Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Taipei and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Taipei: $1,368 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $10,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

67

Cost of Living Index in Taipei
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Taipei Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Taipei

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,368

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,368 in Taipei versus $2,223 in Lisbon.

Taipei $1,368
Lisbon $2,223

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,202 in Taipei versus $3,271 in Lisbon.

Taipei $2,202
Lisbon $3,271

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,036 in Taipei versus $4,319 in Lisbon.

Taipei $3,036
Lisbon $4,319

Living in Taipei costs roughly 38% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Taipei 1% above, Lisbon 65% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.60 NT$149

$16.50 €14.67

-72.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.13 NT$1,528

$61.3 €54.5

-23.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.58 NT$181

$11.27 €10.03

-50.49%

Cappuccino

$3.45 NT$112

$3.06 €2.72

12.75%

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

$0.94 NT$30.61

$2.26 €2.01

-58.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.67 NT$21.73

$1.73 €1.54

-61.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.86 NT$92.7

$3.39 €3.02

-15.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.70 NT$120

$3.40 €3.02

8.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.12 NT$101

$1.12 €1.00

178.57%

White Bread (500g)

$1.97 NT$64.0

$1.86 €1.65

5.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.16 NT$103

$1.53 €1.36

106.54%

Eggs

$2.68 NT$86.9

$3.96 €3.53

-32.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.90 NT$645

$12.76 €11.35

55.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.85 NT$319

$7.90 €7.02

24.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.51 NT$698

$16.97 €15.09

26.75%

Apples (1kg)

$4.85 NT$157

$2.27 €2.02

113.66%

Banana (1kg)

$3.25 NT$105

$1.75 €1.55

85.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.03 NT$98.2

$1.85 €1.64

63.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.53 NT$147

$2.57 €2.28

76.26%

Potato (1kg)

$2.79 NT$90.4

$1.86 €1.65

50.00%

Onion (1kg)

$2.34 NT$75.9

$2.02 €1.80

15.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.68 NT$54.5

$1.44 €1.28

16.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.10 NT$35.62

$0.82 €0.73

34.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.80 NT$123

$6.56 €5.83

-42.07%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.17 NT$460

$5.62 €5.00

152.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 NT$53.0

$1.28 €1.14

27.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.29 NT$74.3

$2.07 €1.84

10.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.65 NT$21.04

$2.35 €2.09

-72.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$37.88 NT$1,228

$44.18 €39.30

-14.26%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.68 NT$86.8

$3.99 €3.55

-32.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.82 NT$26.55

$1.09 €0.97

-24.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.17 NT$297

$16.64 €14.81

-44.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.02 NT$32.93

$2.28 €2.03

-55.26%

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

$32.8K NT$1.1M

$33.7K €30.0K

-2.55%

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

$24.5K NT$795.1K

$39.3K €35.0K

-37.60%

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

$87.7 NT$2,843

$167 €149

-47.65%

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

$17.28 NT$560

$18.80 €16.72

-8.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.38 NT$888

$33.09 €29.43

-17.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.32 NT$1,308

$46.01 €40.93

-12.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.94 NT$517

$19.19 €17.07

-16.94%

Cinema Ticket

$9.83 NT$319

$9.84 €8.75

-0.10%

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

$663 NT$21.5K

$677 €602

-2.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K NT$538.4K

$16.9K €15.1K

-1.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 NT$2,025

$101 €90.1

-38.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.51 NT$1,281

$45.76 €40.70

-13.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.5 NT$2,740

$100.0 €88.9

-15.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 NT$3,424

$123 €109

-14.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$999 NT$32.4K

$1,614 €1,436

-38.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$473 NT$15.3K

$1,197 €1,065

-60.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,565 NT$50.8K

$2,862 €2,545

-45.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$948 NT$30.7K

$1,990 €1,770

-52.37%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$11.9K NT$385.6K

$7,577 €6,740

56.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,306 NT$236.9K

$4,307 €3,831

69.62%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,760 NT$57.1K

$1,588 €1,412

10.85%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.4

3.85

-37.66%

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

Last update for Taipei: October 11, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Taipei

$473 34.6%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9% 153% $724

Groceries & Markets

Taipei

$400 29.3%

Lisbon

$269 12.1% 32.7% $131

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Taipei

$132 9.7%

Lisbon

$219 9.9% 65.8% $87

Clothing & Footwear

Taipei

$131 9.6%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 26.6% $35

Eating Out

Taipei

$123 9%

Lisbon

$242 10.9% 96.8% $119

Sport & Entertainment

Taipei

$60 4.4%

Lisbon

$66 3% 9.5% $5.7

Getting Around

Taipei

$47 3.5%

Lisbon

$63 2.8% 33.3% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $999 in Taipei and $1,614 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Taipei pays 11% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $47.00 in Taipei vs $61.0 in Lisbon. Groceries flip the comparison at $400 vs $269, with Lisbon cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇼 Taipei

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

22:04 10:04 PM

15:04 3:04 PM

7 h behind Taipei

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,635,286 Capital

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 TWD = 3.08 USD

100 TWD = 2.74 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to TWD – New Taiwan Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇼 New Taiwan Dollar (NT$)

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 32.43 TWD (100 TWD = 3.08 USD). 1 EUR = 36.46 TWD (100 TWD = 2.74 EUR).

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

USD to TWD in detail →

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Between locations

Taipei Lisbon 11,270 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Taipei
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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

Taipei vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Taipei and Lisbon differ by about 63% in total monthly costs ($1,368 vs $2,223 including rent). Taipei is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 11% higher in Taipei, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $999 in Taipei versus $1,614 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $663 in Taipei versus $677 in Lisbon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 49% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,368 in Taipei versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Taipei but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Taipei 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, Taipei 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 Taipei gentler on the wallet – expenses run 63% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.