92.3

-47.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.23 MX$743

$46.20 €41.09

-12.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.0 MX$1,830

$99.7 €88.7

-0.71%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.3 MX$1,668

$125 €111

-27.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$604 MX$11.2K

$1,589 €1,414

-61.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$383 MX$7,073

$1,169 €1,040

-67.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,057 MX$19.5K

$2,851 €2,536

-62.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$752 MX$13.9K

$1,993 €1,773

-62.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,948 MX$36.0K

$7,793 €6,932

-75.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,141 MX$21.1K

$4,418 €3,930

-74.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,600 €1,423

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

3.85

193.51%

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

Last update for Salamanca: October 20, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Salamanca

$383 33.9%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.1% 205% $786

Groceries & Markets

Salamanca

$264 23.4%

Lisbon

$273 12.4% 3.4% $9

Eating Out

Salamanca

$185 16.4%

Lisbon

$247 11.2% 34.1% $63

Clothing & Footwear

Salamanca

$128 11.3%

Lisbon

$168 7.7% 31.6% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Salamanca

$110 9.8%

Lisbon

$215 9.8% 95.1% $105

Sport & Entertainment

Salamanca

$44 3.9%

Lisbon

$65 3% 47% $21

Getting Around

Salamanca

$15 * 1.3%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 323% $48

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 $604 in Salamanca and $1,589 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $43.00 in Salamanca vs $62.0 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $264 vs $273 per month, with Salamanca cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Salamanca

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

02:13 2:13 AM

09:13 9:13 AM

7 h ahead of Salamanca

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

160,682

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Salamanca Lisbon 8,770 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Salamanca
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

Salamanca vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Salamanca and Lisbon differ by about 95% in total monthly costs ($1,129 vs $2,202 including rent). Salamanca is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,694 in Salamanca and $3,302 in Lisbon to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $604 in Salamanca versus $1,589 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 3% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,129 per month in Salamanca versus $2,202 in Lisbon – a 95% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,129 in Salamanca versus $2,202 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Salamanca but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Salamanca 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, Salamanca 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 Salamanca gentler on the wallet – expenses run 95% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.