Can I live in Portugal without a car?

In central Lisbon and Porto, and in much of Coimbra, Braga and Funchal, yes: monthly passes are cheap, prices were frozen for 2026, and young people often travel free. In the countryside and in much of the Algarve it’s harder, and most households there have a car.

Can you manage without a car?

In the centre of our six places, many people do. Lisbon and Porto have metros, buses and suburban trains, Lisbon has river ferries, and Coimbra, Braga and Funchal have town bus networks. Outside the cities, buses can be few, and evening and weekend services thin. The Algarve has a coastal railway and a regional bus network, but many villas and villages are some way from a station or stop.

• Before you sign a lease, try the commute at rush hour and check the weekend and evening timetable
• If you’re looking at a house in the countryside, check how far it is on foot to a bus stop, shop, pharmacy and health centre (centro de saúde)
• If you only need a car now and then, a day’s hire or a taxi can cost less than owning one. See Can I drive on my UK licence? if you decide you need one

Our cost of living calculator uses the monthly pass for each place below. For choosing a neighbourhood, see Where in Portugal should we live?

Passes by place

Pass prices were frozen for 2026 in Lisbon, Porto and on CP, funded by the national Incentiva +TP programme, while CP tickets rose by an average of 2.26%. Fares change, usually in January

Lisbon

• Passes go on a personal Navegante card with your photo. An occasional card takes single tickets and pay-as-you-go credit
• Monthly passes run for the calendar month. You can buy next month’s from the 26th, and this month’s until the 25th at machines and ticket offices. The CARRISway app tops up a card on an NFC phone
• You can also tap a contactless bank card at the Metro gates: €1.92 a trip, one person per card
• Family passes need a household declaration and proof of tax address (domicílio fiscal), which you can download from the Finanças portal

Porto

Andante covers Metro do Porto, STCP buses, CP urban trains and other operators in the metropolitan area. Since 10 July 2026, people living in the city of Porto travel free if they hold the municipal Cartão Porto. You update the card once a year at an Andante shop or a Payshop agent, and you still validate it on every trip. Applications were busy over the summer, so apply online at the city’s card portal if you can. Check which operators and areas the free travel covers

The Algarve, Madeira, Coimbra and Braga

In the Algarve, the line from Lagos to Vila Real de Santo António has run with electric trains since 19 July 2026, with direct trains along the whole coast. There’s a train an hour between Vila Real de Santo António and Faro, and one every two hours between Faro and Lagos, with more at peak times. The Passe Algarve covers the VAMUS buses, which reach far more towns than the railway.

In Madeira, the Social Base pass needs a photo, a form, your ID or passport, your tax number (NIF) and proof that you live in Madeira. In Coimbra, the MOVE-C pass joined SMTUC buses and the Metro Mondego in January 2026, with plans to add CP and regional buses. In Braga, the TUB runs town buses, and CP urban trains link Braga with Porto.

Trains between cities and the €20 rail pass

CP (Comboios de Portugal) runs the trains. The Alfa Pendular is the fastest: Lisbon to Porto takes about 2 hours 40 minutes to 3 hours, and a standard (Turística) ticket costs €35.70 in 2026, or €49.90 in Conforto. Lisbon to Faro takes about 3 hours, and Lisbon to Coimbra from about 1 hour 40 minutes. Intercidades trains are a little slower and often cheaper.

The Passe Ferroviário Verde costs €20 for 30 days (about £17), €40 for 60 days or €60 for 90 days. Since 27 September 2026 it covers Regional, InterRegional and Intercidades trains, and the urban trains in Lisbon and Porto. On Intercidades it’s second class only, and you must book a seat in advance, up to two trips a day. It doesn’t cover the Alfa Pendular. More than a million had been sold by April 2026, and some trains fill up, so book Intercidades seats early.

Discounts for lower incomes

Circula PT gives 25% or 50% off passes to people on certain benefits, people with a disability of 60% or more, and pensioners and households on low incomes (up to 1.2 times the IAS social support index, which is €537.13 a month in 2026). Ask your operator.

Bikes and e-scooters

• E-scooters with a motor up to 250W and a top speed of 25 km/h count as bicycles. You don’t need a licence, but you must follow the Highway Code (Código da Estrada)
• Use the cycle lane. Where there isn’t one, ride on the road, keeping to the right. Pavements are for pedestrians and for cyclists up to age 10: walk the scooter across
• Phones and headphones are banned while riding, the drink-drive limits apply, and you should carry ID
• A helmet isn’t compulsory on these e-scooters or e-bikes, and nor is insurance, though third-party cover is wise. A bill presented in May 2026 would make helmets and reflective gear compulsory, with fines of €30 to €150. Check whether it has become law

Taxis, Uber and Bolt

Uber, Bolt and similar apps work under the TVDE regime. A new law (Law 59/2026) took effect on 1 September 2026. Taxis may now also work through the apps, cars must be under 10 years old (12 for fully electric), and each must show a fixed holographic sticker with a QR code. App cars can’t pick you up on the street or at taxi ranks: you must book in the app, and payment goes through the app, so a driver asking for cash isn’t allowed. Drivers can’t refuse guide dogs, wheelchairs or pushchairs. New rules for taxi fares started on 1 October 2026. To complain, use the button in the app, which leads to the electronic complaints book (livro de reclamações).