Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Surat Thani and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Surat Thani: $775 a month against $2,202 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $17,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

38

Cost of Living Index in Surat Thani
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Surat Thani Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Surat Thani

🇹🇭 Thailand

$775

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $775 in Surat Thani versus $2,202 in Lisbon.

Surat Thani $775
Lisbon $2,202

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,414 in Surat Thani versus $3,274 in Lisbon.

Surat Thani $1,414
Lisbon $3,274

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,053 in Surat Thani versus $4,346 in Lisbon.

Surat Thani $2,053
Lisbon $4,346

Living in Surat Thani costs roughly 65% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Surat Thani is 43% below, Lisbon is 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.89 ฿63.0

$17.04 €15.15

-88.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$17.87 ฿597

$62.3 €55.4

-71.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.51 ฿151

$11.02 €9.80

-59.07%

Cappuccino

$1.50 ฿50.2

$3.12 €2.78

-51.92%

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

$0.50 ฿16.68

$2.27 €2.02

-77.97%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.29 ฿9.66

$1.74 €1.55

-83.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿85.4

$3.42 €3.04

-25.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 ฿123

$3.74 €3.33

-1.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.4

$1.17 €1.04

41.88%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 ฿39.89

$1.86 €1.66

-36.02%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.17 ฿39.13

$1.54 €1.37

-24.03%

Eggs

$1.87 ฿62.4

$4.06 €3.61

-53.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.18 ฿641

$12.91 €11.49

48.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.33 ฿111

$7.90 €7.03

-57.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.44 ฿249

$17.64 €15.69

-57.82%

Apples (1kg)

$2.91 ฿97.2

$2.26 €2.01

28.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.68 ฿56.3

$1.75 €1.55

-4.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.76 ฿58.7

$1.89 €1.68

-6.88%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 ฿68.4

$2.56 €2.27

-19.92%

Potato (1kg)

$1.30 ฿43.57

$1.85 €1.64

-29.73%

Onion (1kg)

$1.37 ฿45.90

$1.97 €1.75

-30.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.11 ฿37.24

$1.45 €1.29

-23.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.41 ฿13.66

$0.77 €0.69

-46.75%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.07 ฿103

$6.71 €5.97

-54.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.86 ฿630

$5.67 €5.04

232.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 ฿51.6

$1.37 €1.22

12.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿60.7

$2.11 €1.88

-13.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.02 ฿34.00

$2.32 €2.07

-56.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.95 ฿700

$44.43 €39.52

-52.85%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.18 ฿39.50

$3.95 €3.51

-70.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.63 ฿21.05

$1.05 €0.93

-40.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.49 ฿117

$17.15 €15.26

-79.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.16 ฿38.93

$2.19 €1.95

-47.03%

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

$26.6K ฿890.1K

$33.8K €30.0K

-21.16%

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

$27.3K ฿911.7K

$38.3K €34.0K

-28.71%

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

$72.9 ฿2,437

$164 €146

-55.49%

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

$11.12 ฿372

$18.48 €16.43

-39.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.32 ฿579

$32.96 €29.32

-47.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.24 ฿1,612

$45.87 €40.80

5.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.52 ฿385

$18.68 €16.61

-38.33%

Cinema Ticket

$4.53 ฿151

$9.75 €8.67

-53.54%

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

$549 ฿18.3K

$684 €608

-19.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K ฿386.5K

$17.6K €15.7K

-34.39%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.9 ฿2,070

$104 €92.3

-40.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.16 ฿974

$46.20 €41.09

-36.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$97.3 ฿3,252

$99.7 €88.7

-2.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.5 ฿2,892

$125 €111

-30.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$237 ฿7,910

$1,589 €1,414

-85.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$149 ฿4,985

$1,169 €1,040

-87.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,150 ฿38.4K

$2,851 €2,536

-59.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$709 ฿23.7K

$1,993 €1,773

-64.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,226 ฿74.4K

$7,793 €6,932

-71.43%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,404 ฿46.9K

$4,418 €3,930

-68.23%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,600 €1,423

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

3.85

44.68%

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

Last update for Surat Thani: October 19, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Surat Thani

$244 31.5%

Lisbon

$273 12.4% 11.8% $29

Accommodation & Living

Surat Thani

$149 19.3%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.1% 684% $1K

Clothing & Footwear

Surat Thani

$124 16%

Lisbon

$168 7.7% 36.2% $45

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Surat Thani

$101 13.1%

Lisbon

$215 9.8% 112% $114

Eating Out

Surat Thani

$70 9%

Lisbon

$247 11.2% 254% $178

Sport & Entertainment

Surat Thani

$57 7.4%

Lisbon

$65 3% 14.1% $8.1

Getting Around

Surat Thani

$29 3.8%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 114% $34

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $237 in Surat Thani and $1,589 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $18.00 in Surat Thani vs $62.0 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $244 vs $273 per month, with Surat Thani cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Surat Thani

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

18:37 6:37 PM

12:37 12:37 PM

6 h behind Surat Thani

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

132,040

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

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

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Surat Thani Lisbon 10,930 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Surat Thani
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

Surat Thani vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Surat Thani and Lisbon differ by about 184% in total monthly costs ($775 vs $2,202 including rent). Surat Thani is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,163 in Surat Thani and $3,302 in Lisbon to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $237 in Surat Thani versus $1,589 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $549 in Surat Thani 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 12% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $775 in Surat Thani versus $2,202 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Surat Thani but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Surat Thani 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, Surat Thani 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 Surat Thani gentler on the wallet – expenses run 184% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.