Cost of renting in Portugal

Average rent in Portugal by city (2026)

The calculator above shows the typical asking rent for an unfurnished flat in the seven cities where most newcomers start looking. Our cost-of-living calculator uses exactly the same figures, so the two tools never disagree. Treat each number as the middle of the market: the tool also shows a range of 15% either side, because the same T2 can differ by hundreds of euros between neighbourhoods, floors and states of repair.

Monthly rents, unfurnished; a furnished flat adds about 8% in the calculator. The last column is the median rent per m² of new lease contracts signed in the 12 months to June 2026, published by INE.

Rent by typology: T0, T1, T2 and T3

Portuguese listings count bedrooms: T0 is a studio, T1 has one bedroom, T2 two and T3 three. The calculator prices a studio at about three quarters of a T1. Two things to keep in mind when you compare. Small flats cost more per square metre: INE finds that T0 and T1 homes have the highest median €/m² in all 24 municipalities with more than 100,000 inhabitants. And the typology says nothing about size, so a 60 m² T2 and a 95 m² T2 can sit in the same street at very different prices.

Rent per m²: what the official INE data says

INE, the national statistics institute, publishes the median rent per square metre of new lease contracts. For the 12 months to June 2026 the national median was €9.76/m², based on 151,181 new contracts. Lisbon was the most expensive municipality at €17.43/m², ahead of Cascais at €16.83; Porto stood at €14.48 and Funchal at €14.03, while Braga (€8.68), Coimbra (€9.44) and Aveiro (€9.75) were close to or below the national figure.

Multiply it out and an 85 m² home costs about €1,480 a month at Lisbon's median and €1,230 at Porto's. That is lower than the calculator, for a clear reason: INE counts contracts actually signed, across every size and condition, including older flats that never reach the big portals, while the calculator reflects what you will see advertised when you start searching.

Worked example: a T2 in Porto

Choose Porto and T2, unfurnished. The calculator gives a mid estimate of €1,480 a month, a typical range of €1,260–1,700 and upfront money of €2,960–4,440: the first month plus one or two months of deposit. It suggests landlords will want proof of net income above €4,440 a month, three times the rent, and shows the same flat at about 83% of the Lisbon price, so 17% cheaper.

Deposit (caução) and upfront costs: the legal limits

Since 1 January 2023, article 1076 of the Civil Code caps the caução at two months' rent and advance rent at two months. The limits came with Law 24-D/2022, and the 2023 Mais Habitação package did not change them. A request for four or five months "because you are a foreigner" has no legal basis on a residential lease. Most landlords ask for the first month plus one or two months of caução, which is the range the calculator shows.

This may change. A government bill approved in July 2026 would remove the deposit cap and allow three months of advance rent, and parliament was due to vote on it at the end of September 2026. Until a new law is published in the Diário da República, the two-month limits apply. Getting the caução back is covered in our guide to tenant rights and your deposit, and the fine print in why the deposit ceiling is two months.

Income landlords ask for

No law sets an income requirement; it is landlord practice. The calculator uses the common rule of thumb of net monthly income around three times the rent. Expect to show payslips, a work contract or a tax return, or bank statements if your income comes from abroad. Newcomers without a Portuguese history are often asked for a fiador, a guarantor living in Portugal.

Contract types and annual rent increases

• Fixed-term lease (prazo certo): the usual long-term contract. For a permanent home the term cannot be shorter than one year or longer than 30. Unless the contract says otherwise, it renews automatically for the same period, or for three years if the original term was shorter.
• Temporary lease (fins especiais transitórios): for work, study or tourism. The one-year minimum and automatic renewal do not apply.

The landlord must register the lease with Finanças and issue electronic rent receipts. Unless your contract sets another update rule, an existing rent can rise once a year by the official coefficient: 1.0224 (+2.24%) for 2026, after 1.0216 in 2025 and 1.0694 in 2024. On a €1,000 rent that is €22.40 a month more in 2026.

Where to search, and how to avoid scams

Long-term rentals are listed on the big portals such as Idealista (the calculator's button opens live listings for your city), on classifieds sites, in Facebook groups and through local agencies. Scams follow a pattern: an owner who is "abroad", a price well below the market and a request to transfer a deposit before anyone has seen the flat. Never pay before you, or someone you trust, has visited; check that an agency gives an AMI licence number; and read our guide to rental scams in Portugal.