Cost of living in Portugal - 2017

This is suck to living in Portugal. Normally it's like a war to find out a job & the salary is 580.00 euros minimum.
The Gas,Water is expensive as your salary. Education is cheapest than other European country. Medical service is good & also Portuguese people are nice to hangout or doing fun but not in work at all.

Hope now you have a basic idea for live in Portugal.

Basic salary is €550 but living cost €1000.this is reality of Portugal.normally 1 bedroom apertment rent is 600 to 800 Euro's. Job crisis is everywhere.

Hello to all.

Living in Portugal isn't easy if you come to get a job, house etc..

Although we have quite a good weather, beaches close to the large cities, not all is so nice as it seems, but can be also so bad.
All depends what you are coming for.


> How much does it cost to rent an apartment/house in Portugal? 

Lisbon (city centre)- 300€ a room
Lisbon out of centre- 200€ a room, 1 bedroom house 400€ minimum.
Out of Lisbon- very cheap.

> How much do you pay for your public transport tickets (bus, subway, train, tram)?

2€ each way or more if you pay as you go.


> Staple food: what do people eat and how much do they pay for basic food like bread, rice or pasta?

Bread- 1.5€ (like familiar)
Rice or pasta- 1.8€


>What is your monthly grocery budget?

Well this is a difficult one, depends how much you need... But average I thing you can service with less then 50€ a week.


> How much does it cost to see a physician/doctor/specialist in Portugal ? 

something between - 50€ to 90€.


> What is your children's schooling monthly budget?

We have public schools, free.
but nursery is difficult to find free ones. So, you will find something around 250€.


> How much does it cost to fill up your car's fuel tank?

More or less 1.5€ Liter.


> How much do you pay for electricity/gas/water etc.?

A lot...
around 40€ per person (estimated)


> How much do you pay for your Internet/phone subscription?

you can have a pack, TV, Phone landline, mobile, Internet for 50€ moth.
Only internet for 20€ month.


> How much do you pay for your lunch pack on weekdays?

5€ - 7€

> How much do you pay for an espresso coffee?

0.6€ to 1€

> How much do you pay for a cinema ticket?

In general when you have a TV,Internet pack you get a card which give you a free ticket, when you buy another one, or you get a ticket and free pop corns, and is what everyone does in here nowadays.
Normal price 7€


> How much does a gym membership cost in Portugal? 
Minimum in Fitness hut gym and you have in a lot of places. Regular or health clubs gyms, between 50€ to 80€

Going out:

A lot of night clubs are free for women and free drinks! Sorry but man have to pay! You pay around 15€ entrance which aloud you to expend in drinks, not only the entrance.

Living in Portugal isn't easy if you come to get a job, house etc..

Although we have quite a good weather, beaches close to the large cities, not all is so nice as it seems, but can be also so bad.
All depends what you are coming for.

Correction!!!

I meant can't be so bad!! 

It's a 'how long is a piece of string?' type of question, really.
It depends what you want and where you are.

For example, a beer in a bar in a square in Lisbon is often 3€, whereas up North where I am it's 90c.

You can but a bottle of Alentejano wine for 1.5€ or 20€ and you get what you pay for, but, even at the 2€ or 3€ mark, it's very very drinkable.

Bread: 1€ to 2€

Fuel: In Spain diesel and petrol is about 25c cheaper, so being near the border is handy. To fill up my van (about 50L) is 55€ (Spain)  or 67€ (Portugal)

Meat: again, it depends. If you shop around you can get pork for 3€/kg and chicken legs for 1.5€/kg in Pingo Doce, the cheapest supermarket. It could be double that in an independent butchers.

Work: aaaaahahahahahaha-AHAHAHAHAHAAA-AAAAAA!!! Don't come expecting to find a job.

Transport: much more reliable and much, much cheaper than UK. For example, I'm North-West within sight of Galicia and a local train then a high speed train took me all the way down to Lisbon and back for less than 100€.

Eating out: Varies widely, obviously. I like good food, though I'm also not very fussy sometimes, so I like to go and have lunch in the local tasca (pron. tashka) which is a cafe/restaurant that serves a cheap lunchtime meal for workers, where for 6€ I can have a main meal, bread, dessert or soup, half a litre of wine and coffee. In the evening, in a medium-priced restaurant the mains range from 9€ to 15€ with most nearer 10€. You can get a very acceptable bottle of wine in a restaurant for 5€ (this is up North, remember)


LEARN THE LANGUAGE...............If you want to speak your own language and hang out with other people from your original country, fine, but you'll be missing out on so much. The Portuguese language is difficult (as the portuguese like to remind you) but well worth the effort as you'll be respected for trying and opportunities will come your way that otherwise probably wouldn't have. I pay 40€ a month for a two hour class twice a week at the local high school.

I am  60 year old man living in northern California, USA. I fell in love with Portugal 12 years ago and am toying with the idea of taking an early retirement to Porto possibly (though still doing my research). Allow me to be honest and I invite you to be equally so. I would likely make a move in 18 months. My concerns are a lifestyle for a person in my age group. I have visited many places in the world as a younger man and as a parent, I visited, other places, countries though from a parent point of view (with my young daughter) and not so much as a young-youngish man where the dynamic of travel can be different than early 60's. I am reading so many of your comments but also realizing that your questions and imaginations may be subtly different than someone of my vintage. Is Porto (or other place) conducive to me? I am not a golfer type, not wealthy but have a modest though adequate income. I would not seek work but would likely look to be involved. I have learned and forgotten French when I studied there for 8 months, I learned and am forgetting Tongan (south pacific) that I picked up when teaching there in 1997-2000, I am learning basic Spanish as I am a senior estimator at a larger construction firm in California so I would expect to muddle along at learning Portuguese before I left CA. Bottom line; would I like living there? I would want expats around but not always. I like the idea of "forever" but that is a big bite to rely on. Thank you all in advance. LT

As a person living in Porto, here are my honest opinions:

Between me & husband, we have about 1500 Euros coming into household every month (our wages combined). 400 is going to rent, 500 is going to bills & grocery shopping. It leaves us 300 Euros EACH to spend on our personal spendings. BUT, consider: We don't have a car, don't have kids, don't have any habits (drinking, smoking etc), we live in a very small studio apartment and we are both housebirds who likes to stay in home at our free time. So... life is not the easiest in Portugal.

Good to see real prices and cost of living ..to give an idea of what it would cost to live there.

Hey....   I'm in No Cal too and thinking of retiring in Portugal!

Do I understand you correctly that you are from Northern California?

Yes I am.

We should talk.

Sounds good, let's do that.   By the way, I'm in Lodi, CA....  between Sacto and Stockton; you?

Deniz,

I am considering Portugal to retire or at least spend a few years. Im 60 - and will be about 62 when I would go.  Not "old" but I also understand that Porto to be a youthful town as I visited there 13 years ago and saw for myself. But time has passed and things changed. I am not a golfer nor am I a guy who considers himself a "retiree". Is Porto or Lisbon better for me? Somehow, I see Algarve as a sort of synthetic sort of place. I would have about 1700-2000 euros (2400-2500 dollars) per month. IS that an amount of money that would feel relatively generous? I imagine a modest but great location for an apartment, all the normal requirements, private medical insurance, etc without feeling like I am unable to have some spending money to take a trip up/down the coast, over to Madrid, language lessons at least twice weekly, etc? I will likely visit next year.

PS. I have a crazy but fun idea...Could I be a barber there and support a tiny one man shop to cut mens and boys hair? would I need to take classes there or could a certificate from the US be adequate?  Thank you, Larry

I am in Petaluma.

I am passing through Stockton Saturday afternoon en route to my brother's place in Murphys and staying at the Hilton. How about coming by, and hang out in the cool lounge and share ideas about Portugal?

Larry

Stockton Hilton?  Possibly; time?

Stockton Hilton yes. Not sure what time but I will be there 2-4 pm ish - Saturday

That could work....       don't rush while visiting brother in Murphys.  If it works out, great;
if not then perhaps another time.

christy

Perfect.

Larry

Spoke too soon!  Heading up to Donner Lake this morning into the week so will have to take a raincheck on meeting to talk about Portugal.

Keep in touch, perhaps another time.

c

Hello expat1012 and herbiemydog1,

I would invite you to exchange through the private messaging system if you have any other comments to share besides cost of living. This thread is drifting off-topic.

Thanks in advance,
Bhavna

What is the best means of finding a place to rent?  Are there agents or is it strictly between owner and renter; if so how does one find them?  What are the legalities around tenant/landlords?  Are there rental agreements?

Are the above noted rent quotes reflective of renting a small place near the ocean or more inland communities?

hellooo herm, I can't believe how many great minds think alike. I live in Stockton and am looking to spend some time in pt (maybe a couple of months) starting some time after the new year. I too am exploring the idea of staying in pt longer but also share the approaching "vintage years" thoughts.  Ergo, I am collecting as much data and ideas for pulling this off. Not to be a "butinski" but if you are still coming thru Stockton I would enjoy meeting you all and comparing any thoughts or ideas.  thanks

helloo expat,  just saw your posts w/herbie and am considering pt as well. would like to join round table discussion as well- jointly or individually. Could meet in lodi- Stockton at your conveniences- good luck and thanks

Hi Dwayne....   another fellow Nor Californian!   

Hello everyone.....   Wondering about information regarding long term rentals on the Algarve coast?  How one goes about that, (agents or directly with owners etc) costs, rental agreements or how it's done there etc? 

Naturally cost of everything is of interest to me, but housing definitely hits the top of the list.  Then things like utilities which were mentioned in another post but as I recall that was in Porto or Lisbon. 

Also are visas required for staying longer than a vacation length time? 

Are income taxes paid to Portugal or do taxes not apply until someone is there for a certain length of time?    As a writer or e-commerce person, who reaps the tax advantage of that income?

I read your post with interest because we have similar situations. If you don't mind, I will keep an eye on this forum to see what replies you get.
My husband and I are in our mid-60s and ready to move from southern Oregon. Portugal is at the top of our list. We want to live in a mostly rural town and get to know the culture, not surrounded by other expats. We, also, will do our best to learn Portuguese beforehand, and take classes when we live there.
A problem I see is the 90-day limit. We were hoping to rent a place for six to nine months or so, but we would have to get a Resident Visa to do that. Let me know if you have any idea how hard that would be. I've gotten different answers from other sites.
Good luck.
Ginney

Hi.  I am in Philadelphia and my situation and perspective on moving to Portugal (or elsewhere in Europe) are very similar to yours.  I just returned from Lisbon for my first trip to consider moving aboard and liked it very much.  However, it is more expensive than I thought it would be - but lovely.  I like the Portuguese too. Lisbon seems to be a very popular spot for tourists and expats and I was struck by the number of young foreigners living there and doing various things to support themselves.

Catherine, can you give us ideas of the sort of things that are more expensive than you thought it would be?  Thank you,  Larry

Catherine,

I'd love for you to expand on your qualitative statement of "more expensive than I thought it would be." Without specifics, it's hard for others (me!) to get a feel for what's *expensive* to you. I have seen where some people think they'll get a T3 for 300 euro in the heart of Lisbon, so if that's the case, I imagine it would be more expensive than you thought.

So, what's reasonable? What are you willing to pay for housing and where? I err on the conservative side (esp. when I read all these "Move to Pt. it's cheap" articles). I imagine 500 euro might get a decent studio, but I could be way off.

I'll be visiting in March and will then have a better feel for my own budget (I work for myself, have savings--modest, but adequate, and am comfortable in tiny places--so I may be atypical in that regard).

Anything more concrete that you could provide would be helpful.

Thank you!

Hi
I am trying to find a furnished 2 bedroom apartment in Lisbon preferably in Esterela or Campo de Ouric  and don't find can anyone help me in this?

Hello everyone,

@ Dina El Ghamry, please drop an advert in the proper section of the website so that you might get offers : Housing in Portugal

Thank you in advance,
Bhavna

Thanks