Portugal rents rise again

A recent study by idealista found that rental prices in Portugal continued to rise throughout October, as the pace of growth eased considerably, with Porto among the cities recording an annual decline.

By Kate Sreenarong, in News, Housing · 04 Nov 2026, 19:03 · 0 Comments

The median cost of renting a home nationwide reached €17.20 per square metre at the end of October 2026, a monthly increase of 1%, compared with the much sharper 6.1% rise in September.

However, the latest figures also show a 6% decrease against September’s reported median of €18.20 per square metre.

Despite the slower growth, finding affordable accommodation remains difficult for many households, with rental supply continuing to fall short of demand.

The Government has been considering a series of measures to encourage landlords to make more homes available, including tax incentives and changes to rental legislation.

Regional costs

Lisbon recorded the smallest annual increase among the cities where rents continued to rise, with prices climbing by 3.7% over the 12 months to October.

Nevertheless, it remains the country’s most expensive district capital for tenants, with a median asking rent of €23.80 per square metre.

In contrast, Porto’s rental prices fell by 5.6% year-on-year to €18.30 per square metre, placing the city second in the national ranking of most expensive district capitals, followed by Funchal and Faro at €16.50 and €15 per square metre, respectively.

Meanwhile, Setúbal (€13.70), Aveiro (€13.50), Évora (€12.40), Coimbra (€11.90), Braga (€10.60) and Viana do Castelo (€10.30) complete the ten most expensive cities.

Across the 16 district capitals and autonomous regions, rents increased in 12 over the past year.

The highest growth was recorded in Aveiro at 14.2%, followed by Évora (8.2%), Santarém (7.6%), Bragança (6.1%), Viana do Castelo (5.9%) and Viseu (5.8%).

Leiria and Vila Real both rose by 4.5%, as Braga rose by 4.2%, while Funchal recorded a 4.1% increase, Setúbal 3.9% and Lisbon 3.7%.

At the other end of the scale, Coimbra experienced the steepest decline, with rents falling by 11.4%, followed by Faro with a 9.1% decrease, while Castelo Branco recorded a 7.9% drop.

Castelo Branco remained the cheapest district capital for tenants, with a median asking price of €7 per square metre, while Bragança (€7.50), Vila Real (€7.60), Viseu (€8.40), Leiria (€9.50) and Santarém (€9.50) were also relatively affordable.

In these locations, renting a 100-square-metre property can cost less than €1,000 per month.

Annual figures

Outside the main cities, Beja stands out as the district with the biggest increase in rental prices over the past year.

From October 2025 to 2026, rents there rose 29.3 per cent, well ahead of the next-highest increases, while Aveiro came second with a 9.4% rise, followed by Leiria (8.9%), Bragrança (8.5%) and Évora (7.6%).

The remaining increases were recorded in Madeira (5.8%), Santarém (5.4%), Guarda (5.1%), Braga (5.1%), Setúbal (4.4%), Lisbon (4.1%), Faro (3.5%), Viseu (2.9%), Portalegre (1.9%) and Castelo Branco (0.9%).

However, four districts experienced annual declines, as Coimbra registered the largest fall at 8.1%, followed by Porto (-5.1%), Vila Real (-3.2%) and Viana do Castelo (-1.3%).

Lisbon remains the most expensive district overall, with a median rental price of €21.50 per square metre, followed by Faro at €18, while Porto and Madeira both stand at €15.80, as Setúbal completes the five most expensive territories at €14.50 per square metre.

Despite recording the strongest annual increase, Beja has a median rental price of €12.50 per square metre, followed by Évora at €11.40, Aveiro at €11 and Coimbra at €10.90.

Among the more affordable options are Braga (€9.90), Viana do Castelo (€9.20), Santarém (€8.80), Castelo Branco (€7.80), Viseu (€7.60), Vila Real (€7.30), Bragança (€7.10) and Portalegre (€7.10), with Guarda being the cheapest district at €6.20 per square metre.

Registered divide

These regional figures reveal a similar divide, with six of Portugal’s seven regions recording annual increases.

The North was the only exception, with rents falling by 6.6 % over the 12 months to October.

Furthermore, the Alentejo registered the highest annual growth at 12.2%, followed by the Azores (7.1%) and Madeira (5.8%), as the Lisbon Metropolitan Area recorded a 3.8% increase, while the Algarve rose by 3.5% and the Centre by 2.4%.

Despite the declines recorded in parts of the country, the Lisbon Metropolitan Area remains Portugal’s most expensive region for tenants, with a median asking rent of €20.80 per square metre.

The Algarve comes second at €18 per square metre, followed by Madeira (€15.70) and the North (€14.10), as the Alentejo stands at €11.60, the Azores at €11.20 and the Centre remains the cheapest regional market at €10.20 per square metre.

Idealista’s index uses the median asking prices of valid listings, excluding properties with unusual prices and advertisements that do not reflect the conventional residential rental market.