Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Budapest: $1,638 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $9,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,638

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,638 in Budapest.

Barcelona $2,453
Budapest $1,638

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $2,553 in Budapest.

Barcelona $3,509
Budapest $2,553

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $3,467 in Budapest.

Barcelona $4,564
Budapest $3,467

Living in Barcelona is roughly 50% more expensive than in Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Budapest 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

$13.81 Ft 4,537

27.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$61.5 Ft 20.2K

9.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$10.16 Ft 3,337

33.17%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$3.22 Ft 1,058

-0.93%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$2.06 Ft 678

41.26%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$1.83 Ft 603

3.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$3.60 Ft 1,184

11.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$3.66 Ft 1,204

23.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.19 Ft 391

10.08%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.87 Ft 615

8.02%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$2.37 Ft 777

-21.94%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$3.96 Ft 1,301

21.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

$11.16 Ft 3,668

50.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$6.76 Ft 2,220

34.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

$14.35 Ft 4,714

36.86%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$1.81 Ft 594

64.64%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$2.11 Ft 693

-4.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$2.33 Ft 767

15.88%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$3.80 Ft 1,250

-26.32%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$0.99 Ft 326

111.11%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$0.98 Ft 323

111.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$1.55 Ft 510

-5.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.70 Ft 229

34.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$7.79 Ft 2,560

-11.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

$6.05 Ft 1,988

30.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$1.28 Ft 420

10.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$2.04 Ft 669

24.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$1.55 Ft 509

102.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

$27.28 Ft 8,964

-6.71%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$3.30 Ft 1,084

-9.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$1.31 Ft 431

13.74%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

$20.26 Ft 6,655

64.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.82 Ft 598

-1.10%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$28.7K Ft 9.4M

15.56%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$33.1K Ft 10.9M

-4.17%

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

$180 €162

$172 Ft 56.6K

4.78%

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

$13.84 €12.40

$23.95 Ft 7,869

-42.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$23.31 Ft 7,659

44.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

$68.6 Ft 22.5K

-24.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

$18.91 Ft 6,213

-15.60%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$10.18 Ft 3,344

7.96%

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

$917 €821

$600 Ft 197.3K

52.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$16.8K Ft 5.5M

-1.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

$99.0 Ft 32.5K

-12.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

$43.25 Ft 14.2K

-10.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$113 Ft 37.1K

-6.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$117 Ft 38.5K

2.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$836 Ft 274.7K

103.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$640 Ft 210.2K

111.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

$1,598 Ft 525.1K

62.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

$1,205 Ft 395.9K

71.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

$5,625 Ft 1.8M

22.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

$3,802 Ft 1.2M

34.88%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

$1,671 Ft 549.1K

32.27%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

6.45

-49.15%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Budapest

$640 39.1% 52.8% $715

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Budapest

$258 15.8% 19.7% $63

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Budapest

$221 13.5% 17.7% $47

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Budapest

$219 13.4% 3.7% $8.5

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Budapest

$168 10.2% 6.1% $9.6

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Budapest

$89 5.4% 21% $15

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Budapest

$43 2.7% 10.6% $5.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $836 in Budapest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 32% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $61 in Budapest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $258 per month, with Budapest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

02:54 2:54 AM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 HUF = 3.04 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.73 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 329 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.04 USD). 1 EUR = 366 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.73 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Budapest 1,500 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
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

Barcelona vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $1,638 in Budapest, so Budapest is about 33% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 32% higher in Barcelona, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $836 in Budapest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $600 in Budapest. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 25% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

For families, Budapest is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Barcelona, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Barcelona and Budapest are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Budapest wins on affordability, Barcelona on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.