Moving to Australia from Portugal
What to Expect
A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from Portugal to Australia — from daily expenses to quality of life.
If you moved from Portugal to Australia, you would find that Australia is 52.8% more expensive than Portugal overall. A €65,577 salary in Portugal would need to be roughly A$124,089 in Australia to maintain the same lifestyle, and you’d need to navigate life in English. You’ll also switch from driving on the right to the left.
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How your spending power changes when you relocate from Portugal to Australia.
What does your salary buy?
€65,577 → A$124,089
To maintain the same standard of living in Australia
Calculate with your salary →The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 30.7% more
Groceries
pay 39.2% more
Transportation
pay 24.8% more
Housing
pay 30.0% more
Childcare
pay 2.1 times more
Entertainment and Sports
pay 2.3 times more
Data: MyLifeElsewhere's crowdsourced cost of living database, with prices submitted and updated by users worldwide. Exchange rates are refreshed regularly from public sources.
Cost of living by city
Cost of living varies a lot by city. Each figure is a city's overall cost of living as a percentage of New York City (the priciest, = 100%).
On average, cities in Australia cost about 13% more than cities in Portugal.
Compare cities head-to-head
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Who Else Is Making This Move?
Real numbers on people moving from Portugal to Australia, and how the trend has changed.
people moved from Portugal to Australia · OECD (latest data available)
Who's moving to Australia?
Top countries of origin for Australia's foreign-born residents.
- 1,285,149
- 653,232
- 611,266
- 579,264
- 286,303
- 269,812
- · · ·
-
54.20,550
Portugal
Key Indicator Comparison
How Portugal and Australia stack up on safety, healthcare, jobs, and infrastructure.
Is it safe?
per 100,000 people per year
per 100,000 people per year
Portugal generally does better on safety, though Australia leads in road traffic deaths.
How's the healthcare?
annual government + private spending per person
affects wait times and access to care
WHO index from 0–100 measuring essential service access
share of adults with obesity
per 100,000 people — a proxy for mental health support
Portugal performs better than Australia across all health & wellbeing metrics.
What about the environment?
deaths attributable to air pollution per 100k people
tonnes of CO₂ emitted per person per year
Portugal performs better than Australia across all environment metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
fixed broadband subscriptions — key for remote work
higher means greater strain on freshwater supply
annual consumption — reflects grid capacity
share of households with internet
Australia generally does better on infrastructure, though Portugal leads in broadband per 100 people.
What are the job prospects?
percentage of the labour force without work
a broad measure of economic output per person
the highest marginal rate on personal income
share of people below the poverty line
Australia performs significantly better than Portugal across all employment & economy metrics.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
deaths per 1,000 live births — lower is better
government spending on education as % of GDP
Australia generally does better on family life, though Portugal leads in infant mortality.
Data: Autoridade Tributária e Aduaneira, The World Factbook, United Nations SDG Indicators, World Bank
What's the Climate Like?
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Lisbon | Canberra |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 61°/48°F (16°/9°C) | 80°/54°F (26°/12°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 71°/56°F (22°/13°C) | 61°/39°F (16°/4°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 81°/63°F (27°/17°C) | 56°/35°F (13°/1°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 65°/53°F (18°/12°C) | 73°/47°F (23°/9°C) |
View all months
| Month | Lisbon | Canberra |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 58°/47°F (14.5°/8.2°C) | 82°/55°F (27.7°/13.0°C) |
| Feb | 60°/48°F (15.6°/9.0°C) | 81°/55°F (27.0°/12.9°C) |
| Mar | 64°/50°F (17.6°/9.9°C) | 76°/51°F (24.4°/10.7°C) |
| Apr | 66°/52°F (19.1°/11.1°C) | 68°/44°F (19.8°/6.6°C) |
| May | 71°/55°F (21.7°/13.0°C) | 60°/38°F (15.4°/3.1°C) |
| Jun | 77°/60°F (24.8°/15.6°C) | 54°/34°F (12.1°/0.9°C) |
| Jul | 81°/63°F (27.4°/17.4°C) | 52°/32°F (11.2°/-0.2°C) |
| Aug | 82°/64°F (27.9°/17.7°C) | 55°/34°F (12.9°/1.0°C) |
| Sep | 80°/63°F (26.4°/17.0°C) | 61°/38°F (16.0°/3.1°C) |
| Oct | 72°/58°F (22.4°/14.6°C) | 67°/43°F (19.2°/6.0°C) |
| Nov | 64°/52°F (17.8°/11.2°C) | 72°/47°F (22.4°/8.5°C) |
| Dec | 59°/48°F (14.8°/8.9°C) | 79°/52°F (26.0°/11.2°C) |
Data:
Instituto Português do Mar e da Atmosfera,
Bureau of Meteorology
Visitor Visa Requirements
Short-stay tourist visa rules between Portugal and Australia. To live, work, or study long-term in Australia, you'll need a separate residence or work visa — check Australia's immigration authority.
Portugal passport holder visiting Australia
Electronic Travel Authorisation
Australia passport holder visiting Portugal
Visa FreeData: Henley Passport Index. Check with the destination country's embassy for the most current requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Australia than Portugal?
Day-to-day costs in Australia run about 15% higher than Portugal on average; specific cities can swing further.
How much money do I need to move to Australia?
A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a €65,577 comparable salary, that's around A$31,022 in Australia for everyday spending, before flights, shipping, a rental deposit, and visa fees.
Can I work remotely from Australia?
With 35.1 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people, Australia can support video calls in major cities. The hard part is paperwork — visa category, employer policy on overseas staff, and tax residency in Portugal and Australia.
Is Australia safe for expats?
Portugal generally does better on safety, though Australia leads in road traffic deaths. The homicide rate in Australia is 0.8 per 100,000 people, compared to 0.8 in Portugal.
How is healthcare in Australia compared to Portugal?
Portugal performs better than Australia across all health & wellbeing metrics. There are 39.8 doctors per 10,000 people in Australia, compared to 57.7 in Portugal. Australia scores 87 on the WHO universal health coverage index (Portugal: 88).
What's the weather like in Australia compared to Portugal?
The average high temperature in Canberra is 67°F, compared to 69°F in Lisbon. Canberra receives around 24.8 in of rainfall per year, while Lisbon gets 29.6 in.
What language do they speak in Australia?
The official language in Australia is English. In Portugal, the official language is Portuguese.
