Where to live in Lisbon (2026)

Which area of Lisbon is best for expats?

There is no single best area: it depends on whether you have children, where they will go to school, and how much you want to pay. These are the usual answers.

• Families with children at international schools: Carcavelos, Cascais, Oeiras, Parque das Nações. St Julian's, St Dominic's, Oeiras International and United Lisbon are in or beside these; CAISL is in Linhó, Sintra.
• Families who want to stay in the city: Campo de Ourique, Estrela, Alvalade. Gardens, markets and calm streets, with trams or the metro to the centre.
• Couples and singles who want to walk everywhere: Chiado, Príncipe Real, Baixa, Cais do Sodré. Central, lively and on the metro, with bars, cafés and shops on your street.
• Remote workers and younger renters: Arroios, Cais do Sodré, Alcântara. Central or on the river, creative and cheaper than the old town.
• On a tighter budget: Sintra, Almada, Arroios. The lowest official rents on these pages, or the cheapest way into the centre.

How do all 19 areas compare on rent, prices and commute?

One-bedroom asking rent is a 60 m² flat at the area's advertised price per square metre, plus or minus 10%. The official figure is the INE median rent per square metre of new contracts in the 12 months to June 2026, scaled to a 60 m² flat. INE publishes it by freguesia and municipality, so neighbourhoods in the same freguesia share a figure; Lisbon city as a whole was 17.43 EUR/m², or about 1,046 EUR for 60 m².

Asking rent: idealista price report, June 2026, freguesia averages inside the city; for the towns the latest month we could read, named on each town's page. Official rent: INE, Statistics Portugal, 12 months to June 2026, by freguesia and municipality. Sale: INE median sale price, 12 months to March 2026. Minutes: our estimate, door to Rossio by public transport. Exact source and date for each figure are on each area's page.

How much is rent in Lisbon in 2026?

8 EUR per square metre a month in June 2026 (idealista's city report, the latest month we could read for every neighbourhood), which puts a 60 m2 one-bedroom at roughly 1,180 to 1,440 EUR and a 100 m2 three-bedroom at roughly 1,960 to 2,400 EUR. 1 EUR/m2 for September 2026; the two series are measured differently, so compare areas with each other, not across series.

0). 1% on a year earlier). 55 in Santo António. It is lower than the asking price because it counts what was signed, not what was advertised.

Is rent capped in Lisbon?

Partly. Portugal has no rent control zones and no rent index: for a flat that has not been let in the last five years, the landlord can ask any starting rent in Lisbon.

For a flat that was let under a contract in the previous five years, the Mais Habitação law (Lei 56/2023) says the new rent cannot be more than the last rent plus 2%, plus any yearly updates the last contract left unused, but only where the last rent was above the state's Arrendamento Acessível ceiling for that kind of flat; below that ceiling the rent can be agreed freely. That limit is written to run to the end of 2029, but a Government bill that Parliament passed in principle on 30 September 2026 would scrap it for new contracts, and it is not law yet. 56% for 2027.

Short-term lets are restricted in the old centre: since the April 2026 update of Lisbon's Alojamento Local map, new registrations are in principle banned in Santa Maria Maior, Misericórdia and Santo António, and need the city's authorisation in São Vicente, Arroios and Estrela. The idea is to return flats to long-term renting, but new official rents still rose 5.1% in the year to the second quarter of 2026 (INE).

What do you pay on top of the price when buying in Lisbon?

Budget roughly 4.7% to 5.3% on top of the price. On a 300,000 EUR resale flat in Lisbon that is about 13,000 EUR of IMT and stamp duty (0.8%) plus 1,200 to 2,900 EUR in fees, before any mortgage.

Buying a home in Portugal carries two taxes, both paid before you sign the deed: IMT (Imposto Municipal sobre as Transmissões, the transfer tax) and stamp duty (Imposto do Selo) of 0.8% of the price. IMT depends on the price and on what the home is for. For a home you will live in permanently, 2026 IMT is zero up to 106,346 EUR, then 2% (to 145,470), 5% (to 198,347), 7% (to 330,539) and 8% (to 660,982), each worked out with a fixed amount deducted; from 660,982 to 1,150,853 EUR it is a flat 6% of the whole price, and above that a flat 7.5%. A second home or an investment follows a steeper table that starts at 1%. Buyers aged 35 or under who buy a permanent home pay no IMT or stamp duty up to 330,539 EUR (IMT Jovem), and the normal rates only on the part above it, up to 660,982 EUR.

Non-residents pay more. Since 25 May 2026, a buyer who is not a Portuguese tax resident pays a flat 7.5% IMT on a home from the first euro, with no exemptions, unless they were resident in Portugal at some earlier time. On 600,000 EUR that is 45,000 EUR of IMT, against about 34,200 EUR on the permanent-home table. The difference can be claimed back if you become a Portuguese tax resident within two years of buying, or let the home on the decree's affordable-rent terms. The worked examples below use the permanent-home table, which is what a resident, or someone about to become one, pays (Autoridade Tributária, Lei 73-A/2025 and Decreto-Lei 97/2026, checked October 2026). On top come the Casa Pronta deed-and-registration fee, 375 EUR for a cash purchase and 700 EUR with a mortgage, and a lawyer if you hire one.

IMT and stamp duty are paid before you sign the deed, with the payment slips from the Portal das Finanças or at the Casa Pronta counter, not afterwards. Rates checked October 2026. This is market information and not tax, legal or financial advice. Confirm anything here with a lawyer before you sign.

Which areas do people weigh against each other?

Alfama, Graça or Baixa?

Lisbon's old centre: the hills east of the Baixa and the flat grid beneath them. All three are on foot and by tram, and none has much space.

Chiado, Príncipe Real or Cais do Sodré?

Three central neighbourhoods west of the Baixa: one on the hill, one on the garden above it and one down by the river. They are the best-connected addresses in the city.

Campo de Ourique or Estrela and Lapa?

Two calm residential neighbourhoods west of the centre, with gardens, markets and trams, and few tourists. Families like both.

Avenidas Novas, Arroios, Alvalade or Parque das Nações?

The residential belt north and east of the centre, on the metro: more practical than picturesque, and cheaper per square metre than the old town.

Belém or Alcântara?

Two riverside freguesias west of the centre, on the Cascais train line: monuments and gardens in one, former docks and factories in the other.

Cascais, Carcavelos or Oeiras?

The coastal towns on the Cascais train line, 20 to 40 minutes west of Lisbon, where most international schools are.

Sintra or Almada?

Two towns that cost much less than the coast: Sintra in the hills north-west, Almada across the river.

Which areas of Lisbon should expats avoid?

No area on these pages is dangerous to live in; Lisbon is one of the safer capitals in Europe. Pickpocketing is the main crime in the tourist centre (Baixa, Alfama, Chiado and tram 28E), and some streets around Intendente, Martim Moniz and the Pink Street have drug dealing and noise at night. The practical problems are hills, noise and old flats without lifts, so visit at night before you sign.

Where do most English-speaking expats live in Lisbon?

Inside the city, mostly in Príncipe Real, Chiado, Santos, Estrela, Campo de Ourique, Avenidas Novas and Parque das Nações. Families with children at international schools cluster on the Cascais line, in Carcavelos, Cascais and Oeiras.

Is it cheaper to live outside Lisbon?

Per square metre, yes, but less than you might expect on the coast. The INE median rent of new contracts in the 12 months to June 2026 was 17.43 EUR/m2 in Lisbon, 16.83 in Cascais, 15.75 in Oeiras, 13.71 in Almada and 11.41 in Sintra. Cascais and Oeiras are close to the city; Sintra and Almada are clearly cheaper.

Do foreigners pay more tax when buying a home in Portugal?

Only if they are not Portuguese tax residents. Since 25 May 2026 a non-resident pays a flat 7.5% IMT on a home from the first euro, with no exemptions, unless they were resident in Portugal before. The difference can be refunded if you become a tax resident within two years of buying. Residents pay the normal table, which is zero to 106,346 EUR and 8% on the slice between 330,539 and 660,982 EUR, with stamp duty of 0.8% on top for everyone.

Do foreign buyers pay more per square metre in Lisbon?

In the INE figures, yes. Buyers with a tax residence abroad paid a median 6,325 EUR/m2 for Lisbon homes in the 12 months to March 2026, against 5,000 EUR/m2 for buyers with Portuguese tax residence (INE). That reflects what and where they buy as well as price.

More Lisbon guides