{"id":3396,"date":"2025-09-08T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-09-08T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/expatsi.devstudio.work\/?p=3396"},"modified":"2025-09-08T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2025-09-08T00:00:00","slug":"how-much-could-a-family-save-in-portugal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/expatsi.devstudio.work\/?p=3396","title":{"rendered":"How much could a family save in Portugal?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tell any parent it\u2019s expensive to raise a family in today\u2019s economy, and they won\u2019t laugh at you, because they\u2019re too tired. But believe me, they already know.<\/span><\/p>\n

One survey<\/a> shows that to raise a family of four in 2025, you\u2019ll need a six-figure income in more than half the states in the U.S. And last year\u2019s six figures won\u2019t be the same as this year\u2019s six figures \u2014 another study<\/a>determined a family of that size will need an additional $9,360 this year just to keep up with their standard of living from last year. Raising a family in the U.S. is just plain expensive, and it\u2019s only getting more so.<\/p>\n

But what if you just\u2026 didn\u2019t? What if, instead of scrambling to keep up with the standard of living in their current U.S. town, a family of four lived in Coimbra, Portugal, instead?<\/p>\n

Meet the Joneses of Macomb, Illinois.<\/h2>\n

Meet the Jones family of Macomb, Illinois. Parents Michael and Jennifer both work from home. Daughter Isabella, 15, is in high school, and son Aiden, 18, is living at home to save money during his first year at Western Illinois University.<\/p>\n

Combined annual income: $100,000<\/p>\n

With help from the Economic Policy Institute<\/a>, we can assume their expenses look something like this:<\/p>\n

Housing: $1,100\/month for a three-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment
\nGroceries: $1,300\/month
\nHealthcare: $2,000\/month
\nTaxes: $1,700\/month
\nCollege: $6,600\/semester<\/p>\n

Without including other expenses \u2014 car payments, Netflix, Isabella\u2019s soccer fees, Michael\u2019s addiction to high-end sneakers \u2014 their total annual expenses as outlined above come to $86,400<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

If they live in Illinois.<\/p>\n

Meet the Joneses of Coimbra, Portugal.<\/h2>\n

When Michael, Jennifer, Aiden, and Isabella move to Coimbra, what might their expenses look like?<\/p>\n

Housing: $850\/month<\/em><\/p>\n

Their three-bed, two-bath apartment in Coimbra will run them \u20ac725\/month<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Groceries: $586\/month<\/em><\/p>\n

The Joneses are bringing home a dozen eggs for \u20ac2.50, a round of beef for \u20ac5.50, a pound of potatoes for \u20ac0.75, and a decent bottle of wine for \u20ac5 \u2013 about \u20ac500\/month<\/a> for groceries for the four of them.<\/p>\n

Healthcare: $47\/month<\/em><\/p>\n

Under the Portuguese healthcare system, they might be paying \u20ac40 or so for doctor\u2019s fees<\/a>, tests, or trips to the ER, or dentistry (which isn\u2019t covered under the national health service).<\/p>\n

Taxes: $3,058\/month<\/em><\/p>\n

Not everything in Portugal can be cheap. Michael and Jennifer will be paying about \u20ac2,451\/month<\/a> on their combined $100,000 (\u20ac85,313) income.<\/p>\n

College: $8,200\/year<\/em><\/p>\n

As a new resident of Portugal, Aiden will have to pay the international student rate of \u20ac7,000\/year<\/a> at the University of Coimbra. When he\u2019s lived in Portugal for two years (and for Isabella when she decides to join him at the University of Coimbra) he\u2019ll be eligible for the national student rate of \u20ac697<\/a>, or about $817, per year.<\/p>\n

Total: $62,692<\/strong><\/p>\n

In their first year in Portugal, the Jones family will save $23,708 <\/strong>over their Macomb, Illinois, lifestyle. Once Aiden becomes eligible for the national student rate, their savings will climb to $31,091 per year<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

How do their savings add up over time?<\/p>\n

Year 1, when the family moves: $23,708
\n<\/strong>Year 3, when Aiden is eligible for free tuition: $78,507
\n<\/strong>Year 4, when Isabella starts college: $121,981
\n<\/strong>Year 5, when Aiden graduates and moves out: $145,068
\n<\/strong>Year 9, when Isabella moves out and the nest empties: $217,029
\n<\/strong>Year 20, the platinum anniversary of the Joneses\u2019 move to Portugal: $246,729<\/strong><\/p>\n

With nearly a quarter of a million in amassed savings over time, the Joneses don\u2019t regret their move to Portugal. That\u2019s enough  for a satisfying lifestyle, a relaxing retirement, and a lot of high-end sneakers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Tell any parent it\u2019s expensive to raise a family in today\u2019s economy, and they won\u2019t laugh at you, because they\u2019re too tired. But believe me, they already know. One survey shows that to raise a family of four in 2025, you\u2019ll need a six-figure income in more than half the states in the U.S. And […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3244,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[48],"class_list":["post-3396","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cost-of-living","tag-portugal"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/expatsi.devstudio.work\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3396","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/expatsi.devstudio.work\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/expatsi.devstudio.work\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/expatsi.devstudio.work\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/expatsi.devstudio.work\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3396"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/expatsi.devstudio.work\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3396\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/expatsi.devstudio.work\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3244"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/expatsi.devstudio.work\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3396"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/expatsi.devstudio.work\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3396"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/expatsi.devstudio.work\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3396"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}