City comparison
Cost of living in Zürich vs Lisbon
One person needs about €3,790 a month in Zürich and €1,874 in Lisbon, rent included — Lisbon is 51% cheaper overall.
Salary you'd need to keep the same lifestyle
Enter your current net monthly pay. We scale it by the full cost basket — rent, groceries, transport, utilities, eating out and internet.
To live in Lisbon the way you live in Zürich on €3,000, you need
€1,483/ month net
51% less than today (-€1,517)
- Zürich today
- Basket €3,790 · left over -€790 (-26%)
- Lisbon at the matched salary
- Basket €1,874 · left over -€391 (-26%)
Local pay context: average tech net pay covers the basket 128% over in Lisbon (tight) vs 237% in Zürich. Purchasing power index · How we calculate this
🇨🇭 Zürich
Highest salaries anywhere, and a grocery bill that will still shock you.
Monthly budget: €3,790
Sources: Eurostat, Harmonised price indices (2025) · 0 community reports
🇵🇹 Lisbon
Visa-friendly and well connected, but local salaries lag far behind expat-driven rents.
Monthly budget: €1,874
Sources: Statistics Portugal (INE) + Eurostat, HICP & house-rent statistics (2025) · 331 community reports
Should you move to Zürich or Lisbon?
On salary, Zürich pays more for tech roles (€9,000 versus €2,400 a month), so the money left over after costs is €5,210 in Zürich at the top end.
Rent drives most of the gap: €2,600 in Zürich against €1,300 in Lisbon. Groceries, transport and utilities move far less between the two.
For remote workers, the nomad index scores Zürich at 66 and Lisbon at 83 — see the full nomad index and our data methodology.