Best places to buy property in Portugal as a foreigner (2026): 16 areas by budget, lifestyle and total cost

The 16 areas compared: prices paid, a typical home and the total cost

The prices below are INE transaction medians: what buyers actually paid per square metre over the 12 months to June 2026, the latest local figures (released on 23 October 2026). Asking prices on portals run 10–25% higher. The total cost column assumes a cash purchase by a buyer who is not, and never has been, Portuguese tax resident: the price plus 7.5% IMT (property transfer tax), 0.8% stamp duty and €375 for the deed and registration through the state’s Casa Pronta service. Legal and survey fees come on top.

Area	Region	INE median paid, €/m²	Typical home and price	Total with 7.5% IMT	Best for
Lisbon	Lisbon coast	€5,192 (municipality)	€500,000 flat	€541,875	City life, renters, culture
Cascais & Estoril	Lisbon coast	€4,889 (municipality)	€900,000 house	€975,075	Families, schools, retirees
Oeiras & Carcavelos	Lisbon coast	€4,438 (Oeiras); €5,071 (Carcavelos e Parede)	€700,000 family house	€758,475	Commuters, schools, surf beach
Sintra	Lisbon coast	€3,509 (Sintra parishes); €3,818 (Colares)	€850,000 quinta	€920,925	Land, quintas, schools
Ericeira & Mafra	Lisbon coast	€4,033 (Ericeira); €3,006 (Mafra)	€550,000 house	€596,025	Surfers, remote workers
Almada & Costa da Caparica	Lisbon coast	€3,387 (municipality); €4,520 (Costa da Caparica)	€450,000 flat	€487,725	Beach near Lisbon, value
Porto	Porto & the north	€3,631 (municipality)	€400,000 flat	€433,575	City life, value, schools
Madeira	Madeira	€2,690 (region); €3,538 (Funchal)	€400,000 flat in Funchal	€433,575	Island life, mild climate
Comporta & Melides	Alentejo coast	€2,543 (Grândola, mostly inland)	€1,500,000 house	€1,624,875	Prime beach houses, privacy
Lagos & Praia da Luz	Algarve	€3,949 (municipality)	€450,000 apartment	€487,725	Established expat towns
Quinta do Lago & Vale do Lobo	Algarve	€5,617 (Almancil parish)	€2,500,000 villa	€2,707,875	Prime golf and beach
Vilamoura	Algarve	€4,482 (Quarteira parish)	€400,000 apartment, 90 m²	€433,575	Marina, golf, lettings
Albufeira	Algarve	€3,490 (municipality)	€350,000 apartment	€379,425	Holiday lets, resort life
Carvoeiro & Lagoa	Algarve	€3,371 (municipality)	€450,000 home	€487,725	Clifftop villas, golf
Portimão & Alvor	Algarve	€3,259 (municipality)	€350,000 apartment	€379,425	Algarve value, all year
Tavira & the east Algarve	Algarve	€3,282 (municipality)	€450,000 apartment	€487,725	Quieter, traditional, retirees

All INE figures were checked on INE’s own database on 26 October 2026. The typical homes are the worked examples used on each area’s buying page, so the numbers match across the site. Run your own price through the IMT calculator, which has the Madeira tables, or the buying cost calculator.

For town-by-town Algarve detail, including Sagres-side and east-coast options not listed here, see our guide to the best places to buy in the Algarve.

Which areas suit which budget?

These bands use the total cost, not the asking price, and assume a non-resident buyer.

Budget (total cost)	Where it buys a decent home	What you get
Under €300,000	Madeira outside Funchal (Calheta €1,865/m², Ponta do Sol €1,767/m²); Vila Nova de Gaia (€2,652/m²) across the river from Porto; a one-bed in Vilamoura (T0–T1 median €4,473/m², so about €268,000 for 60 m²); Mafra outside Ericeira town	A flat of 60–100 m², or a house on Madeira’s west coast
€300,000–600,000	Lisbon, Porto, Funchal, Almada and Costa da Caparica, Ericeira, and every Algarve town except the Golden Triangle	A 2–3 bed flat in a city or resort, a townhouse in Ericeira
€600,000–1 million	Cascais, Oeiras and Carcavelos, Sintra, Porto’s Foz, villas in Lagos, Tavira and Carvoeiro	A family house with a garden on the Lisbon coast, or a detached Algarve villa
Over €1 million	Quinta do Lago and Vale do Lobo, Comporta and Melides, prime Cascais (Quinta da Marinha), central Lisbon prime	Prime villas and beach houses. Above €1,150,853 everyone pays 7.5% IMT, so being non-resident costs nothing extra

Which areas suit which lifestyle?

Lifestyle	Best fits	Why
City	Lisbon, Porto, Funchal	Car-free living, transport, culture; Porto is about 31% cheaper per m² than Lisbon
Beach	Cascais, Carcavelos, Costa da Caparica, Lagos, Albufeira, Tavira	Town beaches you can walk to
Surf	Ericeira, Carcavelos, Costa da Caparica	Ericeira was Europe’s first World Surfing Reserve (2011)
Golf	Quinta do Lago and Vale do Lobo, Vilamoura, Carvoeiro, Portimão (Penina)	Vilamoura alone has five 18-hole courses
Families with international schools	Cascais, Oeiras and Carcavelos, Sintra, Lisbon, Porto	St. Julian’s, St. Dominic’s, CAISL, TASIS and others; Porto has four, all in the west of the city. See international schools and where to buy
Retirees	Tavira, Cascais and Estoril, Lagos, Funchal	Walkable centres and established international communities
Rural quintas	Sintra, inland Tavira (the barrocal), Comporta and Melides, Madeira’s north and west	Land, but tight planning rules in parks and reserves
Islands	Madeira	The only island region in this guide; IMT brackets 25% higher than the mainland for residents

The 16 areas, one by one

1. Lisbon

Lisbon is the most expensive city in Portugal: a median €5,192/m² paid in the 12 months to June 2026, from €3,850/m² in Santa Clara to €7,254/m² in Santo António. A €500,000 flat of about 100 m² costs a non-resident €541,875 with taxes and deed, €11,263 more than a resident buying a main home. Foreign-domiciled buyers paid €6,588/m² against €5,143 for buyers living in Portugal. The Lycée Français, Redbridge, PaRK, United Lisbon and the German School teach inside the city. New short lets are banned in six central parishes, and an existing licence normally lapses on sale. Buying in Lisbon.

Tradeoff: the highest prices per square metre in the country, and no short-let income in the historic centre for new buyers.

2. Cascais and Estoril

Cascais municipality paid a median €4,889/m² over the year to June 2026 and reached €5,200/m² in the second quarter alone; only Lisbon paid more. A €900,000 house costs a non-resident €975,075 all in, €13,500 more than a resident. St. Julian’s, St. Dominic’s and King’s College are in the municipality, CAISL and TASIS a short drive away in Sintra. Trains from Cascais reach Cais do Sodré in Lisbon in about 40 minutes. Quinta da Marinha, Birre and Alcabideche need a car. It is the most international stretch of coast in the country. Buying in Cascais.

Tradeoff: you pay close to Lisbon prices for a suburban town, and the German School’s Estoril primary closes from 2026/27.

3. Oeiras and Carcavelos

Oeiras paid a median €4,438/m² over the year to June 2026; Carcavelos e Parede, in Cascais municipality next door, paid €5,071/m². A €700,000 family house costs a non-resident €758,475 all in, €10,500 more than a resident. Trains reach Cais do Sodré in 11 minutes from Algés, 24 from Oeiras and 29 from Parede. St. Julian’s is in Carcavelos, Oeiras International School in Barcarena and St. Dominic’s in São Domingos de Rana. Carcavelos has a large surf beach and the Nova SBE campus. The inland parishes are cheaper but need a car. Buying in Oeiras and Carcavelos.

Tradeoff: a commuter corridor with business parks and motorway, less postcard than Cascais at only a slightly lower price.

4. Sintra

Sintra municipality is mostly suburban, at €3,068/m², so the useful figures are the historic parish union (€3,509/m²) and Colares near the coast (€3,818/m²). This is where buyers find quintas: an €850,000 quinta costs a non-resident €920,925 all in, €12,750 more than a resident. CAISL and TASIS are both in Linhó. Trains from Sintra reach Rossio in about 40 minutes. Much of the area sits in the Sintra-Cascais Natural Park, where new houses are banned in some zones and extensions are capped at 250 m² gross in others. Buying in Sintra.

Tradeoff: park rules decide what you can build, extend or rebuild, so a lawyer’s planning check matters more here than almost anywhere.

5. Ericeira and Mafra

Ericeira parish paid a median €4,033/m² in the year to June 2026, well above Mafra municipality’s €3,006. A €550,000 house costs a non-resident €596,025 all in, €11,013 more than a resident buying a main home. Ericeira was designated Europe’s first World Surfing Reserve in 2011, with breaks at Ribeira d’Ilhas, Coxos and São Lourenço. It suits surfers and remote workers who want a small town 45 minutes from Lisbon. The reserve is not a planning designation; the coastal programme and the municipal plan set the rules. There are no new short-let registrations in the historic centre in 2026. Buying in Ericeira.

Tradeoff: no railway, no full international school in the municipality, and the bus to Lisbon takes about 69 minutes.

6. Almada and Costa da Caparica

Almada paid a median €3,387/m² over the year to June 2026, about 31% below Cascais. Costa da Caparica parish, the beach town, paid €4,520/m². A €450,000 flat costs a non-resident €487,725 all in, €11,513 more than a resident buying a main home. The ferry from Cacilhas reaches Cais do Sodré in about 10 minutes, and the Atlantic beaches run for kilometres south of Caparica. Foreign-domiciled buyers paid only about 9% more per m² than local buyers. Almada is drafting its first short-let regulation, due by 31 December 2026. Buying in Almada.

Tradeoff: the Arriba Fóssil protected landscape and former informal plots in Charneca make licensing checks essential.

7. Porto

Porto paid a median €3,631/m² in the year to June 2026, about 30% less than Lisbon, with prices up 18.7%. A €400,000 flat costs a non-resident €433,575 all in, €11,763 more than a resident buying a main home. Foz do Douro is the dearest area; Matosinhos (€3,183/m²) and Vila Nova de Gaia (€2,652/m²) are cheaper, and Gaia’s Canidelo coast rose 28.7% in a year. The four international schools are all in western Porto, and the airport is about half an hour from the centre by metro. Five historic parishes are closed to new short-let registrations. Buying in Porto.

Tradeoff: cooler, wetter winters than Lisbon or the Algarve, and the beaches are Atlantic-cold all year.

8. Madeira

Madeira paid a median €2,690/m² in the year to June 2026, and Funchal €3,538/m², rising only 5.1% island-wide against 17.7% nationally. The 7.5% IMT applies here too: a €400,000 flat costs a non-resident €433,575 all in, €13,743 more than a resident buying a second home, because residents benefit from Madeira’s IMT brackets being 25% higher than the mainland’s. Funchal suits car-free city life; Calheta (€1,865/m²) and Ponta do Sol (€1,767/m²) suit villa buyers. Since 30 June 2026 Funchal allows no new short lets in Sé. Buying in Madeira.

Tradeoff: wind can divert or cancel flights at Madeira airport, and only one international school we found has a secondary section.

9. Comporta and Melides

Comporta is a prime beach-house market: idealista asking prices in Comporta parish were €7,848/m² in August 2026, 7.8% below their October 2025 peak, the only falling market in this guide. INE publishes no parish median; Grândola municipality paid €2,543/m², but that covers inland farmland. A €1,500,000 house costs €1,624,875 with taxes and deed, the same for residents and non-residents, because above €1,150,853 everyone pays 7.5% IMT. Buyers come for pine forest, rice fields and empty beaches about an hour south of Lisbon, and for tight planning limits that keep it that way. Buying in Comporta.

Tradeoff: a thin, illiquid market with few sales, so resale can take a long time.

10. Lagos and Praia da Luz

Lagos paid a median €3,949/m² in the year to June 2026, well above the Algarve’s €3,338, and its €3,917/m² in the second quarter was the second-highest Algarve quarterly figure we found, after Loulé. Praia da Luz rose 14.2% to €4,291/m², now ahead of Lagos town. A €450,000 apartment costs a non-resident €487,725 all in, about €10,450 more than a resident buying a second home. Foreign-domiciled buyers already paid 20.0% more per m² than local buyers. The western Algarve’s beaches and old town make it one of the most established foreign-owner markets in the region. Buying in Lagos.

Tradeoff: asking prices have stalled (down 2.7% on the quarter) while prices paid still rise, so negotiate from INE figures, not listings.

11. Quinta do Lago and Vale do Lobo

Almancil parish, which holds Quinta do Lago and Vale do Lobo, paid a median €5,617/m² in the year to June 2026, the highest in the Algarve; large homes (T4 and above) paid €7,817/m². Quinta do Lago asks €10,967/m². Foreign-domiciled buyers paid €7,276/m² against €4,118 for buyers living in Portugal, a premium of about 77%. A €2,500,000 villa costs €2,707,875 with taxes and deed, the same for everyone, since the 7.5% rule makes no difference above €1,150,853. This is Portugal’s prime golf and beach market. Buying in the Golden Triangle.

Tradeoff: Quinta do Lago prices have stopped rising (−0.1% a year), and resort service charges can be high.

12. Tavira and the east Algarve

Tavira paid a median €3,282/m² in the year to June 2026, below the Algarve median, and is the quietest, most traditional town in this guide, set on the Ria Formosa lagoon. Santa Luzia is the dearest parish at €3,762/m²; Luz de Tavira the cheapest coastal option at €2,535 (12 months to March 2026). A €450,000 apartment costs a non-resident €487,725 all in, about €10,450 more than a resident buying a second home. Further east, Castro Marim paid €2,710/m² and its coast is rising fastest: Altura prices paid are up 22.5%. Foreign-domiciled buyers paid 6.8% more per m² in the second quarter. Buying in Tavira.

Tradeoff: Ria Formosa park rules and a master-plan revision limit building and extensions on much of the coast.

Four more Algarve towns

These sit in the table above. Each has its own buying page, and our Algarve best-places guide compares them in detail.

• Vilamoura: the purpose-built marina resort in Quarteira parish, €4,482/m² paid; a 90 m² apartment at the parish median is about €400,000. Golf villas cost far more (T4+ €6,175/m²).
• Albufeira: the Algarve’s biggest resort town, €3,490/m², from Paderne inland (€2,511/m²) to Galé on the coast. A letting market: check the council’s short-let position first.
• Carvoeiro and Lagoa: clifftop villas and resort apartments at €3,371/m², right on the Algarve median; Porches and Ferragudo pay more than Carvoeiro itself.
• Portimão and Alvor: €3,259/m², below the Algarve median but rising fastest (+19.9%); Alvor sold above Portimão city.

Where do most foreigners buy?

The Algarve, by a distance. INE counts buyers by tax domicile, so “foreign” here means people living abroad, not foreigners already resident in Portugal. In 2025 they bought 8,471 homes for €3.4 billion, 8.2% of all money spent on homes. That was 13.3% fewer than in 2024, the third annual fall, and 20.6% below 2022. Buyers living in the EU bought 4,416 homes and buyers from the rest of the world, including the UK and US, bought 4,055.

Region	Share of homes bought by buyers living abroad, 2025	Share of their spending
Algarve	29.7%	42.4%
Norte (includes Porto)	20.0%	12.1%
Centro	14.9%	not published
Grande Lisboa	12.5%	22.2%

Source: INE 2025 figures as reported by Jornal PT50 and idealista/news, March 2026.

The decline is continuing. In the second quarter of 2026, buyers domiciled abroad bought 1,890 homes, 4.7% of all sales, down 10.3% on a year earlier.

Foreign buyers pay more per square metre wherever INE publishes the split, partly because they buy the best-located homes:

Area (12 months to June 2026)	Buyers living abroad	Buyers living in Portugal	Premium
Almancil (Quinta do Lago, Vale do Lobo)	€7,276/m²	€4,118/m²	about 77%
Loulé municipality	€5,135/m²	€3,897/m²	32%
Lisbon	€6,588/m²	€5,143/m²	28%
Portimão	€3,867/m²	€3,187/m²	21%
Lagos	€4,335/m²	€3,612/m²	20%
Quarteira (Vilamoura)	€4,953/m²	€4,382/m²	13%
Almada	€3,699/m²	€3,383/m²	9%

By nationality, INE’s birthplace data, which also counts foreign-born people living in Portugal, shows Brazilian-born buyers made the most purchases in 2025, but British-born buyers spent the most per home (€512,585 on average), ahead of Americans (€479,403). In central Lisbon, Confidencial Imobiliário’s data has Americans as the largest group of foreign buyers in 2025, with 16% of foreign purchases, ahead of the French and Brazilians at 11% each and the British at 7%.

Cheapest places to buy near the coast

These are INE medians paid for coastal municipalities and parishes, 12 months to June 2026. Municipal figures include inland villages, so a sea-view home costs more than the median.

Place	Region	Median paid, €/m²	Notes
Ponta do Sol	Madeira	€1,767	Sunny south-west coast; small market
Calheta	Madeira	€1,865	Villas; up 20.8% in a year
Alcácer do Sal	Alentejo coast	€1,956	Includes Comporta parish, mostly inland
Óbidos	Silver Coast	€2,249	Lagoon and golf; not yet covered
Peniche	Silver Coast	€2,332	Surf town; not yet covered by our area pages
Porto Santo	Madeira	€2,410	Separate island, long sandy beach
Luz de Tavira	Algarve	€2,535 (12 months to March 2026)	Cheapest coastal parish around Tavira
Grândola	Alentejo coast	€2,543	Includes Melides and Carvalhal
Vila Nova de Gaia	Porto	€2,652	Across the river from Porto
Castro Marim	Algarve	€2,710	East Algarve, includes Altura
Olhão	Algarve	€2,771	Fishing town on the Ria Formosa
Espinho	Porto	€2,797	Beach town south of Gaia
Sesimbra	Lisbon coast	€3,065	South of the river, Arrábida coast
Vila Real de Santo António	Algarve	€3,116	Includes Monte Gordo

The cheapest coastal markets fall into three groups: Madeira’s west, the Silver Coast north of Lisbon, and the east Algarve towards Spain. On the Lisbon coast, Almada (€3,387/m²), Sesimbra and Seixal (€2,957/m²) undercut Cascais by €1,500–1,900 per square metre. The Silver Coast towns are not yet covered by our area pages; the figures are INE’s.

How much does the 7.5% IMT add?

Worked example: cash purchase, mainland, the same buyer before and after becoming resident. Stamp duty is 0.8% and Casa Pronta charges €375.

Price	Non-resident: IMT 7.5%	Non-resident total tax and deed	Resident main home total	Difference
€300,000	€22,500	€25,275	€13,317	€11,958 more
€600,000	€45,000	€50,175	€39,412	€10,763 more
€1,000,000	€75,000	€83,375	€68,375	€15,000 more
€1,200,000	€90,000	€99,975	€99,975	none

The arithmetic for €600,000: 7.5% × €600,000 = €45,000 IMT, plus 0.8% × €600,000 = €4,800 stamp duty, plus €375 = €50,175. A resident buying a main home pays 8% × €600,000 − €13,763.35 = €34,236.65 IMT, plus the same €4,800 and €375 = €39,411.65.

In Madeira the gap is wider, because resident buyers there use brackets 25% higher than the mainland’s: on a €400,000 flat it is €13,743 against a resident buying a second home, compared with €10,700 on the mainland.

What changed in 2026 for foreign buyers?

A flat 7.5% IMT for non-residents, from 25 May 2026. Decree-Law 97/2026 added article 17(10)–(12) to the IMT Code: a buyer of an urban home who is not Portuguese tax resident pays 7.5% of the whole price, with no sliding scale. It applies to homes only (rustic land stays at 5%, other urban property at 6.5%), and in Madeira and the Azores as well as on the mainland. It does not apply to anyone who was ever Portuguese tax resident. You can reclaim the difference if you become resident within two years, or if you let the home within six months at no more than €2,300 a month for at least 36 of the first 60 months; you apply within six months of qualifying. The tax authority’s circular 40131/2026 adds that spouses married under community of property pay 7.5% only if both are non-resident, and that co-owners are assessed on their own share. Whether to buy before or after you move is now a real decision.

Myth: foreigners pay 10% IMT. The 10% rate applies only to companies based in blacklisted tax havens. An individual buying a home pays 7.5% at most, wherever they live.

Myth: you can still get a Golden Visa by buying property. The real-estate route ended on 7 October 2023, when Lei 56/2023 (the Mais Habitação law) removed property purchase and urban rehabilitation as qualifying investments. Buying a home in 2026 gives you no residence right. Residence comes through income-based visas such as the D7, which needs at least the minimum wage of €920 a month in 2026, or the D8 for remote workers at €3,680 a month.

Other 2026 changes buyers notice:

• From 1 October 2026 the deed must state whether the habitation licence was shown, declared to exist or doesn’t exist (Decree-Law 108/2026). Either party can seek annulment if it is left out.
• Mortgages: Banco de Portugal Recommendation 1/2026 sets an 80% loan-to-value cap for second homes and 90% for a main home, with no difference between residents and non-residents. Lower figures quoted for non-residents are bank practice, not law.
• Border checks: the EU Entry/Exit System has been fully running since 10 April 2026. UK and US owners who are not resident remain limited to 90 days in any 180 in the Schengen area.
• Prices: INE recorded a record 17.6% rise in 2025 and 16.5% in the year to Q2 2026, while sales fell 6.4%. Fewer buyers, with prices still rising, give room to negotiate in the slower markets: Comporta, Quinta do Lago and Lagos asking prices have all stalled or fallen.

For the steps themselves, from tax number to deed, see how to buy property in Portugal as a foreigner. For help on the ground, see buyer’s agents in Portugal and, in the south, buyer’s agents in the Algarve.

What are the best places to live in Portugal?

Buying well and living well are not the same test. If you will live here rather than visit, six things matter more than the price per square metre: a hospital within reach, the drive to an airport, schools if you have children, the size of the international community, the climate and the cost of renting while you settle. This table scores the areas above on those points, using the figures already on this page plus official sources.

Area	Public hospital	Airport	International schools	Climate (IPMA 1991–2020)	Rent, new leases (INE)	Best for living
Lisbon	Several large hospitals in the city	Lisbon airport is inside the city	Lycée Français, Redbridge, PaRK, United Lisbon, German School	17.3 °C average; 723 mm rain; 11.1 °C in January	€17.79/m² (Q2 2026)	Car-free city life, culture, work
Cascais and Estoril	Hospital de Cascais	Lisbon, about 34 km	St. Julian’s, St. Dominic’s, King’s College; CAISL and TASIS nearby	As Lisbon, by the sea	€16.83/m² (12 months to June 2026)	Families and retirees; 56,185 foreign residents (AIMA, 2024)
Oeiras and Carcavelos	Lisbon-area hospitals (nearest not checked)	Lisbon, about 23 km from Oeiras	St. Julian’s, OIS	As Lisbon	€15.75/m² (12 months to June 2026)	Commuting families
Sintra	Lisbon-area hospitals	Lisbon, about 29 km	CAISL and TASIS in Linhó	No station normal checked	Grande Lisboa €15.24/m²	Space, quintas, schools
Porto	University hospitals in the city	Porto airport, about 17 km; metro 25–35 minutes	Four, all in the west of the city	15.3 °C; 1,147 mm rain; 105 wet days a year	Porto metro area €10.83/m²	City life at a lower price; wetter winters
Algarve: Loulé, Vilamoura, Albufeira	Faro hospital	Faro, 20–49 km	Several British and IB schools in the central Algarve (not yet verified by us school by school)	Faro: 18.2 °C; 455 mm rain; 49 wet days; 12.3 °C in January	Algarve €11.56/m²	Sun, golf, all-year services near Faro
Algarve: Lagos and Portimão	Hospitals in Portimão and Lagos	Faro, 73–88 km	As above, western Algarve	As Faro	Algarve €11.56/m²	Established foreign-owner towns; far from the airport
Tavira and the east Algarve	Faro hospital, about 37 km	Faro, about 43 km	Few nearby (not verified)	As Faro	Algarve €11.56/m²	Quiet, traditional, retirees
Silver Coast: Óbidos, Caldas, Peniche, Nazaré	Hospitals in Caldas da Rainha, Torres Vedras and Peniche	Lisbon, 80–118 km, about an hour to an hour and a half	None verified on the coast	No station normal checked	Not published for these towns in INE’s quarterly release	Lower prices, space, an hour from Lisbon
Madeira: Funchal	Hospital Dr. Nélio Mendonça (public); Hospital CUF Madeira (private)	Madeira airport, about 18 km; flights sometimes diverted by wind	International Sharing School (IB); International School of Madeira (primary)	Funchal: 20.0 °C; 574 mm rain; 17.1 °C in January	Funchal €14.49/m² (Q2 2026)	The mildest winters; lower income tax for residents
Comporta and Melides	Nearest public hospital is inland, at Santiago do Cacém (not verified by us)	Lisbon, about 118 km	None nearby	No station normal checked	Not published	Second homes more than full-time living

Airport distances are road distances from the town centre, from OpenStreetMap routing without traffic. Climate figures are IPMA’s 1991–2020 normals for the stations at Lisboa (Gago Coutinho), Porto (Pedras Rubras), Faro and Funchal. Rents are medians of new leases from INE’s local rent statistics as reported by ECO and Postal; INE revised its method in 2026. Where a cell says “not verified” or “not checked”, we have not confirmed it from an official source.

How big is the English-speaking community?

AIMA, the immigration agency, counted 1,543,697 foreign residents at the end of 2024, including 48,238 British, 19,258 American and 6,081 Irish citizens. It does not publish nationality by town. By municipality, all nationalities together, the largest foreign populations were Lisbon (202,430), Sintra (96,587), Porto (58,161) and Cascais (56,185); Loulé (29,578) was the only Algarve municipality in the top twelve. Foreign buyers tell the same story: the Algarve took 29.7% of homes bought from abroad in 2025 (see “Where do most foreigners buy?” above).

Which area suits which kind of move?

If you are…	Look first at	Because
A family with school-age children	Cascais, Carcavelos and Parede, Oeiras, Linhó (Sintra), western Porto	Most international schools are here; Carcavelos and Parede also have the train to Lisbon
Retiring and want all-year services	Cascais and Estoril, Loulé and the central Algarve, Funchal	Hospitals, airports and walkable centres within reach
Retiring on a tighter budget	Tavira, the Silver Coast, Madeira outside Funchal	Prices paid from €1,767/m² (Ponta do Sol) to €3,282/m² (Tavira)
Working remotely	Lisbon, Porto, Ericeira, Funchal	Airports, coworking and city life
Someone who dislikes rain	The Algarve and Madeira	Faro averages 455 mm of rain a year and Funchal 574 mm, against 1,147 mm at Porto airport

For the move itself, from visa to health number, see moving to Portugal and, for later life, retiring to Portugal. Local agencies are listed for the Algarve, the Silver Coast and Madeira. If you know what you want but not where, tell us what you’re looking for.

Frequently asked questions

Where is the best place to live in Portugal for English speakers?

Outside the big cities, Cascais (56,185 foreign residents at the end of 2024) and Loulé (29,578, the most in the Algarve) have the largest foreign communities, according to AIMA. Cascais adds international schools and the train to Lisbon; the Algarve adds the warmest, driest climate on the mainland. AIMA does not count English speakers by town, so this rests on total foreign residents and foreign-buyer data.

Which part of Portugal has the best weather?

Madeira has the mildest winters: Funchal averages 17.1 °C in January. On the mainland, Faro is warmest and driest, at 18.2 °C on average and 455 mm of rain a year. Porto is the wettest of the four stations, with 1,147 mm (IPMA 1991–2020 normals).

Where is cheapest to live near the coast?

Madeira’s west coast, the Silver Coast and the east Algarve. Homes sold for a median €1,767/m² in Ponta do Sol, €2,188 in Caldas da Rainha and €2,710 in Castro Marim over the 12 months to June 2026. Rents for new leases were lowest in the Porto metropolitan area (€10.83/m²) and the Algarve (€11.56/m²) among the regions above.

Is healthcare good outside Lisbon and Porto?

Outside Lisbon and Porto, the public hospitals nearest the areas in this guide are in Cascais, Faro, Portimão, Lagos, Caldas da Rainha, Torres Vedras, Peniche and Funchal. On the Comporta coast the nearest is inland. Madeira’s new central hospital in Funchal is now expected by the end of 2030. Register with your local health centre as soon as you are resident.

Key points

• Prices paid range from €1,767/m² (Ponta do Sol, Madeira) to €5,617/m² (Almancil, Algarve) across these areas; Lisbon is €5,192/m² and Porto €3,631/m² (INE, 12 months to June 2026).
• Non-resident buyers pay a flat 7.5% IMT since 25 May 2026: budget about 8.4% on top of the price for tax and deed, roughly €11,000–15,000 more than a resident below €1,150,853 and nothing extra above it.
• Buyers living abroad bought 8,471 homes in 2025, down 13.3%; the Algarve took 29.7% of them and 42.4% of their spending.
• For international schools, look at Cascais, Oeiras and Carcavelos, Sintra, Lisbon and Porto; for value near a beach, at Madeira’s west, Almada, Gaia, Tavira and the east Algarve.
• The Golden Visa property route closed on 7 October 2023; buying a home gives no right to live in Portugal.