Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Barbara and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Santa Barbara: $1,725 a month against $2,206 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Lisbon outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

83

Cost of Living Index in Santa Barbara
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Santa Barbara Living Index
106

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Santa Barbara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,725

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,206

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,725 in Santa Barbara versus $2,206 in Lisbon.

Santa Barbara $1,725
Lisbon $2,206

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,738 in Santa Barbara versus $3,276 in Lisbon.

Santa Barbara $2,738
Lisbon $3,276

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,750 in Santa Barbara versus $4,346 in Lisbon.

Santa Barbara $3,750
Lisbon $4,346

Living in Santa Barbara costs roughly 22% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Santa Barbara 28% above, Lisbon 63% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.36 ₡5,558

$16.86 €15.08

-26.69%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.2 ₡28.0K

$61.0 €54.6

1.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.72 ₡5,270

$10.98 €9.82

6.74%

Cappuccino

$4.39 ₡1,974

$3.05 €2.73

43.93%

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

$2.76 ₡1,241

$2.28 €2.04

21.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.92 ₡862

$1.68 €1.50

14.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.39 ₡1,523

$3.44 €3.07

-1.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 ₡1,959

$3.91 €3.49

11.51%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.43 ₡1,093

$1.15 €1.03

111.30%

White Bread (500g)

$3.14 ₡1,411

$1.89 €1.69

66.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.48 ₡1,116

$1.50 €1.34

65.33%

Eggs

$3.46 ₡1,557

$4.12 €3.68

-16.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.74 ₡4,828

$13.01 €11.63

-17.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.34 ₡4,651

$8.04 €7.19

28.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.93 ₡6,265

$17.89 €16.00

-22.14%

Apples (1kg)

$5.25 ₡2,362

$2.27 €2.03

131.28%

Banana (1kg)

$1.59 ₡714

$1.74 €1.56

-8.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.64 ₡2,086

$1.82 €1.63

154.95%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.89 ₡1,751

$2.69 €2.40

44.61%

Potato (1kg)

$3.84 ₡1,728

$1.77 €1.58

116.95%

Onion (1kg)

$3.72 ₡1,671

$1.94 €1.73

91.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.11 ₡499

$1.46 €1.31

-23.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.19 ₡1,436

$0.76 €0.68

319.74%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.00 ₡2,696

$6.66 €5.95

-9.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.13 ₡9,055

$5.64 €5.04

256.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.78 ₡1,249

$1.29 €1.15

115.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.51 ₡1,580

$2.14 €1.91

64.02%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.35 ₡608

$2.30 €2.06

-41.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.02 €39.36

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.41 ₡1,085

$3.98 €3.56

-39.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.63 ₡734

$0.64 €0.57

154.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.72 ₡3,922

$18.93 €16.92

-53.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 ₡680

$2.28 €2.03

-33.77%

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

$33.4K ₡15.0M

$33.4K €29.8K

0.22%

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

$41.6K ₡18.7M

$38.5K €34.4K

8.14%

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

$96.6 ₡43.5K

$158 €141

-38.92%

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

$36.11 ₡16.2K

$17.54 €15.68

105.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$60.0 ₡27.0K

$31.18 €27.89

92.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.0 ₡30.6K

$44.64 €39.92

52.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.98 €16.97

Cinema Ticket

$7.62 ₡3,426

$9.58 €8.56

-20.46%

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

$967 ₡434.7K

$674 €602

43.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.2K ₡7.7M

$18.7K €16.7K

-8.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.4 ₡32.1K

$102 €91.4

-30.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.8 ₡25.5K

$45.90 €41.04

23.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 ₡57.3K

$102 €91.4

24.58%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 ₡58.8K

$122 €109

7.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$815 ₡366.6K

$1,641 €1,467

-50.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$627 ₡281.8K

$1,187 €1,062

-47.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,878 ₡844.5K

$2,825 €2,526

-33.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,256 ₡564.9K

$2,018 €1,805

-37.76%

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)

$1,687 €1,508

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 Santa Barbara: November 2, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Santa Barbara

$627 36.3%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8% 89.4% $561

Groceries & Markets

Santa Barbara

$402 23.3%

Lisbon

$275 12.5% 31.7% $127

Eating Out

Santa Barbara

$231 13.4%

Lisbon

$245 11.1% 6.2% $14

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santa Barbara

$193 11.2%

Lisbon

$207 9.4% 7.3% $14

Clothing & Footwear

Santa Barbara

$174 10.1%

Lisbon

$168 7.6% 3.6% $6.3

Sport & Entertainment

Santa Barbara

$83 4.8%

Lisbon

$64 2.9% 23.3% $19

Getting Around

Santa Barbara

$16 * 0.9%

Lisbon

$60 2.7% 278% $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 $815 in Santa Barbara and $1,641 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $62 in Santa Barbara vs $61 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $402 vs $275 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Santa Barbara

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

13:22 1:22 PM

19:22 7:22 PM

6 h ahead of Santa Barbara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,000

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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Between locations

Santa Barbara Lisbon 8,020 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Santa Barbara
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

Santa Barbara vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,725 in Santa Barbara and $2,206 in Lisbon, so Santa Barbara is about 22% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,588 in Santa Barbara and $3,309 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: $815 in Santa Barbara versus $1,641 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $967 in Santa Barbara versus $674 in Lisbon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

All in, you’ll spend $1,725 per month in Santa Barbara versus $2,206 in Lisbon – Santa Barbara is about 22% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Either city works on $2,500 a month, though Santa Barbara gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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, Santa Barbara and Lisbon are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.