Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Juan del Sur and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in San Juan del Sur: $1,058 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $14,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

51

Cost of Living Index in San Juan del Sur
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San Juan del Sur Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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San Juan del Sur

🇳🇮 Nicaragua

$1,058

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,058 in San Juan del Sur versus $2,223 in Lisbon.

San Juan del Sur $1,058
Lisbon $2,223

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,682 in San Juan del Sur versus $3,271 in Lisbon.

San Juan del Sur $1,682
Lisbon $3,271

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,307 in San Juan del Sur versus $4,319 in Lisbon.

San Juan del Sur $2,307
Lisbon $4,319

Living in San Juan del Sur costs roughly 52% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: San Juan del Sur is 22% below, Lisbon is 65% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.17 NIO 153

$16.50 €14.67

-74.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.08 NIO 1,248

$61.3 €54.5

-44.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.57 NIO 204

$11.27 €10.03

-50.58%

Cappuccino

$2.56 NIO 93.7

$3.06 €2.72

-16.34%

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

$0.86 NIO 31.37

$2.26 €2.01

-61.95%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.68 NIO 25.02

$1.73 €1.54

-60.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.47 NIO 53.8

$3.39 €3.02

-56.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 NIO 81.8

$3.40 €3.02

-34.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.24 NIO 45.36

$1.12 €1.00

10.71%

White Bread (500g)

$1.53 NIO 55.9

$1.86 €1.65

-17.74%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.19 NIO 43.56

$1.53 €1.36

-22.22%

Eggs

$2.44 NIO 89.2

$3.96 €3.53

-38.38%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.71 NIO 283

$12.76 €11.35

-39.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.15 NIO 225

$7.90 €7.02

-22.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.84 NIO 287

$16.97 €15.09

-53.80%

Apples (1kg)

$4.10 NIO 150

$2.27 €2.02

80.62%

Banana (1kg)

$0.62 NIO 22.71

$1.75 €1.55

-64.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.84 NIO 67.3

$1.85 €1.64

-0.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.45 NIO 89.9

$2.57 €2.28

-4.67%

Potato (1kg)

$3.11 NIO 114

$1.86 €1.65

67.20%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 NIO 79.9

$2.02 €1.80

7.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.05 NIO 38.54

$1.44 €1.28

-27.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.05 NIO 38.52

$0.82 €0.73

28.05%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.76 NIO 101

$6.56 €5.83

-57.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.76 NIO 357

$5.62 €5.00

73.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 NIO 51.9

$1.28 €1.14

10.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 NIO 79.7

$2.07 €1.84

5.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.58 NIO 58.0

$3.99 €3.55

-60.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.64 NIO 60.3

$1.09 €0.97

50.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.87 NIO 252

$16.64 €14.81

-58.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 NIO 49.13

$2.28 €2.03

-41.23%

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

$22.8K NIO 836.8K

$33.7K €30.0K

-32.15%

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

$26.7K NIO 977.1K

$39.3K €35.0K

-32.10%

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

$60.8 NIO 2,225

$167 €149

-63.72%

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

$10.32 NIO 378

$18.80 €16.72

-45.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.01 NIO 1,209

$33.09 €29.43

-0.24%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.51 NIO 1,118

$46.01 €40.93

-33.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

Cinema Ticket

$9.23 NIO 338

$9.84 €8.75

-6.20%

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

$233 NIO 8,530

$677 €602

-65.61%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,128 NIO 224.4K

$16.9K €15.1K

-63.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.1 NIO 2,237

$101 €90.1

-39.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$66.1 NIO 2,421

$45.76 €40.70

44.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$123 NIO 4,500

$100.0 €88.9

22.89%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$146 NIO 5,331

$123 €109

18.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$423 NIO 15.5K

$1,614 €1,436

-73.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$393 NIO 14.4K

$1,197 €1,065

-67.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$930 NIO 34.1K

$2,862 €2,545

-67.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$797 NIO 29.2K

$1,990 €1,770

-59.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,577 €6,740

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,307 €3,831

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 NIO 12.7K

$1,588 €1,412

-78.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.92

3.85

209.61%

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

Last update for San Juan del Sur: 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

San Juan del Sur

$393 37.2%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9% 204% $804

Groceries & Markets

San Juan del Sur

$225 21.3%

Lisbon

$269 12.1% 19.8% $45

Clothing & Footwear

San Juan del Sur

$178 16.8%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 6.5% $12

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Juan del Sur

$104 9.8%

Lisbon

$219 9.9% 111% $115

Eating Out

San Juan del Sur

$99 9.3%

Lisbon

$242 10.9% 145% $144

Sport & Entertainment

San Juan del Sur

$49 4.6%

Lisbon

$66 3% 34.1% $17

Getting Around

San Juan del Sur

$9.8 * 0.9%

Lisbon

$63 2.8% 542% $53

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 $423 in San Juan del Sur and $1,614 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 359% 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: $34.00 in San Juan del Sur vs $61.0 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $225 vs $269 per month, with San Juan del Sur cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇮 San Juan del Sur

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

22:32 10:32 PM

05:32 5:32 AM

7 h ahead of San Juan del Sur

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

14,741

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Nicaraguan Córdoba NIO C$

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 NIO = 2.73 USD

100 NIO = 2.43 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to NIO – Nicaraguan Córdoba Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇮 Nicaraguan Córdoba (C$)

Nicaraguan Córdoba exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 36.62 NIO (100 NIO = 2.73 USD). 1 EUR = 41.17 NIO (100 NIO = 2.43 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to NIO in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

San Juan del Sur Lisbon 8,080 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

San Juan del Sur
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 Juan del Sur vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Juan del Sur and Lisbon differ by about 110% in total monthly costs ($1,058 vs $2,223 including rent). San Juan del Sur is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 359% 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: $423 in San Juan del Sur versus $1,614 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

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

All in, you'll spend $1,058 per month in San Juan del Sur versus $2,223 in Lisbon – a 110% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,058 in San Juan del Sur versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in San Juan del Sur but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes San Juan del Sur 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 Juan del Sur 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 San Juan del Sur gentler on the wallet – expenses run 110% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.