Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bedford and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Budapest: $1,619 a month against $2,097 in Bedford, rent and utilities included – about $5,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

102

Cost of Living Index in Bedford
Learn more

Bedford Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
Learn more

Budapest Living Index

Jump to prices

Bedford

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,097

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,097 per month in Bedford vs $1,619 in Budapest, rent included.

Bedford $2,097
Budapest $1,619

A couple spends around $3,291 per month in Bedford vs $2,524 in Budapest, rent included.

Bedford $3,291
Budapest $2,524

A family of three spends $4,486 per month in Bedford vs $3,429 in Budapest, rent included.

Bedford $4,486
Budapest $3,429

Bedford costs about 30% more than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Bedford and Budapest sit above the global median – Bedford by 55%, Budapest by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.10 £15.08

$13.94 Ft 4,503

44.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$86.6 £65.0

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

41.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.65 £7.99

$10.19 Ft 3,291

4.51%

Cappuccino

$4.59 £3.44

$3.26 Ft 1,055

40.80%

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

$2.03 £1.52

$2.14 Ft 690

-5.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 £0.91

$1.78 Ft 577

-32.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.45 £4.84

$3.71 Ft 1,198

73.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.84 £4.38

$3.77 Ft 1,217

54.91%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 £1.28

$1.15 Ft 371

47.83%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 £1.10

$1.79 Ft 578

-18.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 £1.26

$2.49 Ft 804

-32.53%

Eggs

$3.80 £2.85

$3.90 Ft 1,261

-2.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.09 £6.82

$11.10 Ft 3,587

-18.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.96 £6.72

$6.62 Ft 2,139

35.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.62 £9.47

$14.69 Ft 4,745

-14.09%

Apples (1kg)

$3.26 £2.44

$1.83 Ft 591

78.14%

Banana (1kg)

$1.30 £0.98

$2.05 Ft 661

-36.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.47 £1.85

$2.37 Ft 765

4.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.20 £2.40

$3.90 Ft 1,260

-17.95%

Potato (1kg)

$1.32 £0.99

$0.99 Ft 320

33.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.32 £0.99

$1.00 Ft 322

32.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.03 £0.77

$1.58 Ft 511

-34.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 £0.97

$0.67 Ft 216

94.03%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.05 £17.29

$7.96 Ft 2,572

189.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.65 £7.99

$6.22 Ft 2,009

71.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.58 £1.94

$1.27 Ft 411

103.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.36 £1.77

$2.03 Ft 654

16.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.56 £1.92

$1.52 Ft 490

68.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.02 Ft 9,053

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.99 £3.74

$3.31 Ft 1,070

50.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.43 £1.07

$1.37 Ft 442

4.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.92 £17.95

$19.83 Ft 6,406

20.63%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.92 £1.44

$1.82 Ft 589

5.49%

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

$37.5K £28.1K

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

25.74%

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

$40.5K £30.4K

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

19.85%

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

$316 £237

$171 Ft 55.3K

84.71%

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

$17.63 £13.22

$23.51 Ft 7,596

-25.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.85 £29.90

$23.29 Ft 7,526

71.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.86 £27.66

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

-45.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.89 Ft 6,104

Cinema Ticket

$15.90 £11.93

$9.30 Ft 3,004

70.97%

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

$937 £703

$533 Ft 172.3K

75.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.6K £16.2K

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

28.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$23.92 £17.95

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

-75.99%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.54 £19.16

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

-41.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.6 £59.7

$110 Ft 35.7K

-27.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.7 £65.1

$119 Ft 38.4K

-27.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,115 £837

$830 Ft 268.3K

34.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$952 £714

$622 Ft 200.9K

53.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,353 £1,766

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

47.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,998 £1,499

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

70.68%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,170 £2,378

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

91.99%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.67

6.45

-27.60%

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

Last update for Bedford: 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

Bedford

$952 45.4%

Budapest

$622 38.4% 34.7% $330

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bedford

$374 17.8%

Budapest

$218 13.5% 41.7% $156

Eating Out

Bedford

$305 14.5%

Budapest

$223 13.8% 26.8% $82

Groceries & Markets

Bedford

$279 13.3%

Budapest

$258 15.9% 7.4% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Bedford

$97 4.6%

Budapest

$168 10.4% 72.6% $70

Sport & Entertainment

Bedford

$69 3.3%

Budapest

$86 5.3% 25.4% $17

Getting Around

Bedford

$22 * 1.1%

Budapest

$44 2.7% 97.7% $22

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,115 in Bedford 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.

Salaries run about 92% higher in Bedford, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $87.0 in Bedford versus $61.0 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $279 vs $258 – making Budapest the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Bedford

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

08:35 8:35 AM

09:35 9:35 AM

1 h ahead of Bedford

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

80,000

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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bedford Budapest 1,490 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Bedford
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

Bedford vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bedford costs about 30% more than Budapest, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,146 per month in Bedford 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.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,097 in Bedford and $1,619 in Budapest. That's a gap of about 30%.

Kindergarten costs $937 per month in Bedford 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 Bedford at $2,097. In Budapest it covers expenses comfortably, while in Bedford it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Budapest costs $1,619 versus $2,097 in Bedford. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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, Bedford makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.