Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Warsaw and Lisbon

For one person, living is cheaper in Warsaw: $2,032 a month against $2,223 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $2,300 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

99

Cost of Living Index in Warsaw
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Warsaw Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
Learn more

Lisbon Living Index

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Warsaw

🇵🇱 Poland

$2,032

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,032 in Warsaw versus $2,223 in Lisbon.

Warsaw $2,032
Lisbon $2,223

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,918 in Warsaw versus $3,271 in Lisbon.

Warsaw $2,918
Lisbon $3,271

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,804 in Warsaw versus $4,319 in Lisbon.

Warsaw $3,804
Lisbon $4,319

Living in Warsaw costs roughly 9% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Warsaw 50% above, Lisbon 65% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.51 zł 44.72

$16.50 €14.67

-30.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.6 zł 236

$61.3 €54.5

-1.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.00 zł 38.87

$11.27 €10.03

-11.27%

Cappuccino

$4.17 zł 16.22

$3.06 €2.72

36.27%

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

$2.27 zł 8.81

$2.26 €2.01

0.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.21 zł 8.61

$1.73 €1.54

27.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.60 zł 17.87

$3.39 €3.02

35.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.01 zł 19.47

$3.40 €3.02

47.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.05 zł 4.07

$1.12 €1.00

-6.25%

White Bread (500g)

$1.52 zł 5.90

$1.86 €1.65

-18.28%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 zł 6.00

$1.53 €1.36

0.65%

Eggs

$3.76 zł 14.60

$3.96 €3.53

-5.05%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.55 zł 33.22

$12.76 €11.35

-32.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.29 zł 24.43

$7.90 €7.02

-20.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.54 zł 56.5

$16.97 €15.09

-14.32%

Apples (1kg)

$1.17 zł 4.55

$2.27 €2.02

-48.46%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 zł 6.73

$1.75 €1.55

-1.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.71 zł 6.66

$1.85 €1.64

-7.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.04 zł 15.71

$2.57 €2.28

57.20%

Potato (1kg)

$0.91 zł 3.53

$1.86 €1.65

-51.08%

Onion (1kg)

$0.86 zł 3.34

$2.02 €1.80

-57.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.39 zł 5.39

$1.44 €1.28

-3.47%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.69 zł 2.67

$0.82 €0.73

-15.85%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.19 zł 24.04

$6.56 €5.83

-5.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.46 zł 25.10

$5.62 €5.00

14.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.10 zł 4.28

$1.28 €1.14

-14.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 zł 6.35

$2.07 €1.84

-21.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.11 zł 4.31

$2.35 €2.09

-52.77%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.52 zł 111

$44.18 €39.30

-35.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.47 zł 9.58

$3.99 €3.55

-38.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.31 zł 5.08

$1.09 €0.97

20.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$12.87 zł 50.0

$16.64 €14.81

-22.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.75 zł 6.80

$2.28 €2.03

-23.25%

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

$30.7K zł 119.4K

$33.7K €30.0K

-8.75%

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

$30.8K zł 119.5K

$39.3K €35.0K

-21.73%

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

$341 zł 1,324

$167 €149

103.53%

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

$9.00 zł 34.95

$18.80 €16.72

-52.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.19 zł 62.9

$33.09 €29.43

-51.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.81 zł 178

$46.01 €40.93

-0.43%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.81 zł 108

$19.19 €17.07

44.92%

Cinema Ticket

$9.04 zł 35.12

$9.84 €8.75

-8.13%

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

$594 zł 2,306

$677 €602

-12.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.3K zł 55.6K

$16.9K €15.1K

-15.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$109 zł 424

$101 €90.1

7.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.12 zł 156

$45.76 €40.70

-12.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 zł 405

$100.0 €88.9

4.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$111 zł 431

$123 €109

-9.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,181 zł 4,587

$1,614 €1,436

-26.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$942 zł 3,659

$1,197 €1,065

-21.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,074 zł 8,056

$2,862 €2,545

-27.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,533 zł 5,958

$1,990 €1,770

-22.95%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,932 zł 23.0K

$7,577 €6,740

-21.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,836 zł 14.9K

$4,307 €3,831

-10.94%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,049 zł 7,959

$1,588 €1,412

29.03%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.68

3.85

73.51%

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

Last update for Warsaw: October 10, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Warsaw

$942 46.4%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9% 27.1% $255

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Warsaw

$366 18%

Lisbon

$219 9.9% 40.1% $147

Groceries & Markets

Warsaw

$231 11.4%

Lisbon

$269 12.1% 16.7% $39

Eating Out

Warsaw

$223 11%

Lisbon

$242 10.9% 8.6% $19

Clothing & Footwear

Warsaw

$164 8.1%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 1.5% $2.4

Sport & Entertainment

Warsaw

$64 3.1%

Lisbon

$66 3% 2.8% $1.8

Getting Around

Warsaw

$42 2.1%

Lisbon

$63 2.8% 50.1% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,181 in Warsaw and $1,614 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Warsaw pays 29% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $61.0 in Warsaw vs $61.0 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $231 vs $269 per month, with Warsaw cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇱 Warsaw

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

03:04 3:04 AM

02:04 2:04 AM

1 h behind Warsaw

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,861,599 Capital

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Polish Złoty PLN zł

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 PLN = 0.257 USD

1 PLN = 0.229 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to PLN – Polish Złoty Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇱 Polish Złoty (zł)

Polish Złoty exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3.89 PLN (1 PLN = 0.257 USD). 1 EUR = 4.37 PLN (1 PLN = 0.229 EUR).

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

USD to PLN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Warsaw Lisbon 2,760 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Warsaw
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

Warsaw vs Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Warsaw and Lisbon differ by about 9% in total monthly costs ($2,032 vs $2,223 including rent). Warsaw is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 29% higher in Warsaw, 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: $1,181 in Warsaw versus $1,614 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $594 in Warsaw versus $677 in Lisbon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 17% higher in Lisbon. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,032 in Warsaw versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Warsaw but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Warsaw 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, Warsaw 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 Warsaw gentler on the wallet – expenses run 9% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.