Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Al `arish

For one person, living is cheaper in Al `arish: $449 a month against $1,619 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $14,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index
22

Cost of Living Index in Al `arish
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Al `arish Living Index

Jump to prices

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Al `arish

🇪🇬 Egypt

$449

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Al `arish

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,619 in Budapest versus $449 in Al `arish.

Budapest $1,619
Al `arish $449

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,524 in Budapest versus $735 in Al `arish.

Budapest $2,524
Al `arish $735

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,429 in Budapest versus $1,022 in Al `arish.

Budapest $3,429
Al `arish $1,022

Living in Budapest is roughly 261% more expensive than in Al `arish, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Budapest is 20% above, Al `arish is 67% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.94 Ft 4,521

$4.07 E£218

242.51%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 Ft 19.9K

$14.03 E£750

336.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.19 Ft 3,304

$4.79 E£256

112.73%

Cappuccino

$3.26 Ft 1,059

$1.23 E£65.9

165.04%

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

$2.14 Ft 693

$0.37 E£19.82

478.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.78 Ft 579

$0.12 E£6.23

1383.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.71 Ft 1,203

$1.45 E£77.3

155.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.77 Ft 1,222

$2.93 E£157

28.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 Ft 372

$0.85 E£45.54

35.29%

White Bread (500g)

$1.79 Ft 580

$0.37 E£19.97

383.78%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 Ft 807

$0.63 E£33.44

295.24%

Eggs

$3.90 Ft 1,266

$1.43 E£76.2

172.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.10 Ft 3,602

$2.53 E£135

338.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.62 Ft 2,147

$3.64 E£194

81.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.69 Ft 4,764

$7.81 E£417

88.09%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 Ft 594

$1.46 E£77.9

25.34%

Banana (1kg)

$2.05 Ft 664

$0.62 E£33.01

230.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.37 Ft 769

$0.39 E£20.85

507.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.90 Ft 1,265

$0.32 E£16.95

1118.75%

Potato (1kg)

$0.99 Ft 322

$0.44 E£23.49

125.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.00 Ft 323

$0.46 E£24.45

117.39%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.58 Ft 513

$0.29 E£15.55

444.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 Ft 217

$0.18 E£9.52

272.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.96 Ft 2,582

$1.96 E£105

306.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.22 Ft 2,017

$4.72 E£252

31.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 Ft 413

$1.01 E£54.0

25.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 Ft 657

$1.64 E£87.8

23.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.52 Ft 492

$0.20 E£10.54

660.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.02 Ft 9,089

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.31 Ft 1,074

$0.29 E£15.53

1041.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.37 Ft 444

$0.39 E£21.00

251.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.83 Ft 6,432

$1.21 E£64.4

1538.84%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.82 Ft 591

$0.46 E£24.55

295.65%

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

$29.8K Ft 9.7M

$32.7K E£1.7M

-8.82%

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

$33.8K Ft 11.0M

$24.6K E£1.3M

37.49%

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

$171 Ft 55.5K

$14.84 E£793

1053.10%

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

$23.51 Ft 7,627

$6.99 E£373

236.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.29 Ft 7,556

$25.08 E£1,340

-7.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.5 Ft 21.9K

$18.29 E£977

269.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.89 Ft 6,129

Cinema Ticket

$9.30 Ft 3,016

$3.90 E£208

138.46%

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

$533 Ft 173.0K

$85.2 E£4,555

525.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

$2,336 E£124.8K

617.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.6 Ft 32.3K

$10.30 E£550

867.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.49 Ft 14.1K

$47.64 E£2,546

-8.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 Ft 35.8K

$157 E£8,375

-29.58%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.6K

$56.4 E£3,013

111.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$830 Ft 269.4K

$132 E£7,035

530.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$622 Ft 201.7K

$66.7 E£3,563

832.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,594 Ft 516.9K

$234 E£12.5K

581.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,170 Ft 379.6K

$164 E£8,785

611.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

$846 E£45.2K

589.59%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

$375 E£20.1K

936.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,651 Ft 535.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

22.5

-71.33%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Last update for Al `arish: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$622 38.4%

Al `arish

$67 14.9% 89.3% $555

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$258 15.9%

Al `arish

$107 23.9% 58.5% $151

Eating Out

Budapest

$223 13.8%

Al `arish

$77 17.1% 65.6% $146

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$218 13.5%

Al `arish

$47 10.5% 78.5% $171

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$168 10.4%

Al `arish

$122 27.2% 27.2% $46

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$86 5.3%

Al `arish

$26 5.8% 69.7% $60

Getting Around

Budapest

$44 2.7%

Al `arish

$3 * 0.7% 93.1% $41

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $830 in Budapest and $132 in Al `arish. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $61.0 in Budapest vs $14.00 in Al `arish for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $258 vs $107 per month, with Al `arish cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇪🇬 Al `arish

🕒 Local time

21:38 9:38 PM

22:38 10:38 PM

1 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

199,243

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.08 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

100 EGP = 1.87 USD

100 EGP = 1.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 324 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.08 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 15, 2026: 1 USD = 53.44 EGP (100 EGP = 1.87 USD). 1 EUR = 59.84 EGP (100 EGP = 1.67 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Budapest Al `arish 2,210 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
Al `arish

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

Budapest vs Al `arish: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Al `arish wins on cost – living expenses run 261% lower than in Budapest. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Al `arish the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $2,428 in Budapest and $673 in Al `arish to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $830 in Budapest versus $132 in Al `arish. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 141% higher in Budapest. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,619 per month in Budapest versus $449 in Al `arish – a 261% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $449 in Al `arish versus $1,619 in Budapest, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Al `arish but tight or insufficient in Budapest. The gap between the two cities makes Al `arish the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Al `arish delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $449 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Al `arish hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Budapest and Al `arish are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Al `arish gentler on the wallet – expenses run 261% less than in Budapest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.