Cost of living comparison

compared to

Durham vs. Algarve Cost of Living Summary

Durham is 31.4% more expensive than Algarve.

Restaurants
pay 6.5% more in Durham
Groceries
pay 71.8% more in Durham
Transportation
pay 33.5% less in Durham
Housing
pay 54.7% more in Durham
Childcare
pay 2.4 times more in Durham
Entertainment and Sports
pay 43.1% more in Durham
Clothing
pay 6.3% less in Durham

The cost of childcare, groceries, housing, entertainment and sports, and restaurants in Durham are more expensive than in Algarve. Expenses including transportation and clothing are lower in Durham. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Durham.

Durham vs. Algarve Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Durham instead of Algarve, you would:

pay 6.5% more for restaurants

 
Algarve
Durham
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $16.80
€15.00
$15.50
 
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$9.52
€8.50
$10.00
 
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $1.94
€1.73
$3.11
 

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pay 71.8% more for groceries

 
Algarve
Durham
Bread
1 loaf
$1.39
€1.24
$4.82
 
Local cheese (8 oz) $6.43
€5.74
$9.61
 
Milk (1 gallon) $4.34
€3.88
$4.36
 

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pay 33.5% less for transportation

 
Algarve
Durham
Gasoline (1 gallon) $7.99
€7.13
$3.76
 
Monthly public transit pass ?? $25.00
 
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $33,640.22
€30,037.25
$35,535.00
 

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pay 54.7% more for housing

 
Algarve
Durham
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$32.72
€29.21
$70.83
 
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,063.00
€949.15
$1,723.33
 
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $857.72
€765.85
$1,227.50
 

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pay 2.4 times more for childcare

 
Algarve
Durham
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $663.19
€592.16
$1,565.89
 
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $15,323.95
€13,682.71
??

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pay 43.1% more for entertainment and sports

 
Algarve
Durham
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $3.36
€3.00
$6.00
 
Cappuccino in mid-range area $3.03
€2.70
$4.75
 
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$6.72
€6.00
$8.00
 

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pay 6.3% less for clothing

 
Algarve
Durham
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$102.78
€91.77
$45.00
 
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$45.72
€40.83
$34.67
 
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$78.38
€69.99
$91.75
 

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We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated November 2026). How we calculate this

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