Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Samara and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Samara: $765 a month against $2,202 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $17,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

44

Cost of Living Index in Samara
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Samara Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Samara

🇷🇺 Russia

$765

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $765 in Samara versus $2,202 in Lisbon.

Samara $765
Lisbon $2,202

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,253 in Samara versus $3,274 in Lisbon.

Samara $1,253
Lisbon $3,274

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,741 in Samara versus $4,346 in Lisbon.

Samara $1,741
Lisbon $4,346

Living in Samara costs roughly 65% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Samara is 44% below, Lisbon is 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.57 ₽716

$17.04 €15.15

-49.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.02 ₽3,591

$62.3 €55.4

-30.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.21 ₽435

$11.02 €9.80

-52.72%

Cappuccino

$2.30 ₽192

$3.12 €2.78

-26.28%

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

$1.14 ₽94.9

$2.27 €2.02

-49.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.52 ₽43.42

$1.74 €1.55

-70.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.77 ₽148

$3.42 €3.04

-48.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.97 ₽248

$3.74 €3.33

-20.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.24 ₽104

$1.17 €1.04

5.98%

White Bread (500g)

$1.05 ₽87.7

$1.86 €1.66

-43.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.62 ₽135

$1.54 €1.37

5.19%

Eggs

$1.53 ₽128

$4.06 €3.61

-62.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.14 ₽1,013

$12.91 €11.49

-5.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.07 ₽590

$7.90 €7.03

-10.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.47 ₽624

$17.64 €15.69

-57.65%

Apples (1kg)

$3.04 ₽254

$2.26 €2.01

34.51%

Banana (1kg)

$1.76 ₽147

$1.75 €1.55

0.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.89 €1.68

Tomato (1kg)

$4.04 ₽337

$2.56 €2.27

57.81%

Potato (1kg)

$0.83 ₽68.9

$1.85 €1.64

-55.14%

Onion (1kg)

$0.38 ₽31.46

$1.97 €1.75

-80.71%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₽46.44

$0.77 €0.69

-27.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.51 ₽210

$6.71 €5.97

-62.59%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.67 €5.04

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.07 ₽89.5

$1.37 €1.22

-21.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 €1.88

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.46 ₽38.41

$2.32 €2.07

-80.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.43 €39.52

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.70 ₽309

$3.95 €3.51

-6.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.05 €0.93

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ₽308

$17.15 €15.26

-78.48%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.87 ₽72.9

$2.19 €1.95

-60.27%

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

$51.7K ₽4.3M

$33.8K €30.0K

53.14%

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

$41.2K ₽3.4M

$38.3K €34.0K

7.61%

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

$140 ₽11.7K

$164 €146

-14.36%

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

$4.73 ₽395

$18.48 €16.43

-74.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.93 ₽1,163

$32.96 €29.32

-57.74%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.07 ₽3,511

$45.87 €40.80

-8.28%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.95 ₽1,832

$18.68 €16.61

17.51%

Cinema Ticket

$11.95 ₽997

$9.75 €8.67

22.56%

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

$684 €608

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.7K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$146 ₽12.1K

$104 €92.3

40.31%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$78.9 ₽6,587

$46.20 €41.09

70.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$158 ₽13.2K

$99.7 €88.7

58.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.0 ₽7,176

$125 €111

-31.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,589 €1,414

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,169 €1,040

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,851 €2,536

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,993 €1,773

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,443 ₽203.9K

$7,793 €6,932

-68.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,601 ₽133.6K

$4,418 €3,930

-63.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,600 €1,423

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

25.03

3.85

550.13%

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

Last update for Samara: October 17, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Clothing & Footwear

Samara

$211 27.5%

Lisbon

$168 7.7% 20% $42

Groceries & Markets

Samara

$191 * 25%

Lisbon

$273 12.4% 43% $82

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Samara

$159 20.8%

Lisbon

$215 9.8% 35.4% $56

Eating Out

Samara

$133 17.4%

Lisbon

$247 11.2% 85.7% $114

Sport & Entertainment

Samara

$66 8.6%

Lisbon

$65 3% 0.9% $0.6

Getting Around

Samara

$5.5 * 0.7%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 1036% $57

Accommodation & Living

Samara

- * 0%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.1%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $43.00 in Samara vs $62.0 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $191 vs $273 per month, with Samara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇺 Samara

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

15:36 3:36 PM

12:36 12:36 PM

3 h behind Samara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,163,645

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Russian Ruble RUB ₽

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 RUB = 1.2 USD

100 RUB = 1.07 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to RUB – Russian Ruble Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇺 Russian Ruble (₽)

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 83.46 RUB (100 RUB = 1.2 USD). 1 EUR = 93.83 RUB (100 RUB = 1.07 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to RUB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Samara Lisbon 4,710 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Samara
Lisbon

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated March 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Samara vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Samara and Lisbon differ by about 188% in total monthly costs ($765 vs $2,202 including rent). Samara is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,148 in Samara 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.

Dining out is cheaper in Samara – a meal for two runs $43.00 versus $62.0 in Lisbon. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $765 per month in Samara versus $2,202 in Lisbon – a 188% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $765 in Samara versus $2,202 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Samara but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Samara 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, Samara 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 Samara gentler on the wallet – expenses run 188% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.