Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santos and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Santos: $1,150 a month against $2,202 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $12,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

55

Cost of Living Index in Santos
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Santos Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Santos

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,150

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,150 in Santos versus $2,202 in Lisbon.

Santos $1,150
Lisbon $2,202

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,736 in Santos versus $3,274 in Lisbon.

Santos $1,736
Lisbon $3,274

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,322 in Santos versus $4,346 in Lisbon.

Santos $2,322
Lisbon $4,346

Living in Santos costs roughly 48% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Santos is 15% below, Lisbon is 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.12 R$41.18

$17.04 €15.15

-52.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.84 R$161

$62.3 €55.4

-48.88%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.14 R$36.19

$11.02 €9.80

-35.21%

Cappuccino

$2.75 R$13.96

$3.12 €2.78

-11.86%

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

$1.43 R$7.24

$2.27 €2.02

-37.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.92 R$4.68

$1.74 €1.55

-47.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.52 R$12.76

$3.42 €3.04

-26.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.92 R$14.79

$3.74 €3.33

-21.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.09 R$5.50

$1.17 €1.04

-6.84%

White Bread (500g)

$1.85 R$9.39

$1.86 €1.66

-0.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.36 R$6.91

$1.54 €1.37

-11.69%

Eggs

$2.49 R$12.61

$4.06 €3.61

-38.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.14 R$61.6

$12.91 €11.49

-5.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.86 R$24.63

$7.90 €7.03

-38.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.91 R$50.2

$17.64 €15.69

-43.82%

Apples (1kg)

$2.11 R$10.69

$2.26 €2.01

-6.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.23 R$6.23

$1.75 €1.55

-29.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.99 R$10.07

$1.89 €1.68

5.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.85 R$9.37

$2.56 €2.27

-27.73%

Potato (1kg)

$1.35 R$6.86

$1.85 €1.64

-27.03%

Onion (1kg)

$1.29 R$6.56

$1.97 €1.75

-34.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.16 R$5.87

$1.45 €1.29

-20.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.95 R$4.80

$0.77 €0.69

23.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.35 R$11.89

$6.71 €5.97

-64.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.98 R$40.46

$5.67 €5.04

40.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.33 R$6.76

$1.37 €1.22

-2.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 R$9.83

$2.11 €1.88

-8.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 R$5.66

$2.32 €2.07

-51.72%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$49.37 R$250

$44.43 €39.52

11.12%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.56 R$7.89

$3.95 €3.51

-60.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.61 R$8.16

$1.05 €0.93

53.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.80 R$90.2

$17.15 €15.26

3.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.24 R$6.31

$2.19 €1.95

-43.38%

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

$23.7K R$120.3K

$33.8K €30.0K

-29.77%

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

$33.5K R$169.6K

$38.3K €34.0K

-12.55%

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

$104 R$529

$164 €146

-36.33%

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

$11.95 R$60.6

$18.48 €16.43

-35.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.90 R$111

$32.96 €29.32

-33.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.96 R$147

$45.87 €40.80

-36.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$57.0 R$289

$18.68 €16.61

205.25%

Cinema Ticket

$8.59 R$43.55

$9.75 €8.67

-11.90%

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

$280 R$1,418

$684 €608

-59.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.2K R$52.0K

$17.6K €15.7K

-41.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.5 R$281

$104 €92.3

-46.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.69 R$186

$46.20 €41.09

-20.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.7 R$485

$99.7 €88.7

-4.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.7 R$307

$125 €111

-51.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$543 R$2,754

$1,589 €1,414

-65.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$424 R$2,148

$1,169 €1,040

-63.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$992 R$5,031

$2,851 €2,536

-65.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$686 R$3,478

$1,993 €1,773

-65.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,413 R$12.2K

$7,793 €6,932

-69.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,776 R$9,004

$4,418 €3,930

-59.80%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$584 R$2,958

$1,600 €1,423

-63.53%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.79

3.85

232.21%

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

Last update for Santos: October 20, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Santos

$424 36.9%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.1% 176% $745

Groceries & Markets

Santos

$219 19.1%

Lisbon

$273 12.4% 24.4% $54

Eating Out

Santos

$147 12.8%

Lisbon

$247 11.2% 68% $100

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santos

$138 12%

Lisbon

$215 9.8% 55.8% $77

Clothing & Footwear

Santos

$112 9.7%

Lisbon

$168 7.7% 50.6% $57

Getting Around

Santos

$63 5.5%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 0.8% $0.5

Sport & Entertainment

Santos

$46 4%

Lisbon

$65 3% 41.7% $19

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $543 in Santos and $1,589 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays 174% 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: $32.00 in Santos vs $62.0 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $219 vs $273 per month, with Santos cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Santos

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

08:36 8:36 AM

12:36 12:36 PM

4 h ahead of Santos

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

418,608

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 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 October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 5.07 BRL (1 BRL = 0.197 USD). 1 EUR = 5.7 BRL (1 BRL = 0.175 EUR).

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

USD to BRL in detail →

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Between locations

Santos Lisbon 7,970 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Santos
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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

Santos vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Santos and Lisbon differ by about 91% in total monthly costs ($1,150 vs $2,202 including rent). Santos is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 174% 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: $543 in Santos versus $1,589 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $280 in Santos versus $684 in Lisbon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 24% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,150 in Santos versus $2,202 in Lisbon, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Santos but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Santos 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, Santos 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 Santos gentler on the wallet – expenses run 91% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.