Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Spanish Town and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Spanish Town: $994 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $14,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Spanish Town
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Spanish Town Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Spanish Town

🇯🇲 Jamaica

$994

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $994 in Spanish Town versus $2,223 in Lisbon.

Spanish Town $994
Lisbon $2,223

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,895 in Spanish Town versus $3,271 in Lisbon.

Spanish Town $1,895
Lisbon $3,271

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,796 in Spanish Town versus $4,319 in Lisbon.

Spanish Town $2,796
Lisbon $4,319

Living in Spanish Town costs roughly 55% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Spanish Town is 26% below, Lisbon is 65% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.25 JMD 2,094

$16.50 €14.67

-19.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$74.2 JMD 11.7K

$61.3 €54.5

21.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.01 JMD 1,265

$11.27 €10.03

-28.93%

Cappuccino

$5.31 JMD 840

$3.06 €2.72

73.53%

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

$1.14 JMD 179

$2.26 €2.01

-49.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.74 JMD 117

$1.73 €1.54

-57.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.25 JMD 355

$3.39 €3.02

-33.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.06 JMD 483

$3.40 €3.02

-10.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$4.14 JMD 655

$1.12 €1.00

269.64%

White Bread (500g)

$3.76 JMD 594

$1.86 €1.65

102.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.65 JMD 260

$1.53 €1.36

7.84%

Eggs

$3.56 JMD 562

$3.96 €3.53

-10.10%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.22 JMD 1,773

$12.76 €11.35

-12.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.38 JMD 1,008

$7.90 €7.02

-19.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.21 JMD 1,614

$16.97 €15.09

-39.84%

Apples (1kg)

$6.16 JMD 973

$2.27 €2.02

171.37%

Banana (1kg)

$3.85 JMD 609

$1.75 €1.55

120.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$7.38 JMD 1,166

$1.85 €1.64

298.92%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.06 JMD 483

$2.57 €2.28

19.07%

Potato (1kg)

$3.17 JMD 500

$1.86 €1.65

70.43%

Onion (1kg)

$2.13 JMD 336

$2.02 €1.80

5.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.09 JMD 489

$1.44 €1.28

114.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 JMD 228

$0.82 €0.73

76.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.46 JMD 1,494

$6.56 €5.83

44.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.20 JMD 1,769

$5.62 €5.00

99.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.78 JMD 439

$1.28 €1.14

117.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.95 JMD 624

$2.07 €1.84

90.82%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.35 €2.09

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.18 €39.30

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.16 JMD 183

$3.99 €3.55

-70.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.05 JMD 483

$1.09 €0.97

179.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.21 JMD 981

$16.64 €14.81

-62.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 JMD 231

$2.28 €2.03

-35.96%

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

$43.9K JMD 6.9M

$33.7K €30.0K

30.41%

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

$32.2K JMD 5.1M

$39.3K €35.0K

-18.05%

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

$165 JMD 26.1K

$167 €149

-1.25%

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

$29.30 JMD 4,629

$18.80 €16.72

55.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.8 JMD 8,179

$33.09 €29.43

56.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.01 €40.93

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.19 €17.07

Cinema Ticket

$12.95 JMD 2,047

$9.84 €8.75

31.61%

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

$356 JMD 56.3K

$677 €602

-47.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,212 JMD 1.3M

$16.9K €15.1K

-51.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$23.80 JMD 3,760

$101 €90.1

-76.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.13 JMD 4,918

$45.76 €40.70

-31.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.3 JMD 12.1K

$100.0 €88.9

-23.71%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$100 JMD 15.9K

$123 €109

-18.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,614 €1,436

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 €1,065

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$633 JMD 100.0K

$2,862 €2,545

-77.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$499 JMD 78.9K

$1,990 €1,770

-74.92%

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)

$1,155 JMD 182.5K

$1,588 €1,412

-27.26%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.45

3.85

145.45%

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

Last update for Spanish Town: October 11, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Spanish Town

$382 38.5%

Lisbon

$269 12.1% 29.6% $113

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Spanish Town

$246 24.8%

Lisbon

$219 9.9% 11% $27

Eating Out

Spanish Town

$219 22%

Lisbon

$242 10.9% 10.8% $24

Clothing & Footwear

Spanish Town

$104 10.5%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 59.6% $62

Sport & Entertainment

Spanish Town

$26 * 2.6%

Lisbon

$66 3% 154% $40

Getting Around

Spanish Town

$16 * 1.7%

Lisbon

$63 2.8% 283% $47

Accommodation & Living

Spanish Town

- * 0%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Lisbon pays 37% 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: $74.0 in Spanish Town vs $61.0 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $382 vs $269 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇯🇲 Spanish Town

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

08:08 8:08 AM

14:08 2:08 PM

6 h ahead of Spanish Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

131,056

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Jamaican Dollar JMD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD

1,000 JMD = 5.63 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to JMD – Jamaican Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇲 Jamaican Dollar ($)

Jamaican Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JMD (1,000 JMD = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JMD (1,000 JMD = 5.63 EUR).

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

USD to JMD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Spanish Town Lisbon 6,870 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Spanish Town
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

Spanish Town vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Spanish Town and Lisbon differ by about 124% in total monthly costs ($994 vs $2,223 including rent). Spanish Town is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 37% 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.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 42% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $994 per month in Spanish Town versus $2,223 in Lisbon – a 124% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $994 in Spanish Town versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Spanish Town but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Spanish Town 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, Spanish Town 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 Spanish Town gentler on the wallet – expenses run 124% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.