Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Isidro, Costa Rica and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in San Isidro: $1,676 a month against $2,206 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $6,400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Lisbon outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

81

Cost of Living Index in San Isidro
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San Isidro Living Index
106

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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San Isidro

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,676

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,206

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,676 in San Isidro versus $2,206 in Lisbon.

San Isidro $1,676
Lisbon $2,206

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,650 in San Isidro versus $3,276 in Lisbon.

San Isidro $2,650
Lisbon $3,276

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,623 in San Isidro versus $4,346 in Lisbon.

San Isidro $3,623
Lisbon $4,346

Living in San Isidro costs roughly 24% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: San Isidro 24% above, Lisbon 63% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.90 ₡5,353

$16.86 €15.08

-29.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.6 ₡25.9K

$61.0 €54.6

-5.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.51 ₡5,177

$10.98 €9.82

4.83%

Cappuccino

$4.22 ₡1,897

$3.05 €2.73

38.36%

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

$2.50 ₡1,123

$2.28 €2.04

9.65%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.86 ₡837

$1.68 €1.50

10.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.34 ₡1,504

$3.44 €3.07

-2.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.38 ₡1,972

$3.91 €3.49

12.02%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.34 ₡1,050

$1.15 €1.03

103.48%

White Bread (500g)

$3.02 ₡1,356

$1.89 €1.69

59.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.50 ₡1,122

$1.50 €1.34

66.67%

Eggs

$3.43 ₡1,543

$4.12 €3.68

-16.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.72 ₡4,822

$13.01 €11.63

-17.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.66 ₡4,795

$8.04 €7.19

32.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.17 ₡6,374

$17.89 €16.00

-20.79%

Apples (1kg)

$4.96 ₡2,229

$2.27 €2.03

118.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.67 ₡750

$1.74 €1.56

-4.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.28 ₡1,474

$1.82 €1.63

80.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.52 ₡1,584

$2.69 €2.40

30.86%

Potato (1kg)

$2.86 ₡1,284

$1.77 €1.58

61.58%

Onion (1kg)

$3.16 ₡1,419

$1.94 €1.73

62.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.03 ₡463

$1.46 €1.31

-29.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.65 ₡1,192

$0.76 €0.68

248.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.63 ₡2,531

$6.66 €5.95

-15.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.48 ₡7,412

$5.64 €5.04

192.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.64 ₡1,185

$1.29 €1.15

104.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 ₡1,220

$2.14 €1.91

26.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.30 ₡583

$2.30 €2.06

-43.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.02 €39.36

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.22 ₡997

$3.98 €3.56

-44.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.83 ₡822

$0.64 €0.57

185.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.65 ₡3,891

$18.93 €16.92

-54.31%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 ₡682

$2.28 €2.03

-33.33%

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

$34.6K ₡15.6M

$33.4K €29.8K

3.77%

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

$40.6K ₡18.3M

$38.5K €34.4K

5.54%

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

$93.6 ₡42.1K

$158 €141

-40.82%

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

$30.02 ₡13.5K

$17.54 €15.68

71.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$59.9 ₡26.9K

$31.18 €27.89

92.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.6 ₡30.0K

$44.64 €39.92

49.28%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.98 €16.97

Cinema Ticket

$7.97 ₡3,584

$9.58 €8.56

-16.81%

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

$857 ₡385.5K

$674 €602

27.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.9K ₡7.2M

$18.7K €16.7K

-14.89%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$69.2 ₡31.1K

$102 €91.4

-32.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.22 ₡21.7K

$45.90 €41.04

5.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 ₡57.2K

$102 €91.4

24.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$138 ₡62.2K

$122 €109

13.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$809 ₡364.0K

$1,641 €1,467

-50.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$624 ₡280.7K

$1,187 €1,062

-47.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,908 ₡858.1K

$2,825 €2,526

-32.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,245 ₡559.9K

$2,018 €1,805

-38.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,836 €7,007

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,701 €4,204

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,101 ₡495.2K

$1,687 €1,508

-34.72%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

3.82

125.65%

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

Last update for San Isidro: October 31, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

San Isidro

$624 37.3%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8% 90.2% $563

Groceries & Markets

San Isidro

$373 22.3%

Lisbon

$275 12.5% 26.4% $99

Eating Out

San Isidro

$223 13.3%

Lisbon

$245 11.1% 9.8% $22

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Isidro

$184 11%

Lisbon

$207 9.4% 12.7% $23

Clothing & Footwear

San Isidro

$172 10.3%

Lisbon

$168 7.6% 2.8% $4.8

Sport & Entertainment

San Isidro

$83 4.9%

Lisbon

$64 2.9% 22.7% $19

Getting Around

San Isidro

$17 * 1%

Lisbon

$60 2.7% 265% $44

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 $809 in San Isidro and $1,641 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 53% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $58 in San Isidro vs $61 in Lisbon. Groceries flip the comparison at $373 vs $275, with Lisbon cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇷 San Isidro

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

10:30 10:30 AM

16:30 4:30 PM

6 h ahead of San Isidro

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

17,000

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to CRC – Costa Rican Colón Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 450 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 503 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 0.894 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

San Isidro Lisbon 8,010 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

San Isidro
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

San Isidro vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,676 in San Isidro and $2,206 in Lisbon, so San Isidro is about 24% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 35% lower in San Isidro. 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: $809 in San Isidro versus $1,641 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 26% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you’ll spend $1,676 per month in San Isidro versus $2,206 in Lisbon – San Isidro is about 24% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,676 in San Isidro versus $2,206 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in San Isidro but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes San Isidro 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, San Isidro and Lisbon are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – San Isidro wins on affordability, Lisbon on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.