Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Asahikawa and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Asahikawa: $1,159 a month against $1,619 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Asahikawa
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Asahikawa Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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Asahikawa

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,159

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Asahikawa 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 Asahikawa and in Budapest actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,159 per month in Asahikawa vs $1,619 in Budapest, rent included.

Asahikawa $1,159
Budapest $1,619

A couple spends around $1,832 per month in Asahikawa vs $2,524 in Budapest, rent included.

Asahikawa $1,832
Budapest $2,524

A family of three spends $2,506 per month in Asahikawa vs $3,429 in Budapest, rent included.

Asahikawa $2,506
Budapest $3,429

Asahikawa is about 28% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Asahikawa sits 14% below the global median, while Budapest is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.40 ¥853

$13.94 Ft 4,503

-61.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.56 ¥5,618

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

-41.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.53 ¥873

$10.19 Ft 3,291

-45.73%

Cappuccino

$2.94 ¥465

$3.26 Ft 1,055

-9.82%

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

$1.16 ¥184

$2.14 Ft 690

-45.79%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.76 ¥120

$1.78 Ft 577

-57.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.86 ¥451

$3.71 Ft 1,198

-22.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.44 ¥544

$3.77 Ft 1,217

-8.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.61 ¥255

$1.15 Ft 371

40.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.52 ¥240

$1.79 Ft 578

-15.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.77 ¥595

$2.49 Ft 804

51.41%

Eggs

$2.06 ¥326

$3.90 Ft 1,261

-47.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.07 ¥1,749

$11.10 Ft 3,587

-0.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.98 ¥944

$6.62 Ft 2,139

-9.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.60 ¥2,938

$14.69 Ft 4,745

26.62%

Apples (1kg)

$3.45 ¥545

$1.83 Ft 591

88.52%

Banana (1kg)

$2.35 ¥372

$2.05 Ft 661

14.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.83 ¥448

$2.37 Ft 765

19.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.73 ¥747

$3.90 Ft 1,260

21.28%

Potato (1kg)

$2.28 ¥360

$0.99 Ft 320

130.30%

Onion (1kg)

$2.62 ¥413

$1.00 Ft 322

162.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 ¥181

$1.58 Ft 511

-27.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.87 ¥138

$0.67 Ft 216

29.85%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.46 ¥705

$7.96 Ft 2,572

-43.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.16 ¥1,130

$6.22 Ft 2,009

15.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 ¥277

$1.27 Ft 411

38.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 ¥358

$2.03 Ft 654

11.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.29 ¥204

$1.52 Ft 490

-15.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.6 ¥9,570

$28.02 Ft 9,053

116.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.36 ¥531

$3.31 Ft 1,070

1.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.74 ¥433

$1.37 Ft 442

100.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.41 ¥2,751

$19.83 Ft 6,406

-12.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 ¥168

$1.82 Ft 589

-41.76%

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

$21.9K ¥3.5M

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

-26.37%

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

$13.5K ¥2.1M

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

-60.09%

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

$117 ¥18.5K

$171 Ft 55.3K

-31.59%

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

$25.69 ¥4,059

$23.51 Ft 7,596

9.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.71 ¥4,378

$23.29 Ft 7,526

18.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.78 ¥7,864

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

-26.28%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.89 Ft 6,104

Cinema Ticket

$13.53 ¥2,138

$9.30 Ft 3,004

45.48%

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

$500 ¥79.0K

$533 Ft 172.3K

-6.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.2K ¥1.9M

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

-27.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.15 ¥7,607

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

-51.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.48 ¥5,290

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

-23.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$66.1 ¥10.4K

$110 Ft 35.7K

-40.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.5 ¥13.5K

$119 Ft 38.4K

-28.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$453 ¥71.6K

$830 Ft 268.3K

-45.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$306 ¥48.3K

$622 Ft 200.9K

-50.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,104 ¥174.4K

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

-30.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$640 ¥101.1K

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

-45.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,448 ¥702.8K

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

-23.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,801 ¥284.5K

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

-53.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.21

6.45

-65.74%

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

Last update for Asahikawa: 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

Asahikawa

$306 26.4%

Budapest

$622 38.4% 103% $316

Groceries & Markets

Asahikawa

$295 25.4%

Budapest

$258 15.9% 12.4% $37

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Asahikawa

$170 14.7%

Budapest

$218 13.5% 27.8% $47

Eating Out

Asahikawa

$124 10.7%

Budapest

$223 13.8% 79.9% $99

Clothing & Footwear

Asahikawa

$105 9.1%

Budapest

$168 10.4% 59.7% $63

Getting Around

Asahikawa

$83 7.1%

Budapest

$44 2.7% 46.6% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Asahikawa

$77 6.6%

Budapest

$86 5.3% 12.1% $9.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $453 in Asahikawa 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 $36.00 in Asahikawa versus $61.0 in Budapest. Groceries tell a different story – $295 in Asahikawa vs $258 in Budapest – so Budapest wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Asahikawa

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

14:51 2:51 PM

07:51 7:51 AM

7 h behind Asahikawa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

329,306

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Asahikawa Budapest 8,450 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Asahikawa
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

Asahikawa vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,159 in Asahikawa, $1,619 in Budapest – roughly 40% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,739 per month in Asahikawa 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 Asahikawa, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 116% less in Asahikawa. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $500 per month in Asahikawa and $533 in Budapest. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Asahikawa, where all-in costs run around $1,159, than in Budapest at $1,619. In Asahikawa it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest 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 $1,159 in Asahikawa to $1,619 in Budapest. 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 Asahikawa. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Budapest makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.