Almost 400 thousand Brazilians live legally in the country, according to the most recent data from the Agency for Integration, Migrations and Asylum (AIMA), the body responsible for administrative functions related to immigrants. Although the country has a low cost of living compared to other European countries, Portugal — and especially Lisbon — is far from cheap by Brazilian standards.
“Portugal is not a country to get rich, but rather to have a calmer lifestyle, with security, quality of life and without superfluous consumer appeals”, warns journalist Larissa Faria, 26 years old, who is doing a master’s degree in Tourism and lives in Lisbon since September 2022.
To find out how much it costs to live in the Portuguese capital, the InfoMoney spoke to three Brazilians who live in the city and surrounding areas and also compiled information from the platform Numbeo, the world’s largest database on the cost of living. Check out what they said about prices, facilities and challenges they faced there.
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After all, how much does it cost to live in Lisbon?
The answer is: it depends, mainly, on the place you choose to live.
“What makes the biggest difference here in relation to costs is housing. Basic expenses such as supermarkets or transport, for example, are practically the same in all regions, whether more noble or more popular”, explains Marleide Barcelos, 51, owner of a beauty salon in Oeiras, a metropolitan city from Lisbon located less than 20 km from the capital.
Salary
Currently, the Portuguese minimum wage is 820 eurosand workers have some rights similar to those guaranteed by Brazilian legislation, such as vacations and food allowance.
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In Lisbon, the average salary range is between the minimum and up to 1,200 euros, going a little higher for roles linked to technology.
According to Vinícius Oliveira, a 38-year-old Quality Assurance (QA) analyst, the gross salary of a full-time analyst in his area is 1,500 euros per month, when hired by a consultancy.
“There is a lack of IT professionals from all areas in Portugal. In my case, I was hired directly by a company, but consultancies normally do this intermediation, which ends up significantly reducing salaries. And there are also taxes, which absorb more than 30% of the remuneration”, he says.
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Home
Central neighborhoods of the Portuguese capital — such as Alfama, Chiado or Bairro Alto — with plenty of commerce and public transport nearby are the most expensive. In these, the Renting a one-bedroom apartment costs an average of 900 euroswhich can reach 1,000 euros in busier periods.
Larissa lives in a two-bedroom apartment in the Marquês de Pombal region, in the center of Lisbon, and shares the 1,100 euros rent with a friend.
In the metropolitan area of the city, it is possible to find much more affordable alternatives with good infrastructure, such as Loures, Almada, Amadora, Odivelas, Oeiras, Setúbal, among others. This was the option of Marleide Barcelos, who lives in Carcavelos, 60 km from the center of Lisbon. Your The house has three bedrooms and two bathrooms, and the rent costs 1,500 euros.
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As soon as she arrived in Portugal, Marleide set up her beauty salon in Oeiras, just over 2 km from her home. “When I rented the hall, I negotiated with the landlord (property owner) a two-month exemption to renovate. Then, I started paying 980 euros per month”, says the hairdresser, highlighting the ease of direct negotiation.
Vinícius Oliveira bought an apartment in Odivelas, 10km from the center of Lisbon, where he lives with his wife. The decision to purchase the property was influenced by low interest rates for housing.
The couple purchased the property in 2021, for 230 thousand euros. The apartment, measuring 90 square meters, with two bedrooms and an elevator, was purchased with a 10% and the remainder financed over 30 years by a bank in the region.
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Food
A person’s average monthly spending at a supermarket in Lisbon can vary between approximately 120 and 200 euros. Everything will depend on consumption habits and lifestyle — couples, singles, families, whether they have children, and so on.
“With 200 euros a month, I can have a varied diet including items beyond the basics, such as chocolates and wines, for example. Essentials cost around 120 euros per person”, says Larissa, who only pays for her supermarket.
Marleide, who shops for a family of four, spends an average of 450 euros per month. And when you buy from wholesaler Recheio, the cost drops to around 300 euros.
Restaurants and delivery
In general, eating out is not a habit for most Portuguese people — except for quick meals or snacks at low-cost bakeries.
“When my wife and I go out to dinner, the bill usually comes to 200 euros on average, with a glass of wine. The price of commercial lunches costs around 15 euros in the central region of Lisbon, and 10 euros in the metropolitan region”, says Vinícius.
O delivery It is less popular than in Brazil, as some options can be much more expensive, according to Larissa. “Just like eating out, ordering food is also something very occasional in my routine,” she says.
One tip from the student for those who live close to the University of Lisbon is to take advantage of the institution’s restaurant. “You can have a complete meal in the cafeteria with a healthy menu for around 5 euros. This applies to those who study there and also to people from abroad”, says Larissa.
Public transportation
In Lisbon, there is Navegante, a card that can be recharged individually or monthly. With 30 euros per month, you can use all public transport at will — be it metro, train, bus or boat; and with 40 euros, you can include the metropolitan region, such as Cascais, Sintra and the entire Margem Sul.
“Above 65 years old, people pay half the cost of the Navegante, and students up to 23 years old do not pay for public transport. For those studying Architecture or Medicine, the benefit lasts until the age of 24, as they are longer courses”, explains Larissa.
Health
Unlike Brazil, Portugal does not have a completely free public healthcare system like the SUS. But those who have the PB4, also known as CDAM (Certificate of Right to Medical Assistance) pay very low amounts for consultations, exams, medical procedures and medicines.
Marleide says that her husband had to use the public health service in the country and was very well looked after. “In addition to the consultation, medical care included X-rays, serum, injection and tomography. All of this cost 16 euros, and with the doctor’s prescription we also had a discount at the pharmacy. An antibiotic that would have cost 20 euros ended up costing 2 euros,” she says.
To obtain PB4, you must have a residence permit. With this, the person can now request the User number, which is the identification in the National Health System (SNS), necessary for access to medical services.
As the Marleide User number took a while to come out (some regions are very bureaucratic), she opted to hire a health insurance. “Today I pay 176 euros for health insurance, which covers my entire family. This plan was one of those that accepted my condition as a pre-existing health problem, as I am a former cancer patient.”
There are also, of course, some limitations. In this sense, Vinícius observes that the country has a serious problem with obstetrics, even closing some places of care due to a lack of doctors.
Another aspect highlighted by the analyst is the reluctance of “family doctors” (the equivalent of a general practitioner in Brazil) to refer patients to specialists.
Still regarding care, Larissa observes the delay that occurs in Lisbon’s emergencies, especially due to priority care for the elderly.
“Once I had the flu and went to the emergency room, and the waiting list was 19 hours long. As it wasn’t anything that serious, I gave up and, that day, decided to take out health insurance. The plan entitles me to visits from my family doctor if I need to, to call him to ask for advice, and to discounts on exams at private clinics”, explains the student.
Education
Portugal has quality public education, from the initial levels of school to university.
Public schools offer a second language (normally English or French), and have virtually no shortage of private education, whose monthly fee is around 800 euros on average. But not everything is rosy, and getting places is often quite difficult, including in daycare centers.
It is worth mentioning that public school education is not completely free. This is because parents pay a monthly fee for teaching materials and food at school.
In the case of private colleges, there are scholarships and discounts, which vary according to the course and institution. According to Larissa, what often happens is that many of these discounts are for Europeans.
“There are also scholarships for those who work as researchers, but if you don’t have dual citizenship or equality status, you will pay double what the Portuguese pay for a course”, warns the student.
Energy, water, gas, cell phone and internet
The following values, provided by Marleide, consider the average monthly consumption of a family of four:
- energy: 35 euros
- water: 58 euros
- gas: 98 euros
- Internet: 35 euros
- cell phone: 18 euros per person (students pay 15 euros)
In Portugal, the user can choose the company that will provide each of the services above, which does not happen in Brazil, where we can only choose the cell phone operator and the internet provider.
