Looking for American Expats in Lisbon?

Thinking about moving to Lisbon as an American? These pros and cons come from the InterNations Expat Insider 2026 survey, in which thousands of expats around the world share what they like and don't like about life abroad each year. The points below reflect what US American expats in Lisbon wrote in their own words, backed up by survey percentages from all expats living there.

• The weather and clean air win people over. 84% of expats in Lisbon rate the climate and weather positively (vs. 58% globally) and 77% air quality.

• It feels safe and welcoming. Lisbon scores 95% for personal safety, and Americans praise warm, good-natured locals (76% rate friendliness positively).

• The food, culture, and coast are a joy. 90% rate culinary variety positively and 83% culture and nightlife, with the ocean and beautiful nature close by (89%).

• Your money goes further. 52% rate the general cost of living positively, above the global average of 39%, and 60% get by fine without Portuguese.

• Bureaucracy is the biggest gripe by far. Just 17% of expats in Lisbon find it easy to deal with local authorities, against 38% globally.

• Work and pay are thin. Only 22% rate the local job market positively and 28% say the move improved their career prospects (vs. 55% globally).

• Housing and the language take work. Just 23% rate housing affordability positively and 25% say Portuguese is easy to learn.

• The old city has its quirks. Slippery cobblestones, narrow streets, tricky parking, and poorly insulated winter homes come up often.

For Americans, Lisbon delivers sun, safety, food, and a warm, walkable life by the ocean at a manageable cost. The trade-offs are the bureaucracy, thin job prospects, and the quirks of an old city. For lifestyle over career, few places score better.

Every year, we publish one of the biggest global surveys for expats — Expat Insider — where we ask people living around the world about every aspect of expat life. We’ve rounded up key facts about the typical American expat: what motivated them to move to a new country, what they enjoy about life abroad, as well as what they struggle with the most.

We asked tens of thousands of expats about their lives abroad in our Expat Insider surveys. In addition to our standard questions, we invite them to share what they like or dislike about their experiences in their own words. Here, we’ve selected some of the most interesting or representative quotes about expat life in Lisbon from American expats, grouped into positive and negative opinions.

Let’s start with the positive ones.

On the downside, here's are some negative experiences from American expats in Lisbon

• Browse our network of members to get to know American expats in Lisbon and connect with others.
• Take part in our expat forums to get firsthand tips and information from fellow Americans in Lisbon.
• Meet other American expats and global minds at 600 monthly official events and share your interests at more than 4,600 monthly activities in Lisbon and across the globe.

InterNations provides an easy, casual way to get to know expats from the USA and further afield in your local community. Sound good? Then let us welcome you into our Lisbon Community today!

Our community in Lisbon is also very active offline. Our InterNations Ambassadors organize regular events and various expat activities, e.g. a dinner in Lisbon’s hippest restaurant or an outing with other American expats to explore the Algarve. These activities are a casual way to get to know expats from the USA in your local community as well as Americans in Portugal nationwide. Interested? Simply become a member and we’ll be happy to welcome you among our Americans living in Lisbon!