Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Thunder Bay and Lisbon

For one person, living costs are similar in Thunder Bay and in Lisbon: $2,169 and $2,202 a month, rent and utilities included.

106

Cost of Living Index in Thunder Bay
Learn more

Thunder Bay Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
Learn more

Lisbon Living Index

Jump to prices

Thunder Bay

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,169

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,169 in Thunder Bay versus $2,202 in Lisbon.

Thunder Bay $2,169
Lisbon $2,202

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,338 in Thunder Bay versus $3,274 in Lisbon.

Thunder Bay $3,338
Lisbon $3,274

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,508 in Thunder Bay versus $4,346 in Lisbon.

Thunder Bay $4,508
Lisbon $4,346

Living in Thunder Bay costs roughly 1% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Thunder Bay 60% above, Lisbon 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.63 CA$24.93

$17.04 €15.15

3.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.2 CA$85.1

$62.3 €55.4

-3.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.62 CA$17.84

$11.02 €9.80

14.52%

Cappuccino

$3.40 CA$4.81

$3.12 €2.78

8.97%

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

$1.86 CA$2.63

$2.27 €2.02

-18.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.59 CA$2.25

$1.74 €1.55

-8.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.43 CA$7.68

$3.42 €3.04

58.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.03 CA$7.12

$3.74 €3.33

34.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.27 CA$3.20

$1.17 €1.04

94.02%

White Bread (500g)

$2.55 CA$3.60

$1.86 €1.66

37.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.29 CA$4.65

$1.54 €1.37

113.64%

Eggs

$3.59 CA$5.08

$4.06 €3.61

-11.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.69 CA$23.59

$12.91 €11.49

29.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$15.91 CA$22.50

$7.90 €7.03

101.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.25 CA$22.98

$17.64 €15.69

-7.88%

Apples (1kg)

$3.33 CA$4.71

$2.26 €2.01

47.35%

Banana (1kg)

$1.21 CA$1.71

$1.75 €1.55

-30.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.92 CA$5.54

$1.89 €1.68

107.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.48 CA$4.92

$2.56 €2.27

35.94%

Potato (1kg)

$2.50 CA$3.53

$1.85 €1.64

35.14%

Onion (1kg)

$2.16 CA$3.05

$1.97 €1.75

9.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.91 CA$4.12

$1.45 €1.29

100.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.38 CA$3.36

$0.77 €0.69

209.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.69 CA$15.11

$6.71 €5.97

59.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.67 CA$12.26

$5.67 €5.04

52.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 CA$2.77

$1.37 €1.22

43.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.92 CA$4.14

$2.11 €1.88

38.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.28 CA$3.22

$2.32 €2.07

-1.72%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$64.3 CA$90.9

$44.43 €39.52

44.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.26 CA$7.44

$3.95 €3.51

33.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.08 CA$2.94

$1.05 €0.93

98.10%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.48 CA$50.2

$17.15 €15.26

106.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.16 CA$1.63

$2.19 €1.95

-47.03%

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

$28.0K CA$39.6K

$33.8K €30.0K

-17.17%

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

$21.0K CA$29.7K

$38.3K €34.0K

-45.16%

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

$159 CA$225

$164 €146

-2.73%

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

$57.9 CA$81.8

$18.48 €16.43

213.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$79.3 CA$112

$32.96 €29.32

140.66%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.52 CA$41.73

$45.87 €40.80

-35.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.06 CA$25.54

$18.68 €16.61

-3.32%

Cinema Ticket

$17.88 CA$25.27

$9.75 €8.67

83.38%

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

$670 CA$947

$684 €608

-2.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.7K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$76.7 CA$108

$104 €92.3

-26.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.15 CA$49.69

$46.20 €41.09

-23.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.6 CA$108

$99.7 €88.7

-23.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 CA$184

$125 €111

4.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,053 CA$1,488

$1,589 €1,414

-33.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$908 CA$1,283

$1,169 €1,040

-22.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,898 CA$2,683

$2,851 €2,536

-33.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,741 CA$2,461

$1,993 €1,773

-12.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,793 €6,932

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,418 €3,930

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,027 CA$4,279

$1,600 €1,423

89.17%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.58

3.85

18.96%

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

Last update for Thunder Bay: October 17, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Thunder Bay

$908 41.9%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.1% 28.8% $261

Groceries & Markets

Thunder Bay

$396 18.3%

Lisbon

$273 12.4% 31.1% $123

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Thunder Bay

$296 13.7%

Lisbon

$215 9.8% 27.4% $81

Eating Out

Thunder Bay

$271 12.5%

Lisbon

$247 11.2% 8.6% $23

Clothing & Footwear

Thunder Bay

$143 6.6%

Lisbon

$168 7.7% 17.5% $25

Getting Around

Thunder Bay

$89 4.1%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 29.4% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Thunder Bay

$65 3%

Lisbon

$65 3% 0.2% $0.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,053 in Thunder Bay and $1,589 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Thunder Bay pays 89% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $60.0 in Thunder Bay vs $62.0 in Lisbon. Groceries flip the comparison at $396 vs $273, with Lisbon cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Thunder Bay

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

08:04 8:04 AM

13:04 1:04 PM

5 h ahead of Thunder Bay

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

107,909

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Thunder Bay Lisbon 6,250 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Thunder Bay
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

Thunder Bay vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Thunder Bay and Lisbon differ by about 2% in total monthly costs ($2,169 vs $2,202 including rent). Thunder Bay is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 89% higher in Thunder Bay, 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: $1,053 in Thunder Bay versus $1,589 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $670 in Thunder Bay versus $684 in Lisbon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 45% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $2,169 in Thunder Bay versus $2,202 in Lisbon, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Thunder Bay but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Thunder Bay 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, Thunder Bay 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 Thunder Bay gentler on the wallet – expenses run 2% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.