Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Stirling and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Stirling: $2,088 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $1,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Lisbon outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

Stirling
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
$2,088
/mo nomad
Lisbon
🇵🇹 Portugal
$2,223
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,088 in Stirling versus $2,223 in Lisbon.

  • Stirling $2,088
  • Lisbon $2,223

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,217 in Stirling versus $3,271 in Lisbon.

  • Stirling $3,217
  • Lisbon $3,271

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,347 in Stirling versus $4,319 in Lisbon.

  • Stirling $4,347
  • Lisbon $4,319

Living in Stirling costs roughly 6% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Stirling 55% above, Lisbon 65% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Stirling
Lisbon
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$19.80 £14.86
$16.50 €14.67
20.00%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$93.8 £70.4
$61.3 €54.5
53.21%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.54 £7.91
$11.27 €10.03
-6.48%
Cappuccino
$4.66 £3.50
$3.06 €2.72
52.29%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.45 £1.83
$2.26 €2.01
8.41%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.89 £1.42
$1.73 €1.54
9.25%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$5.96 £4.47
$3.39 €3.02
75.81%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.53 £3.40
$3.40 €3.02
33.24%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Stirling
Lisbon
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.36 £1.02
$1.12 €1.00
21.43%
White Bread (500g)
$1.36 £1.02
$1.86 €1.65
-26.88%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.91 £1.43
$1.53 €1.36
24.84%
Eggs
$3.52 £2.64
$3.96 €3.53
-11.11%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.85 £6.64
$12.76 €11.35
-30.64%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.63 £5.72
$7.90 €7.02
-3.42%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$6.74 £5.06
$16.97 €15.09
-60.28%
Apples (1kg)
$2.96 £2.22
$2.27 €2.02
30.40%
Banana (1kg)
$1.34 £1.01
$1.75 €1.55
-23.43%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.71 £2.03
$1.85 €1.64
46.49%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.58 £1.93
$2.57 €2.28
0.39%
Potato (1kg)
$1.63 £1.22
$1.86 €1.65
-12.37%
Onion (1kg)
$1.44 £1.08
$2.02 €1.80
-28.71%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.03 £0.77
$1.44 €1.28
-28.47%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.43 £1.07
$0.82 €0.73
74.39%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$21.77 £16.33
$6.56 €5.83
231.86%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.91 £8.18
$5.62 €5.00
94.13%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.76 £2.07
$1.28 €1.14
115.62%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.98 £2.23
$2.07 €1.84
43.96%
🚌 Getting Around
Stirling
Lisbon
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$6.17 £4.63
$2.35 €2.09
162.55%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$75.6 £56.7
$44.18 €39.30
71.07%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.95 £2.96
$3.99 €3.55
-1.00%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.44 £1.83
$1.09 €0.97
123.85%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$23.54 £17.66
$16.64 €14.81
41.47%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$2.00 £1.50
$2.28 €2.03
-12.28%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$38.2K £28.6K
$33.7K €30.0K
13.37%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$39.9K £29.9K
$39.3K €35.0K
1.46%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Stirling
Lisbon
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$274 £206
$167 €149
63.87%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$15.17 £11.38
$18.80 €16.72
-19.31%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$39.10 £29.33
$33.09 €29.43
18.16%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Stirling
Lisbon
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$31.86 £23.90
$46.01 €40.93
-30.75%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$16.57 £12.43
$19.19 €17.07
-13.65%
Cinema Ticket
$8.96 £6.72
$9.84 €8.75
-8.94%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Stirling
Lisbon
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$1,729 £1,297
$677 €602
155.27%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$23.0K £17.3K
$16.9K €15.1K
36.04%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Stirling
Lisbon
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$95.4 £71.6
$101 €90.1
-5.80%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$36.37 £27.28
$45.76 €40.70
-20.52%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$94.2 £70.7
$100.0 €88.9
-5.80%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$53.0 £39.73
$123 €109
-56.87%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Stirling
Lisbon
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,042 £782
$1,614 €1,436
-35.45%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$914 £686
$1,197 €1,065
-23.64%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,379 £1,785
$2,862 €2,545
-16.85%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,714 £1,286
$1,990 €1,770
-13.87%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$7,577 €6,740
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$4,307 €3,831
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Stirling
Lisbon
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$3,411 £2,559
$1,588 €1,412
114.85%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.11
3.85
32.73%

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

Last update for Stirling: October 12, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Stirling
$914
Lisbon
$1.2K 31% $283
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Stirling
$329
Lisbon
$219 33.3% $109
Eating Out
Stirling
$302
Lisbon
$242 19.9% $60
Groceries & Markets
Stirling
$251
Lisbon
$269 7.3% $18
Clothing & Footwear
Stirling
$126
Lisbon
$166 32.6% $41
Getting Around
Stirling
$116
Lisbon
$63 45.9% $53
Sport & Entertainment
Stirling
$50
Lisbon
$66 32% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,042 in Stirling and $1,614 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Stirling pays 115% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $94.0 in Stirling vs $61.0 in Lisbon. Groceries flip the comparison at $251 vs $269, with Stirling cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know
🇬🇧 Stirling
🇵🇹 Lisbon
🕒 Local time
17:45 5:45 PM
17:45 5:45 PM
Same time as Stirling
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
37,800
545,923 Capital
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to GBP – British Pound Converter

British Pound exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

On the map
Between locations
  • Stirling Lisbon 1,970 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Stirling
  • 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
Stirling vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Stirling and in Lisbon?
Stirling and Lisbon differ by about 6% in total monthly costs ($2,088 vs $2,223 including rent). Stirling is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city pays better: Stirling or Lisbon?
Average pay runs 115% higher in Stirling, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.
How do apartment prices compare in Stirling and in Lisbon?
Rent for a central apartment: $1,042 in Stirling versus $1,614 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Stirling and Lisbon?
Childcare runs $1,729 in Stirling versus $677 in Lisbon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city has cheaper grocery shopping?
Supermarket bills run roughly 7% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.
Which city is more doable on $2,500 per month?
At $2,088 in Stirling versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Stirling but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Stirling the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between Stirling and Lisbon?
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.
Is Stirling or Lisbon safer for residents?
Safety-wise, Stirling 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.
Where should expats move: Stirling or Lisbon?
Expats usually find Stirling gentler on the wallet – expenses run 6% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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