You have decided to take the plunge and move to Portugal. You will find sunshine, a relaxed way of life and a lower cost of living than in France.

But how much do you have to earn to live comfortably in Portugal?
How much do you have to earn to meet your daily expenses?

In a word, what is the budget to live in Portugal in good conditions?

Monthly budget needed to live in Portugal

According to Numbeo, the cost of living in Portugal is on average 36% lower than in France.
But this is an average. Depending on whether you live in Paris or in the provinces, and depending on whether you go to Lisbon or to the center of Portugal, the difference will be quite different. Your lifestyle and consumption patterns are also very important for the final calculation.

The average monthly budget for a family of four is €1,865 without rent.
For a single person, the average monthly budget is 531 € without rent.

But in Lisbon, everything is different.

The monthly budget for a family of four rises to €1,978 rent-free
For a single person, you should count on at least 566 € without rent.

What is the monthly budget for leaving Paris for Lisbon?

If you compare the cost of living in Paris and Lisbon, the picture is much better. Your purchasing power is almost doubled.

Consumer prices in Lisbon are 41% lower than in Paris (without rent)
Rental prices in Lisbon are 40% lower than in Paris for the same floor space
Restaurant prices in Lisbon are 44% lower than in Paris
Grocery prices in Lisbon are 52% lower than in Paris

To live properly in Lisbon, a couple without children will have to budget between 800€ and 1150€ excluding housing, with an average health insurance and without a car. This budget will increase to about 1500 / 2000 € with housing.

This monthly budget can be broken down as follows

between €700 and €850 for housing in an apartment
between 80 € and 120 € for telecommunication packages: mobile, internet…
between 300€ and 400€ for food
for energy (water, gas and electricity), you will need to count about 150/180 euros
for public transportation about 50 €.
an average health insurance costs about 150€ per month.

These figures are given as an indication. The budget for living in Portugal can be revised upwards or downwards depending on your desired standard of living and your lifestyle.

The cost of living in Portugal on a daily basis

Simple restaurant: 8 euros and it’s real. A hearty dish can be 6 or 7 euros
Meal in a good gastronomic restaurant for 2 people: 30 euros and it is already top of the range
For energy (electricity, heating, air conditioning), water and garbage, count for an 85 m2 apartment 100 euros instead of 150 euros on average in France.

I let you compare everything with Numbeo Portugal and Numbeo France or any other country.

💡 The price of energy is higher in Portugal than in France because the country has engaged a vast plan towards renewable energies. In the long run it is certainly a winning bet but in the short run it makes production more expensive than in France. However, it is important to take into consideration that heating needs are lower than in France, which represents a significant budget item for French households.

Food in Portugal: eating well for less

A sector where the cost of living in Portugal is clearly below that of France is the field of food. Shopping at the supermarket or going to a restaurant is much cheaper than in France. Even in Lisbon!

We are talking about a saving of about 40%. Here are some examples of prices for classic foodstuffs:

How much does leisure cost in Portugal?

Leisure activities are generally more attractive in Portugal than in France. The cinema, a coffee in a brewery, the ready-to-wear will be cheaper in Portugal.

On the other hand, for some everyday consumer goods, such as household appliances or gasoline, prices in Portugal are similar to French prices and sometimes even higher.

Similarly, the cost of transportation (subway, bus…) is equivalent to the cost of public transportation in France except for cabs which are 25% more expensive.

Real estate: rents and purchases (prices recorded in April 2021)

Rents in Portugal are on average 20% lower than in France.

• Apartment (1 bedroom) in downtown Porto 587 euros
• Apartment (1 bedroom) outside the center 443 euros
• Apartment (3 bedrooms) in the city center 980 euros
• Apartment (3 bedrooms) outside the center 720 euros

But in Lisbon :

• Apartment (1 bedroom) in the city center 833 euros
• Apartment (1 bedroom) outside the center 638 euros
• Apartment (3 bedrooms) in the city center 1500 euros
• Apartment (3 bedrooms) outside the center 1020 euros

Buying in Lisbon:

• Price per square meter to buy an apartment in the city center: 4466 euros compared to Paris 13 960 euros/m2
• Price per square meter to buy an apartment outside the center: 9891 euros compared to Paris 2600 euros/m2

So at least 70% cheaper!

In Portugal, on average, to buy an apartment:

Price per square meter to buy an apartment in the city center: 2600 euros compared to France 5650 euros/m2
Price per square meter to buy an apartment outside the center: 1680 euros compared to France 3790 euros/m2

So at least half the price!

Note that :

• Fuel, freeway tolls are as expensive as in France, with a variable price but more expensive than in Spain
• Cigarettes are cheaper, with a pack at less than 5 €.
• Eating out is cheaper, with menus at 7 €.
• Food (especially in restaurants) is cheaper than in France
• Hygiene and household products are more expensive
• Electricity is one of the most expensive in Europe and homes are poorly insulated, sometimes even without heating at all

What about living in Portugal as a family?

For a family of 2 adults and 2 children, you will need to budget between 2600€ and 3400€ per month. This budget also includes a car.

This budget can be broken down as follows

• an apartment (2/3 bedrooms) in Lisbon between 900 and 1300 €.
• to which you will add between 80 € and 150 € for telephone and internet
• for food, which is a more expensive expense than in France, you should budget between 400€ and 600€.
• for energy (water, gas and electricity) we estimate an expense between 150 and 180€. Note that electricity is more expensive in Portugal than in France. Moreover, some buildings in the city center do not have central heating. So the electricity bill can quickly go up.

All these rates are given as an indication and will depend on your lifestyle.

That said, even if Lisbon remains much less expensive than Paris, rents and shopping, especially for food, have tended to increase in recent years in the city center, which greatly affects the budget for living in Portugal.

For your information, urban transport remains half the price of Paris. In Lisbon, you will have to pay 35 € for a monthly transport pass.

Living in Portugal and receiving unemployment benefits in France: is this possible?

If you are registered with Pole emploi and you receive unemployment benefits and you decide to move to Portugal, you can continue to receive these benefits if you meet certain criteria. As a general rule, you can continue to receive your benefits in Portugal for a maximum of 3 months.

Pôle emploi will continue to pay you these benefits if you are registered with the Portuguese employment center to which you have given the “U2 portable document”. This document will have been given to you by your Pôle emploi advisor before your departure. This document will indicate the length of time during which your rights will be maintained.

Then, in order to continue to benefit from your unemployment benefits, you will have to be able to justify your job search to the services of the “Pôle emploi Portugais” named Instituto de Emprego e Formação Profissional (IEFP). This organization could, in case of non respect of this clause, warn the French “Pôle emploi” which could consider the suppression of your allowance.

You can also benefit from your unemployment insurance if you resign to follow your spouse for example. This will be a legitimate resignation and will give you the right to unemployment benefits in France. If you meet all the conditions, you can receive 3 months of unemployment benefits in this country.

All these steps and solutions are possible because Portugal is a member of the European Economic Area. The subsidio de desemprego is the equivalent of unemployment benefits in France.

Living in Portugal and receiving the RSA (active solidarity income)

In order to continue to receive the RSA, while living in Portugal, you must meet certain conditions. In the official texts it is stipulated that to be able to benefit from the RSA you must be resident in France for at least 9 months out of 12 months. You must therefore be able to prove that you have worked abroad for less than 92 days per year.

For example, if you find a 3-month fixed-term contract in Portugal and you are receiving the RSA in France at the same time, you will be able to accumulate the 3 months of work abroad. During these 3 months, you will be able to cumulate both your salary and your RSA allowance (about 550 €). However, living with an RSA in a foreign country implies making clear compromises. Your budget for living in Portugal must take this parameter into account.

Job market in Portugal

For your information, in the early 2010s, Portugal experienced a sharp increase in unemployment reaching up to 17% of the active population. Today the unemployment rate is relatively low at barely 8% of the active population, the situation has improved significantly since 2015. But this improvement is mainly due to the flexibility and lower costs of workers.

The Portuguese labor market is currently facing several problems: the active population is not sufficiently trained, the most sought-after profiles have left the country and employees want an increase in the minimum wage in particular.

The Portuguese growth also has normal macroeconomic effects, notably an increase in inflation which has a significant impact on the budget for living in Portugal, which is oriented upwards but still contained by the monetary authorities.

And of course, the Covid pandemic has broken many jobs in tourism. So the situation is not easy now (April 2021)

Salaries in Portugal

Portuguese salaries are much lower than those in France.

The average salary in Lisbon is about 900€ compared to 2000€ in Paris.

The legal minimum wage in Portugal is €822 per month.

With a VAT rate of 23%, the cost of living in Portugal is not that interesting for the Portuguese. But obviously for a French expatriate, things are quite different.