Portugal: Porto overtakes Lisbon among French buyers

Portugal's National Statistics Institute publishes the median rent for new residential leases each quarter, by area.

In the first quarter of 2025, the national median stood at €8.22¹ per square metre per month.

Lisbon had the highest value in the country, at €16² per square metre per month, nearly double the national median.

The Porto metropolitan area stood at €9.12³, barely above the national average and a long way from the Lisbon level.

It is this ratio, more than the figures themselves, that describes the situation: for a comparable quality of life, housing in Porto costs roughly half as much as in the capital.

This is a median of new contracts. It reflects neither older leases, which are much cheaper, nor the asking prices in the most sought-after neighbourhoods, which are higher.

The Porto figure also covers the metropolitan area, which includes municipalities that are much cheaper than the municipality of Porto itself. The city centre is well above this median.

We do not publish a median rent for the municipality of Porto alone or by neighbourhood: we do not have the corresponding official breakdown, and we do not use estimates from property listing portals.

The gap between Foz do Douro, Porto's most expensive neighbourhood, and a suburban municipality such as Gaia or Matosinhos is considerable — and it is masked by a metropolitan-area median.

The French community in Porto is more recent and smaller than the one in Lisbon. Services in French are more limited, which makes learning Portuguese more necessary — and integration more genuine.

International schooling options are limited, and this is the first point a family should check. The number of schools and places is not comparable to that of the capital.

The climate is markedly different: Porto is wetter and rainier, and its older housing stock is poorly insulated. Heating and damp-proofing are a real expense from October to April.

There are many flights to France from both cities, and Campanhã station puts Lisbon less than three hours away by train.

The purchase market follows the same logic as the rental market, with a time lag. The renovation of central Porto has been massive and rapid, driven by tourism and short-term rentals, and it has taken part of the housing stock out of the conventional residential market.

A buyer must therefore distinguish between two Porto realities: a renovated historic centre, expensive and geared towards international buyers, and a residential periphery with prices on an entirely different scale. What you buy in Porto depends entirely on this choice.

The same reasoning applies to Lisbon, on a different scale: the capital went through the same transformation a few years earlier, and its peripheral market now shows comparable gaps between the centre and the south bank.

• The rent gap between the two cities is documented and considerable.
• The Porto median covers the metropolitan area: the city centre is above it.
• International schooling is the first point a family should check.
• The insulation of an older home is a financial criterion, not a matter of comfort.
• Presence of more than more than 183 days⁴ confers Portuguese tax residency, whichever the city.

From a tax point of view, nothing distinguishes the two cities: the preferential regime in force applies a special rate of 20%⁵ to eligible employment and business income for 10 years⁶, everywhere in the country, subject to from 5 years⁷ of prior non-residence. The choice between Lisbon and Porto is therefore a lifestyle and budget choice, not a tax decision.