Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Alton and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Budapest: $1,619 a month against $2,530 in Alton, rent and utilities included – about $10,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

124

Cost of Living Index in Alton
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Alton Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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Alton

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,530

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Alton and in Budapest

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Alton and in Budapest actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $2,530 per month in Alton vs $1,619 in Budapest, rent included.

Alton $2,530
Budapest $1,619

A couple spends around $3,777 per month in Alton vs $2,524 in Budapest, rent included.

Alton $3,777
Budapest $2,524

A family of three spends $5,024 per month in Alton vs $3,429 in Budapest, rent included.

Alton $5,024
Budapest $3,429

Alton costs about 56% more than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Alton and Budapest sit above the global median – Alton by 87%, Budapest by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.36 £19.78

$13.94 Ft 4,503

89.10%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$105 £78.8

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

71.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.66 £8.00

$10.19 Ft 3,291

4.61%

Cappuccino

$5.55 £4.17

$3.26 Ft 1,055

70.25%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.00 £2.25

$2.14 Ft 690

40.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.10 £1.58

$1.78 Ft 577

17.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.03 £6.77

$3.71 Ft 1,198

143.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.83 £5.87

$3.77 Ft 1,217

107.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.88 £1.41

$1.15 Ft 371

63.48%

White Bread (500g)

$2.09 £1.57

$1.79 Ft 578

16.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.37 £1.78

$2.49 Ft 804

-4.82%

Eggs

$3.37 £2.53

$3.90 Ft 1,261

-13.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.69 £9.52

$11.10 Ft 3,587

14.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.83 £8.12

$6.62 Ft 2,139

63.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.10 £12.83

$14.69 Ft 4,745

16.41%

Apples (1kg)

$3.11 £2.33

$1.83 Ft 591

69.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 £1.05

$2.05 Ft 661

-31.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.00 £2.25

$2.37 Ft 765

26.58%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.33 £2.49

$3.90 Ft 1,260

-14.62%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 £1.25

$0.99 Ft 320

68.69%

Onion (1kg)

$1.81 £1.36

$1.00 Ft 322

81.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 £1.09

$1.58 Ft 511

-8.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.87 £1.40

$0.67 Ft 216

179.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.32 £17.49

$7.96 Ft 2,572

192.96%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.63 £7.98

$6.22 Ft 2,009

70.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.34 £1.76

$1.27 Ft 411

84.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 £2.01

$2.03 Ft 654

31.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.34 £2.51

$1.52 Ft 490

119.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$96.8 £72.6

$28.02 Ft 9,053

245.50%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.49 £4.12

$3.31 Ft 1,070

65.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.37 £2.53

$1.37 Ft 442

145.99%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$25.82 £19.37

$19.83 Ft 6,406

30.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.12 £1.59

$1.82 Ft 589

16.48%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$38.8K £29.1K

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

30.22%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$40.6K £30.4K

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

19.98%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$366 £275

$171 Ft 55.3K

113.89%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$17.92 £13.44

$23.51 Ft 7,596

-23.78%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.71 £30.54

$23.29 Ft 7,526

74.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.21 £33.92

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

-33.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.89 Ft 6,104

Cinema Ticket

$17.61 £13.21

$9.30 Ft 3,004

89.35%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$2,896 £2,173

$533 Ft 172.3K

442.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.1K £26.3K

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

109.50%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$113 £84.6

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

13.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.4 £40.77

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

24.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$125 £94.1

$110 Ft 35.7K

13.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.4 £73.0

$119 Ft 38.4K

-18.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,241 £931

$830 Ft 268.3K

49.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$992 £744

$622 Ft 200.9K

59.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,118 £1,589

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

32.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,668 £1,252

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

42.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,099 £3,825

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

-12.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,932 £2,950

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

1.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.65

6.45

-27.91%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Alton: October 11, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Alton

$992 39.2%

Budapest

$622 38.4% 37.3% $370

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Alton

$425 16.8%

Budapest

$218 13.5% 48.7% $207

Eating Out

Alton

$391 15.4%

Budapest

$223 13.8% 42.9% $168

Groceries & Markets

Alton

$334 13.2%

Budapest

$258 15.9% 22.7% $76

Clothing & Footwear

Alton

$175 6.9%

Budapest

$168 10.4% 4.5% $7.8

Getting Around

Alton

$133 5.2%

Budapest

$44 2.7% 66.6% $88

Sport & Entertainment

Alton

$80 3.2%

Budapest

$86 5.3% 7.1% $5.7

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,241 in Alton versus $830 in Budapest. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $105 in Alton versus $61.0 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $334 vs $258 – making Budapest the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Alton

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

02:52 2:52 AM

03:52 3:52 AM

1 h ahead of Alton

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

17,816

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Alton Budapest 1,500 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Alton
Budapest

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Alton vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,530 in Alton, $1,619 in Budapest – roughly 56% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,795 per month in Alton and $2,428 in Budapest. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Budapest, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 246% less in Budapest. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $2,896 per month in Alton and $533 in Budapest. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Budapest, where all-in costs run around $1,619, than in Alton at $2,530. In Budapest it covers expenses comfortably, while in Alton it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Budapest has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,619 in Budapest to $2,530 in Alton. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Budapest. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Alton makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.