Cost of living in Lisbon: how it stacks up against London and the UK average
Lisbon costs roughly half of London on rent and a fraction on transport, but it's no longer cheap by Portuguese standards, and local wages are far lower than British ones.
The short version
- The median rent on new Lisbon leases was EUR 17.79 per m² a month in spring 2026, the highest of Portugal's big municipalities [6].
- That puts a 70 m² two-bed at roughly EUR 1,245 a month (about £1,040), against an average private rent of £2,338 in London and £1,406 across the UK [4].
- A monthly navegante pass covering every bus, tram, metro and train in Lisbon costs EUR 30 (£25); London's Zones 1–2 Travelcard is £44.70 a week [7][5].
- Prices are rising faster in Portugal than in the UK: inflation was an estimated 3.8% in October 2026, against 3.5% in the UK in September [8][3].
- Once registered, you get the national health service on the same terms as a Portuguese citizen [1].
Pound conversions use the Bank of England spot rate of 5 November 2026 (£1 = EUR 1.2002).
The big comparison
| Cost | Lisbon | London | UK average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rent, typical two-bed (70 m² in Lisbon) | about EUR 1,245 a month (about £1,040) [6] | £2,338 a month, all private rents [4] | £1,406 a month, all private rents [4] |
| Monthly public transport pass | EUR 30 city-only, EUR 40 whole metro area (£25–£33) [7] | about £172 for Zones 1–2 (from the £44.70 weekly Travelcard) [5] | varies by town |
| Single metro or bus fare | EUR 1.72 (about £1.43) [7] | £3.10 peak Tube, Zone 1; £1.75 bus [5] | varies |
| Day ticket or daily cap | EUR 7.25 for 24 hours on Carris and the Metro (about £6.04) [7] | £8.90 Zones 1–2 cap [5] | varies |
| Inflation | 3.8% (October 2026 estimate) [8] | 3.5% UK CPI (September 2026) [3] | 3.5% [3] |
Rent figures aren't like for like. The Lisbon figure is the median per square metre on new leases from Statistics Portugal (INE) for the second quarter of 2026, multiplied up; the UK figures are ONS averages across all private rents in September 2026. Treat the comparison as a rough guide, not a quote from an estate agent.
Rent: the biggest number
Rent is where Lisbon has changed most. INE's figures for the second quarter of 2026 put the national median on new leases at EUR 10.17 per m², up 10.2% on a year earlier. Greater Lisbon (Grande Lisboa) was the most expensive region at EUR 15.24 per m², and the municipality of Lisbon itself the most expensive big municipality at EUR 17.79, though Lisbon's rise of 5.1% was slower than the national one [6].
What that means in practice, using the Lisbon median:
| Flat size | Monthly rent at the Lisbon median | In pounds |
|---|---|---|
| 50 m² one-bed | about EUR 890 | about £740 |
| 70 m² two-bed | about EUR 1,245 | about £1,040 |
| 90 m² three-bed | about EUR 1,600 | about £1,330 |
Half the new leases cost more than that, and the ones aimed at foreigners in Príncipe Real, Chiado or Avenida da Liberdade cost a good deal more. Look across the river in Almada, or out along the Cascais and Sintra lines, and the numbers drop towards the Greater Lisbon median of EUR 15.24 per m² (about EUR 1,065 or £890 for 70 m²) [6].
Against the UK, that's still a saving. ONS puts the average London private rent at £2,338 a month in September 2026, up 3.5% in a year, and the UK average at £1,406 [4]. Lisbon is closer to the UK average than to London. One difference that works in your favour: tenants in Portugal don't pay anything like council tax. The yearly property tax (IMI) falls on the owner.
See renting in Lisbon for deposits, contracts and where Brits live.
Getting around
This is where Lisbon wins hands down. A navegante pass, loaded on a personal navegante card, gives you unlimited travel for the calendar month [7]:
- navegante municipal Lisboa: EUR 30 (£25). Any public bus, tram, metro or train journey within the city of Lisbon.
- navegante metropolitano: EUR 40 (about £33). Everything across all 18 municipalities of the Lisbon metropolitan area, from Cascais to Setúbal.
- navegante +65: EUR 20 (about £17), the metropolitan pass at half price for over-65s, retirees and pensioners (for retirees under 65, household income has to be at or below the minimum wage).
- Family passes: EUR 60 (municipal) or EUR 80 (metropolitan), however many of you there are, if your household is registered in the area.
Compare that with London, where the Zones 1–2 Travelcard is £44.70 a week and the pay-as-you-go cap is £8.90 a day after the March 2026 fare changes [5]. A London commuter on a monthly Zones 1–2 Travelcard pays about £172, nearly seven times the Lisbon city pass. If you're used to bus fares outside London, a £1.75 single in the capital [5] and a EUR 1.72 Metro hop in Lisbon [7] are about level.
Many Brits in central Lisbon don't bother with a car at all. If you do, see driving in Portugal with a UK licence.
The weekly shop and eating out
We've kept this part in words, because there's no official city-level price list we'd trust you to budget on. Broadly:
- Supermarket basics such as bread, fruit, vegetables, fish, wine and coffee are cheaper than in a UK supermarket. Imported and British brands (PG Tips, Marmite, cheddar) cost more than back home, when you can find them.
- Eating out is where Lisbon still feels like good value. A lunchtime prato do dia at a neighbourhood tasca or a bica (espresso) at the counter costs far less than the London equivalent. Tourist-strip restaurants in Baixa and Alfama charge tourist prices.
- Drinking: a beer in a local café is cheap by British standards; a cocktail in a rooftop bar is not.
On the UK side, ONS says the average household spent £676.60 a week in the year to March 2025, of which £118.40 went on housing (net), fuel and power, and £96.40 on transport [2]. UK food prices were rising slowly, at 1.3% a year in September 2026 [3], while overall Portuguese inflation was estimated at 3.8% in October [8], so the gap on the weekly shop is narrowing.
Bills, healthcare and the rest
- Electricity and gas. Many older Lisbon flats have little insulation and no central heating, so winter bills for electric heaters can surprise you. In summer, air conditioning does the same.
- Healthcare. Register with the SNS and you get treatment on the same terms as Portuguese citizens; private insurance is optional [1]. Many Brits still take a private policy for faster appointments and English-speaking doctors. See healthcare in Lisbon.
- Phone and broadband. Bundles of mobile, fibre and TV are the norm and usually need a NIF and a Portuguese IBAN; see banking in Portugal.
The catch: income
Living costs are only half the story. Portuguese salaries are much lower than British ones, so if you're earning locally, Lisbon can feel as tight as London. If your income comes from the UK, such as a pension, rent or a remote job, the sums look far kinder, though tax still matters: Portugal's income tax bands are narrower than the UK's and rise to 48% in 2026. See Portuguese taxes for Brits.
Your UK State Pension goes up every April in Portugal, so it keeps pace with the triple lock rather than being frozen. And for real-world numbers on what people pay for a flat in Arroios or a weekly shop in Pingo Doce, our community group for Brits in Portugal is full of people who've just signed a lease.
Sources
- GOV.UK (FCDO): Living in Portugal (last updated 10 July 2026)
- ONS: Family spending in the UK, April 2024 to March 2025 (11 June 2026)
- ONS: Consumer price inflation, UK, September 2026 (21 October 2026)
- ONS: Private rent and house prices, UK, October 2026 (21 October 2026)
- Greater London Authority: MD3464, March 2026 Transport for London fare changes (29 January 2026)
- Statistics Portugal (INE): House rental statistics at local level, 2nd quarter 2026 (29 September 2026)
- navegante (TML): Tarifário navegante (checked 8 November 2026)
- Statistics Portugal (INE): Flash estimate, CPI October 2026 (30 October 2026)