Is Portugal Still the Best Value for Expats in 2025?

Can you still afford to move abroad and live somewhere like Portugal in 2025? What does it cost to live here on Madeira this year? Have prices skyrocketed, or is Portugal still a great value for expats? As a retired couple who has been living in Madeira for several years, we’ve tracked our yearly cost of living expenses and are sharing them with you. If you’re considering making the move, this breakdown will give you real, up-to-date insight into what life here truly costs.

Welcome to Track Us Down!

If you’re just finding us, we’re Monique and Doug, and our channel is all about retiring early, moving abroad, and, most importantly, living what we call a Better Second Half of Life. That doesn’t have to be in retirement—it can be any time you decide to make a big move. Whether you’re working remotely from a new country, spending extended time traveling, or fully relocating abroad, knowing your costs is essential. When we were planning our move years ago, we searched for detailed cost-of-living breakdowns but couldn’t find much. That’s why, year after year, we share our actual expenses so you can make informed decisions. Here’s our detailed budget for January 2025.

Housing Costs in 2025

Our first and biggest category is rent or mortgage. If you’ve been following along, you know that we no longer pay rent or a mortgage because we own our home. However, we understand that many newcomers rent, so we’re using a real-life example from good friends of ours who rent a T1 (one-bedroom) apartment in Funchal’s Old Town. Back in 2021, when we first moved to Madeira, our rent was around €1,200 per month, but it rose significantly due to low availability. Recently, we’ve noticed a shift: more new apartment buildings are going up, and the rental market is stabilizing. Our friends currently pay €1,300 for a one-bedroom apartment in the heart of Old Town, but when they move, we expect that rate to increase slightly. For the sake of this budget, we’re estimating a T1 in this area at around €1,500 per month. If you’re open to living outside of Funchal, rent prices drop significantly.

Internet, Data, and TV

One cost that hasn’t changed much for us is WiFi, data, and TV. We have high-speed 5G fiber internet in our home, unlimited mobile data all over Europe (except Switzerland—lesson learned on a recent trip!), and over 200 TV channels. Our provider, MEO, charges us €67 per month for all these services. If you’re traveling, we highly recommend an eSIM from Airalo, which is affordable and works seamlessly worldwide. (Use our link for €3 off your first eSIM purchase!)

Dining Out

One of the biggest joys of living in Madeira is the food. Dining out remains incredibly affordable compared to North America or much of Europe. In January 2025, we spent €316.37 on dining out, which included numerous restaurant meals, pastries, and coffees. To put that in perspective, this amount covered nearly ten meals out—an incredible value compared to what you’d pay elsewhere.

Utilities

Our utility costs have remained fairly stable since moving to our new apartment. In January 2025, we paid:

• Water: €16.93
• Electricity: €37.43
• House Insurance: €34.62

Total: €89.02 per month

Property taxes and condo fees are additional considerations, though we’re still awaiting our first bill for those. However, property taxes in Madeira are typically quite low compared to other countries.

Grocery Costs – A Big Change! One category where we’ve seen a major shift is groceries. Prices have steadily increased over the years. Here’s our grocery spending in January over the past few years:

• 2022: €319
• 2023: €401
• 2024: €409
• 2025: €623.70

That’s nearly double what we were paying three years ago! While groceries in Madeira are still much cheaper than in North America, we’re definitely feeling the price increases.

Subscriptions & Memberships

This category includes Netflix, Spotify, Amazon Prime, gym memberships, and other small recurring costs. Our total in January 2025 was €122.02. Streaming services like Netflix have been creeping up in price, but overall, this expense remains relatively stable.

Healthcare – A Huge Savings!

One of the biggest benefits of living in Portugal is affordable healthcare. Our healthcare costs in January? Zero. That’s right—€0.00. When we first arrived on a D7 visa, we paid for private health insurance (which costs around €120 per month for two people). However, as residents, we now have access to Portugal’s public healthcare system. We receive routine checkups, medical screenings, and healthcare updates directly to our phones. The care has been excellent, and we are grateful for this cost savings.

Transportation

Since moving into Funchal, we’ve relied more on public transport and walking, reducing our car usage. We now take the bus often, which costs about €1.10 per trip. For January 2025, our total transportation costs (including gas, parking, bus fare, and car insurance) came to €114. This is slightly higher than last year due to upgrading our car insurance to cover incidents like vandalism.

Activities & Entertainment

Madeira offers plenty of free outdoor activities like hiking, but this year, we decided to invest in entertainment. We spent €118 on concert tickets to the Madeira Orchestra. They offer an incredible prepaid membership where €50 per person gets you three concerts. If you’re in Funchal, we highly recommend checking out their performances!

Total Monthly Cost of Living in Madeira (January 2025)CategoryCost (€)Rent (T1 Estimate)€1,500WiFi, Data & TV€67Dining Out€316.37Utilities€89.02Groceries€623.70Subscriptions€122.02Healthcare€0.00Transportation€114Activities€118Total€2,950.11

Final Thoughts: Is Portugal Still a Good Value?

Despite some rising costs—especially in groceries—Madeira and Portugal overall still offer an excellent cost-to-quality-of-life ratio for expats. Rent prices have stabilized, dining out remains affordable, and essential services like healthcare and public transportation are still significantly cheaper than in many other countries.

Would we still choose to live here? Absolutely. If you’re considering moving to Portugal, understanding these costs can help you plan your budget realistically. Thanks for reading! If you found this breakdown helpful, don’t forget to check out our YouTube channel and Patreon for even more insights. All the best, Doug & Monique 🌎❤️