Porto vs. Lisbon – Essential City Comparison
Carina
TL;DR
Lisbon or Porto – A no frills travel guide to help you choose if you have to.
When we talk about our travels to Portugal, there is one question everybody seems to ask: Did we prefer Porto or Lisbon? We were lucky enough to have the time to travel both and give our personal answer in the end.
But first, we’ll give you a short overview of Porto or Lisbon – Which Portuguese city should you visit?
Porto or Lisbon: Which City is Better to Visit
Is Lisbon Worth Visiting? |
Is Porto Worth Visiting? |
| Yes! | Yes! |
Lisbon Overview |
Porto Overview |
|
Capital Inhabitants: 500,000 |
Inhabitants: 230,000 |
Lisbon Location |
Porto Location |
|
South At the Tagus River Close to the Atlantic Ocean Area: 100 km² (38 mi²) Known as The City of the Seven Hills |
North At the Douro River Close to the Atlantic Ocean Area: 41 km² (16 mi²) |
Climate in Lisbon |
Climate in Porto |
|
Warmest month: August Coldest month: February Warmer (1°C on average) Half as much rain: 66.54mm |
Warmest month: August Coldest month: February Colder (1°C on average) Twice as much rain: 140.76mm |
How to Get to Lisbon |
How to Get to Porto |
Plenty of cheap national and international flight connections, e.g.
|
Plenty of cheap national and international (mostly within Europe) flight connections, e.g.
|
Transportation in Lisbon |
Transportation in Porto |
|
The city centre is walkable but larger than Porto’s. If you want to go further out, like to Belem, you need to take public transport:
Tip 2: Elevadores take you up the hills! |
Small enough to be walkable. Public transport possible:
|
Best Things to do in Lisbon |
Best Things to do in Porto |
|
|
Beaches in Lisbon |
Beaches in Porto |
TONS of beaches, well connected by public transport.
|
Some beaches.
|
Lisbon Day Trips |
Porto Day Trips |
Many must-sees:
|
Some hidden gems and countryside vibes:
|
How Many Days in Lisbon? |
How Many Days in Porto? |
|
1 day is enough for a fast-paced visit. 2 days for a relaxed visit. 3 - 4 days for beaches and day trips! |
1 day is enough for a fast-paced visit. 2 days for a relaxed visit. |
Lisbon Vibe |
Porto Vibe |
|
|
Crowds in Lisbon |
Crowds in Porto |
|
Longer established as a tourist destination, more tourists, better infrastructure. 4.5 million tourists per year.* |
Starting to become more established as a tourist destination. 1.6 million tourists per year.* *the numbers are not completely up to date, but a trend is visible |
Cost of Living in Lisbon |
Cost of Living in Porto |
|
Higher According to Numbeo Meal, Inexpensive Restaurant 12.00 € (+50.0 %) Domestic Beer (0.5 l draught) 2.50 € (+25.0 %) One-way Ticket (Local Transport) 2.00 € (+33.3 %) Rent Per Month 1,243.95 € (+44.4 %) |
Lower According to Numbeo Meal, Inexpensive Restaurant 8.00 € Domestic Beer (0.5 l draught) 2.00 € One-way Ticket (Local Transport) 1.50 € Rent Per Month 861.62 € |
Lisbon Hotels |
Porto Hotels |
Cheapest with distance >1km on booking.com
|
Cheapest with distance >1km on booking.com
→ Cheaper |
Food in Lisbon |
Food in Porto |
|
Traditional, international, and fusion cuisine. Great street food.
|
Portugal’s foodie capital. More traditional Portuguese food.
|
Nightlife in Lisbon |
Nightlife in Porto |
Livelier!
|
|
Coworking Spaces in Lisbon |
Coworking Spaces in Porto |
|
Great for digital nomads, with many coworking space options. The average price for a monthly membership is around €200-225. There are at least 25 cool and affordable coworking spaces in Lisbon. |
Great for digital nomads, with many coworking space options. The average price for a monthly membership is around €200-225. |
Security in Lisbon |
Security in Porto |
|
Both cities are amongst the safest in Europe and the world. According to Numbeo
|
Both cities are amongst the safest in Europe and the world. According to Numbeo
|
Who should pick Lisbon? |
Who should pick Porto? |
Great for 1. solo travellers, 2. families, 3. couples.
|
Great for 1. couples, 2. solo travellers, 3. families.
|
Lisbon Itinerary |
Porto Itinerary |
| One day in Lisbon | One day in Porto |
 |
 |
Porto vs Lisbon: Our Personal Conclusion
While travel bloggers probably should not pick favourites, we did: First of all, if you have the time to visit both, absolutely do so! But if you don’t, we would pick Lisbon.
Why would we personally pick Lisbon?
- It’s the capital.
- It’s more lively.
- The weather is a bit nicer.
- You have amazing day trip options to Sintra and the beaches.
Porto AND Lisbon
Even if you only have as little as 2 days, you can combine both cities with our 1 day Lisbon and 1 day Porto itinerary.
Buses and trains between the two cities take around 3 hours and run from the early mornings to the late nights.
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2 Comments
Rj
25.07.2023, 09:07
Thats a great comparison of the 2 cities. Still none the wiser so would visit both. The stumbling block is crossing Spain with the dog...
Carina | Bucketlist2Life
26.07.2023, 08:47
If you have the time we 100% recommend visiting both Porto and Lisbon! Why is crossing Spain with a dog hard? Just the long way or regulations?
Mitch
What a great comparison! We have not visited either city but your guide makes us want to visit both. We'd be particularly interested in the foodie scene in Porto, and would love to taste Port wine and Douro wine there. Although Pasteis de nata and salted cod would also draw us to Lisbon. I think we need to plan a trip to Portugal...
Carina | Bucketlist2Life
If you have the time, we definitely recommend visiting both Porto and Lisbon. As fellow foodies, we must say that we loved the whole of Portugal for its food. And we did not even mention things like Vinho Verde in this post...