Discover our tried and tested selection of the best cafés to work from in Lisbon.
Lisbon, Portugal’s capital city, is a digital nomad’s dream. The lifestyle on offer is incredible: it’s cheaper than other parts of Europe, it’s high-energy, vibrant, well-connected, and there are a ton of great places to work.
While living in Lisbon for two months, we sampled as many cafés as we could (there’s only so much caffeine you can handle in two months) and have condensed our experiences into this list. If you’ve been researching the best cafés to work from in Lisbon for a while, you may notice some surprising omissions and a few unusual suggestions.
We wanted to provide our honest assessments of each café and that meant a few of the more well-known establishments didn’t make the cut. However, we have included some also-rans at the end of the article if you want to know more.
We have a few ground rules for any café to gain a spot on our list:
- Free and fast wi-fi
- Plenty of plug sockets
- Lots of space
- Good lighting
- Well-priced food and drink
- Staff that don’t fuss over you
Our selection of the best cafés to work from in Lisbon meets all of these requirements. So if you want to join the ever-growing crowd of digital nomads in Lisbon, head to one of these spots for some excellent coffee and a few hours of work.
Rebel Cafe
Rebel Cafe was amongst the first places we worked from in Lisbon and it quickly became a favourite, somewhere we could always rely on if we were out of other options. While it might look somewhat no-frills, it is actually an ideal place to work. Plus it’s in a nice area!
There are plugs beneath the seats, super-fast wifi, staff that tend to leave you alone and booths that feel more like private work pods. Coffee is fairly priced (€2.50 for an americano) and served in fancy enough mugs to remind you that you are in fact enjoying the delights of a European capital, and not just here to work.
Rebel is located at the top of Bairro Alto, far enough away from the hustle and bustle of Lisbon’s party district, but close enough for you to join in on the action once you’re finished. The café is also right around the corner from one of Lisbon’s many miradouros, Miradouro de São Pedro de Alcântara, which offers panoramic views across Lisbon – not a bad sight when leaving the ‘office’!
Copenhagen(s)
Copenhagen Coffee Lab is a small chain of cafés operating throughout Lisbon. There are actually seven cafés in the city – we obviously didn’t get to try all of them, so we’ll be focusing on the two we visited most. However, if there’s a Copenhagen nearby, you can bet it will be a good spot for remote working in Lisbon.
The first one to mention is based in the Alfama district. If you’re not aware (or haven’t yet checked out our other Lisbon articles), the Alfama is the historic quarter of the city; it’s a great place to wander and a better place to base yourself when in Lisbon. Nestled in amongst the winding, cobbled streets is a Copenhagen Coffee Lab.
The Alfama branch is large and spacious, with plenty of seating both indoors and out. The vibe is calm and relaxing, with friendly staff who are happy to let you work. Perhaps the only downside is that the wi-fi is patchy. Some days it works, some days it doesn’t.
The second Copenhagen branch we wanted to mention is the one in Cais do Sodré. Location-wise, this branch is perfect for afternoon work before enjoying the trendy district’s bar scene.
This Copenhagen has a slightly different feel to the Alfama one. It is far more set up for remote working, even to the point that it feels more like a coworking space than a café. There are designated tables for laptops which is great if you’re one of those people who feel a bit self-conscious about working in a public setting. However, we did witness someone open up their laptop elsewhere and be promptly removed – you have been warned! Again, not all the tables have plugs nearby so make sure you’re fully charged.
All in all, Copenhagens make for great cafés to work from in Lisbon. Across the board, you’ll find good (if a little expensive) coffee at €2.50 for americanos and €3.40 for flat whites, fast wi-fi and plenty of other digital nomads.
Livraria Ler Devagar (LX Factory)
While there are cafés at LX Factory, they aren’t ideal for remote working – most digital nomads seem to flock here when not working. But amongst all the hipster bars and boutique shops, a hidden gem needs to be on your café bucket list – Livraria Ler Devagar.
Livraria Ler Devagar definitely gets the prize for being one of the most unique cafés to work from in Lisbon.
The first thing you need to know is that this isn’t really a café; it is, in fact, one of the most incredible bookshops you’ll ever come across. There is a coffee bar in the shop – nobody seems to be too keen on manning it though, and there doesn’t seem to be any obligation to buy anything (although we did because we’re way too polite).
Livraria Ler Devagar is a fantastic place to work. Think public library and that pretty much explains the vibe. There are plenty of tables upstairs and downstairs and the wi-fi is strong. There are plugs, but they are limited. There’s a little jazz record shop hidden away upstairs that provides some smooth tunes! If you’re a writer or some other kind of creative, you really couldn’t ask for a more inspiring location.
Perhaps the only downside to Livraria Ler Devagar is its location – LX Factory is quite far out of the centre of Lisbon and you will probably need to take a taxi or public transport. But once you’re there and you clock off work, you’re in the perfect spot to enjoy some after-work drinks at one of the Factory’s bars. Try a snazzy sangria at Boro Godó.
Comoba
Comoba is one of our absolute favourite cafés to work from in Lisbon. It’s located near the Time Out Market (a visit to which is one of the top things to do in Lisbon), and despite our apartment being on the other side of the city, we often made the tram journey across town. It just ticks so many boxes!
The café itself has a very cool vibe – it’s bright and airy with loads of plants and greenery. There are communal benches towards the back of the café which are ideal for working. They do prefer laptop workers to sit in the back during the brunch/lunch rush hour, which is totally fair enough. Generally, however, the staff are very happy for you to work – just mention that you’ve got a laptop as you walk in and they’ll accommodate you.
There’s a varied vegan/vegetarian-friendly menu with plenty of options for food and drinks. Coffee is fairly priced for one of Lisbon’s trendier districts with an americano coming in at €2.20 and a flat white costing €3.20.
Comoba has good coffee, plenty of power outlets and stable wi-fi – you couldn’t really ask for much more from a working café. It’s becoming more well known now, so it can get quite busy. Getting there early is a safe bet!
Break
In our notes for Break, the first point we wrote down was ‘tropical Bali vibes’, and really there’s no other way to describe it. Break is a little slice of the tropics in the middle of Lisbon. With a colourful interior and plenty of plants, it’s a spot that will instantly inspire you.
Break is probably more of a brunch place (and one we’d highly recommend), but it’s so spacious that there’s more than enough room for you and your laptop. There’s plenty of space inside, as well as seats outside where you can watch the trams rattle past. We found the staff to be really friendly and accommodating, and more than happy for us to work for an hour or two.
The coffee is actually a bit cheaper than a few other spots on this list, with americanos coming in at €1.50 and large espressos at just €1! If you’ve overdone the coffee, note that smoothies are €5. The real star is the food menu though…maybe make this a working brunch!
There are a few plugs on the walls, but it’s probably best to come fully charged. However, with fast wi-fi and a colourful atmosphere, Break is a great alternative when remote working in Lisbon. Our only hope is that they’ve changed the playlist since we visited…
Cotidiano Lisboa
A friend of ours recommended this place to us. We’d already recommended some cafés for remote working in Lisbon, but as he turned the corner away from his accommodation, he stumbled across Cotidiano Lisboa and decided to go there. We’re very glad he did!
A little like Break, Cotodiano Lisboa is really popular for brunch. You probably won’t find it on other lists, but we’d highly recommend it as a great café to work from in Lisbon. There is plenty of space (although it can get busy around brunch/lunch), plenty of plugs, and fast wi-fi.
The staff were very friendly and the coffee was cheap for such a classy looking place – €2 americanos and €2.50 galāos (imagine a Portuguese flat white). Cotodiano Lisboa is located very centrally – about five minutes from Praça do Comércio – and the tram passes by right outside.
Cotidiano Lisboa is probably one of the cooler places we worked at while in Lisbon, with a stylish interior and hipster vibes. Make sure you check it out!
Other Experiences
There are LOADS of great cafés to work from in Lisbon but, unfortunately, they’re not all winners. We only wanted to include our absolute favourites on the main list, but that left us with a handful of alternatives that deserve a mention, even if they weren’t quite as good.
Nicolau (and others)
An honourable mention goes to the beautifully decorated Nicolau family of restaurants. There are three branches in Lisbon (and one in Porto FYI) – Nicolau, Amélia and Basílio – and all have similar menus with very subtle differences.
These eateries are incredibly popular, often with long queues out of the door. Good luck trying to find a table, and if you do, you’ll feel rushed. However, if you’re strolling past in the afternoon (you’ve got no chance in the morning) and it’s not too busy, then we’d highly recommend popping in for a bit of work. The menus are amazing and the wi-fi is super-fast.
Hello Kristof
Hello Kristof (what a name by the way) seems to be a popular fixture on similar blogs. It’s clear to see why, as the café seems purpose-built for the digital nomad crowd. We didn’t really get a great impression though.
It’s a little out of the way and extremely small, which didn’t help. It’s also deathly quiet. Maybe that appeals to you, but we like working somewhere with a buzz. That way, if we want to chat to each other and bounce ideas around, we can. Everyone inside Hello Kristof had a laptop, but even then, we didn’t feel very welcome and the staff weren’t particularly friendly.
If you’re passing by and spot an empty table, then give it a go and let us know how you feel about it! There’s a decent food menu and fancy coffee, plus it has quite a quirky feel to it with a range of magazines lining the walls.
Fabrica(s)
Fabrica Coffee Roasters is a well-established and popular café chain with three branches and a coffee truck in Lisbon. (More branches may have been opened since our last trip.)
The coffee and decor is always nice at Fabrica, but it seems to want to dissuade remote workers and digital nomads from visiting. How could we tell? There’s no wi-fi! We can only imagine this is intentional. You can still hot-spot, but the no wi-fi situation is kind of unwelcoming if you just want to get some work done.
There are ways to avoid having a café full of laptops, but this approach seems sneaky and extreme. Who knows, perhaps there’s another reason for the lack of wi-fi – but don’t count on this as a good place to work.
If you work remotely and find yourself in Lisbon, make sure you try one or two of our suggestions! You may even stumble across another inspiring place to drink great coffee and work. If you do, pop the details in the comments section below.
One thought on “The 5 Best cafés to work from in Lisbon”
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