Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Varanasi and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Varanasi: $290 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $23,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

14

Cost of Living Index in Varanasi
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Varanasi Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index

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Varanasi

🇮🇳 India

$290

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $290 in Varanasi versus $2,210 in Lisbon.

Varanasi $290
Lisbon $2,210

Estimated couple costs with rent: $475 in Varanasi versus $3,275 in Lisbon.

Varanasi $475
Lisbon $3,275

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $661 in Varanasi versus $4,341 in Lisbon.

Varanasi $661
Lisbon $4,341

Living in Varanasi costs roughly 87% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Varanasi is 79% below, Lisbon is 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.83 ₹174

$16.65 €14.95

-89.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$7.76 ₹739

$61.7 €55.5

-87.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.19 ₹303

$11.36 €10.20

-71.92%

Cappuccino

$1.59 ₹151

$2.97 €2.67

-46.46%

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

$0.42 ₹39.71

$2.29 €2.06

-81.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.10 ₹9.99

$1.74 €1.56

-94.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.54 ₹147

$3.40 €3.06

-54.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 ₹196

$3.31 €2.97

-37.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.61 ₹58.3

$1.16 €1.04

-47.41%

White Bread (500g)

$0.31 ₹29.62

$1.91 €1.72

-83.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.53 ₹50.7

$1.51 €1.36

-64.90%

Eggs

$0.84 ₹80.2

$4.02 €3.61

-79.10%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.14 ₹299

$12.94 €11.62

-75.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.13 ₹203

$7.77 €6.98

-72.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.95

Apples (1kg)

$1.36 ₹130

$2.30 €2.07

-40.87%

Banana (1kg)

$0.66 ₹63.0

$1.73 €1.56

-61.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.96 ₹91.0

$1.86 €1.67

-48.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.32 ₹30.04

$2.59 €2.33

-87.64%

Potato (1kg)

$0.24 ₹22.67

$1.82 €1.64

-86.81%

Onion (1kg)

$0.24 ₹22.77

$1.97 €1.77

-87.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.45 ₹43.03

$1.47 €1.32

-69.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.28 ₹26.79

$0.72 €0.65

-61.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.20 ₹305

$6.58 €5.91

-51.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.73 ₹546

$5.61 €5.04

2.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 ₹151

$1.36 €1.22

16.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 ₹181

$2.14 €1.92

-11.21%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$4.12 ₹392

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.54 ₹51.9

$2.33 €2.10

-76.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$9.74 ₹927

$44.68 €40.14

-78.20%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.26 ₹24.91

$3.85 €3.46

-93.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.11 ₹10.03

$1.07 €0.96

-89.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.07 ₹102

$16.46 €14.79

-93.50%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.11 ₹106

$2.20 €1.98

-49.55%

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

$11.2K ₹1.1M

$34.2K €30.7K

-67.11%

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

$21.8K ₹2.1M

$38.7K €34.8K

-43.65%

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

$12.55 ₹1,195

$161 €145

-92.22%

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

$3.62 ₹344

$18.41 €16.54

-80.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$7.04 ₹670

$32.74 €29.41

-78.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$12.58 ₹1,197

$44.55 €40.02

-71.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.16

Cinema Ticket

$3.02 ₹288

$9.60 €8.62

-68.54%

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

$38.76 ₹3,691

$668 €600

-94.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$990 ₹94.3K

$17.6K €15.8K

-94.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$22.78 ₹2,169

$102 €91.6

-77.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.17 ₹2,397

$44.46 €39.94

-43.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$37.77 ₹3,597

$98.5 €88.5

-61.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$25.59 ₹2,437

$124 €111

-79.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$111 ₹10.6K

$1,608 €1,445

-93.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$47.39 ₹4,513

$1,190 €1,069

-96.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$194 ₹18.5K

$2,812 €2,526

-93.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$138 ₹13.1K

$2,013 €1,808

-93.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$571 ₹54.4K

$7,839 €7,042

-92.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$345 ₹32.8K

$4,576 €4,110

-92.47%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$571 ₹54.4K

$1,575 €1,415

-63.76%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.53

3.85

121.56%

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

Last update for Varanasi: October 26, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Varanasi

$81 27.8%

Lisbon

$272 12.3% 238% $192

Eating Out

Varanasi

$57 19.7%

Lisbon

$243 11% 325% $186

Clothing & Footwear

Varanasi

$50 17.3%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 231% $116

Accommodation & Living

Varanasi

$47 16.4%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8% 2411% $1.1K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Varanasi

$23 8%

Lisbon

$212 9.6% 815% $189

Sport & Entertainment

Varanasi

$19 6.4%

Lisbon

$64 2.9% 242% $45

Getting Around

Varanasi

$13 4.4%

Lisbon

$63 2.9% 398% $51

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $111 in Varanasi and $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lisbon pays about 2.8 times 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: $8 in Varanasi vs $62 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $81 vs $272 per month, with Varanasi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇳 Varanasi

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

03:33 3:33 AM

22:03 10:03 PM

5 h 30 min behind Varanasi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,100,000

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Indian Rupee INR ₹

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 INR = 10.5 USD

1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to INR – Indian Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇳 Indian Rupee (₹)

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 95.22 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 106 INR (1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

USD to INR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Varanasi Lisbon 8,460 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Varanasi
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

Varanasi vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $290 in Varanasi and $2,210 in Lisbon, so Varanasi is about 87% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 64% lower in Varanasi. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $111 in Varanasi versus $1,608 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $39 in Varanasi versus $668 in Lisbon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 238% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $290 in Varanasi versus $2,210 in Lisbon, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Varanasi but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Varanasi 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.

Expats usually find Varanasi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 87% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.