Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Maria and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Santa Maria: $732 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $17,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Santa Maria
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Santa Maria Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Santa Maria

🇧🇷 Brazil

$732

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $732 in Santa Maria versus $2,210 in Lisbon.

Santa Maria $732
Lisbon $2,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,224 in Santa Maria versus $3,275 in Lisbon.

Santa Maria $1,224
Lisbon $3,275

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,715 in Santa Maria versus $4,341 in Lisbon.

Santa Maria $1,715
Lisbon $4,341

Living in Santa Maria costs roughly 67% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Santa Maria is 46% below, Lisbon is 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.61 R$30.54

$16.65 €14.91

-66.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$33.42 R$182

$61.7 €55.3

-45.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.46 R$35.14

$11.36 €10.17

-43.13%

Cappuccino

$1.70 R$9.26

$2.97 €2.66

-42.76%

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

$1.03 R$5.60

$2.29 €2.05

-55.02%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 R$3.35

$1.74 €1.56

-64.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.51 R$8.20

$3.40 €3.05

-55.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.26 R$23.16

$3.31 €2.96

28.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.02 R$5.53

$1.16 €1.04

-12.07%

White Bread (500g)

$1.48 R$8.03

$1.91 €1.71

-22.51%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 R$7.72

$1.51 €1.35

-5.96%

Eggs

$1.74 R$9.49

$4.02 €3.60

-56.72%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.55 R$46.50

$12.94 €11.59

-33.93%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.71 R$20.17

$7.77 €6.96

-52.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.82 R$42.52

$17.76 €15.91

-55.97%

Apples (1kg)

$2.26 R$12.31

$2.30 €2.06

-1.74%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 R$7.51

$1.73 €1.55

-20.23%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.01 R$10.95

$1.86 €1.66

8.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.37 R$7.48

$2.59 €2.32

-47.10%

Potato (1kg)

$1.13 R$6.15

$1.82 €1.63

-37.91%

Onion (1kg)

$1.28 R$6.98

$1.97 €1.76

-35.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 R$4.73

$1.47 €1.32

-40.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 R$4.46

$0.72 €0.65

13.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.20 R$11.98

$6.58 €5.90

-66.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.58 R$41.23

$5.61 €5.02

35.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 R$6.57

$1.36 €1.22

-11.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.75 R$14.99

$2.14 €1.91

28.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.22 R$6.65

$2.33 €2.09

-47.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$42.50 R$231

$44.68 €40.01

-4.88%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.18 R$6.41

$3.85 €3.45

-69.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.79 R$4.28

$1.07 €0.96

-26.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.72 R$41.98

$16.46 €14.74

-53.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.17 R$6.36

$2.20 €1.97

-46.82%

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

$22.9K R$124.7K

$34.2K €30.6K

-32.94%

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

$30.0K R$163.5K

$38.7K €34.7K

-22.40%

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

$51.1 R$278

$161 €144

-68.29%

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

$15.89 R$86.4

$18.41 €16.49

-13.69%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.02 R$92.6

$32.74 €29.32

-48.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$22.47 R$122

$44.55 €39.90

-49.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.14 R$60.6

$19.10 €17.10

-41.68%

Cinema Ticket

$5.46 R$29.70

$9.60 €8.60

-43.13%

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

$147 R$799

$668 €598

-78.01%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,764 R$15.0K

$17.6K €15.8K

-84.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.1 R$321

$102 €91.4

-42.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.62 R$226

$44.46 €39.82

-6.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.8 R$505

$98.5 €88.2

-5.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.1 R$327

$124 €111

-51.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$282 R$1,533

$1,608 €1,440

-82.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$155 R$844

$1,190 €1,066

-86.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$608 R$3,305

$2,812 €2,519

-78.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$370 R$2,013

$2,013 €1,803

-81.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,633 R$8,882

$7,839 €7,021

-79.17%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$677 R$3,685

$4,576 €4,098

-85.20%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$591 R$3,213

$1,575 €1,411

-62.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

159.74%

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

Last update for Santa Maria: October 27, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Santa Maria

$186 25.4%

Lisbon

$272 12.3% 46.6% $87

Accommodation & Living

Santa Maria

$155 21.2%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8% 667% $1K

Clothing & Footwear

Santa Maria

$114 15.6%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 45.4% $52

Eating Out

Santa Maria

$107 14.7%

Lisbon

$243 11% 126% $135

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santa Maria

$84 11.5%

Lisbon

$212 9.6% 153% $128

Getting Around

Santa Maria

$53 7.2%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 20.4% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Santa Maria

$33 4.6%

Lisbon

$64 2.9% 90.9% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $282 in Santa Maria and $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays about 2.7 times 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: $33 in Santa Maria vs $62 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $186 vs $272 per month, with Santa Maria cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Santa Maria

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

21:55 9:55 PM

00:55 12:55 AM

3 h ahead of Santa Maria

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

271,735

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.184 USD

1 BRL = 0.165 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 5.44 BRL (1 BRL = 0.184 USD). 1 EUR = 6.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.165 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Santa Maria Lisbon 8,900 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

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

Total monthly costs including rent come to $732 in Santa Maria and $2,210 in Lisbon, so Santa Maria is about 67% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 62% lower in Santa Maria. 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: $282 in Santa Maria versus $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $147 in Santa Maria versus $668 in Lisbon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 47% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $732 in Santa Maria versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Santa Maria but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Santa Maria 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.

Expats usually find Santa Maria gentler on the wallet – expenses run 67% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.