Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Semarang and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Semarang: $593 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $19,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

29

Cost of Living Index in Semarang
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Semarang Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Semarang

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$593

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $593 in Semarang versus $2,210 in Lisbon.

Semarang $593
Lisbon $2,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $938 in Semarang versus $3,275 in Lisbon.

Semarang $938
Lisbon $3,275

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,282 in Semarang versus $4,341 in Lisbon.

Semarang $1,282
Lisbon $4,341

Living in Semarang costs roughly 73% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Semarang is 56% below, Lisbon is 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.34 Rp 24.4K

$16.65 €14.95

-91.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$10.53 Rp 191.3K

$61.7 €55.5

-82.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.04 Rp 55.3K

$11.36 €10.20

-73.24%

Cappuccino

$1.28 Rp 23.2K

$2.97 €2.67

-56.90%

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

$0.43 Rp 7,808

$2.29 €2.06

-81.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 Rp 2,847

$1.74 €1.56

-90.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.64 Rp 29.8K

$3.40 €3.06

-51.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.25 Rp 59.1K

$3.31 €2.97

-1.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.05 Rp 19.0K

$1.16 €1.04

-9.48%

White Bread (500g)

$0.92 Rp 16.7K

$1.91 €1.72

-51.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.79 Rp 14.4K

$1.51 €1.36

-47.68%

Eggs

$1.18 Rp 21.4K

$4.02 €3.61

-70.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.86 Rp 70.2K

$12.94 €11.62

-70.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.33 Rp 42.4K

$7.77 €6.98

-70.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.55 Rp 137.3K

$17.76 €15.95

-57.49%

Apples (1kg)

$1.96 Rp 35.7K

$2.30 €2.07

-14.78%

Banana (1kg)

$1.28 Rp 23.3K

$1.73 €1.56

-26.01%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.80 Rp 32.8K

$1.86 €1.67

-3.23%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.47 Rp 26.7K

$2.59 €2.33

-43.24%

Potato (1kg)

$1.28 Rp 23.3K

$1.82 €1.64

-29.67%

Onion (1kg)

$1.89 Rp 34.3K

$1.97 €1.77

-4.06%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.93 Rp 17.0K

$1.47 €1.32

-36.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.40 Rp 7,359

$0.72 €0.65

-44.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.87 Rp 34.1K

$6.58 €5.91

-71.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$25.05 Rp 455.2K

$5.61 €5.04

346.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.64 Rp 29.8K

$1.36 €1.22

20.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.95 Rp 35.4K

$2.14 €1.92

-8.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.21 Rp 3,816

$2.33 €2.10

-90.99%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$13.93 Rp 253.1K

$44.68 €40.14

-68.82%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.50 Rp 9,128

$3.85 €3.46

-87.01%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.29 Rp 5,331

$1.07 €0.96

-72.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.69 Rp 48.8K

$16.46 €14.79

-83.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.77 Rp 14.0K

$2.20 €1.98

-65.00%

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

$24.5K Rp 446.0M

$34.2K €30.7K

-28.23%

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

$32.2K Rp 585.5M

$38.7K €34.8K

-16.81%

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

$86.1 Rp 1.6M

$161 €145

-46.58%

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

$2.67 Rp 48.4K

$18.41 €16.54

-85.50%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.96 Rp 344.7K

$32.74 €29.41

-42.09%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$20.30 Rp 368.9K

$44.55 €40.02

-54.43%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.49 Rp 81.5K

$19.10 €17.16

-76.49%

Cinema Ticket

$2.25 Rp 40.9K

$9.60 €8.62

-76.56%

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

$49.33 Rp 896.6K

$668 €600

-92.61%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,076 Rp 37.7M

$17.6K €15.8K

-88.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$34.61 Rp 629.1K

$102 €91.6

-66.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.31 Rp 532.7K

$44.46 €39.94

-34.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$56.4 Rp 1.0M

$98.5 €88.5

-42.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$38.07 Rp 691.9K

$124 €111

-69.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$226 Rp 4.1M

$1,608 €1,445

-85.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$136 Rp 2.5M

$1,190 €1,069

-88.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$477 Rp 8.7M

$2,812 €2,526

-83.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$380 Rp 6.9M

$2,013 €1,808

-81.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,223 Rp 22.2M

$7,839 €7,042

-84.40%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$833 Rp 15.1M

$4,576 €4,110

-81.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$186 Rp 3.4M

$1,575 €1,415

-88.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.82

3.85

129.09%

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

Last update for Semarang: October 24, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Semarang

$184 31%

Lisbon

$272 12.3% 48.1% $88

Accommodation & Living

Semarang

$136 23%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8% 773% $1.1K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Semarang

$108 18.2%

Lisbon

$212 9.6% 97.1% $105

Clothing & Footwear

Semarang

$71 12%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 133% $95

Eating Out

Semarang

$52 8.8%

Lisbon

$243 11% 364% $190

Sport & Entertainment

Semarang

$25 4.2%

Lisbon

$64 2.9% 157% $39

Getting Around

Semarang

$17 2.8%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 278% $46

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $226 in Semarang and $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays about 8.5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $11 in Semarang vs $62 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $184 vs $272 per month, with Semarang cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇩 Semarang

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

05:57 5:57 AM

22:57 10:57 PM

7 h behind Semarang

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,555,984

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 IDR = 5.5 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to IDR – Indonesian Rupiah Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇩 Indonesian Rupiah (Rp)

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 18,175 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.5 USD). 1 EUR = 20,233 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

USD to IDR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Semarang Lisbon 13,040 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Semarang
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

Semarang vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $593 in Semarang and $2,210 in Lisbon, so Semarang is about 73% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 88% lower in Semarang. 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: $226 in Semarang versus $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $49 in Semarang 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 48% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $593 in Semarang versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Semarang but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Semarang 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 Semarang gentler on the wallet – expenses run 73% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.