Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Alton

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.

79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
Learn more

Budapest Living Index
124

Cost of Living Index in Alton
Learn more

Alton Living Index

Jump to prices

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Alton

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,530

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Alton

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 Alton actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

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

Budapest $1,619
Alton $2,530

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

Budapest $2,524
Alton $3,777

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

Budapest $3,429
Alton $5,024

Budapest is about 36% cheaper than Alton, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.94 Ft 4,503

$26.36 £19.78

-47.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

$105 £78.8

-41.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.19 Ft 3,291

$10.66 £8.00

-4.41%

Cappuccino

$3.26 Ft 1,055

$5.55 £4.17

-41.26%

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

$2.14 Ft 690

$3.00 £2.25

-28.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.78 Ft 577

$2.10 £1.58

-15.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.71 Ft 1,198

$9.03 £6.77

-58.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.77 Ft 1,217

$7.83 £5.87

-51.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 Ft 371

$1.88 £1.41

-38.83%

White Bread (500g)

$1.79 Ft 578

$2.09 £1.57

-14.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 Ft 804

$2.37 £1.78

5.06%

Eggs

$3.90 Ft 1,261

$3.37 £2.53

15.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.10 Ft 3,587

$12.69 £9.52

-12.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.62 Ft 2,139

$10.83 £8.12

-38.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.69 Ft 4,745

$17.10 £12.83

-14.09%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 Ft 591

$3.11 £2.33

-41.16%

Banana (1kg)

$2.05 Ft 661

$1.40 £1.05

46.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.37 Ft 765

$3.00 £2.25

-21.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.90 Ft 1,260

$3.33 £2.49

17.12%

Potato (1kg)

$0.99 Ft 320

$1.67 £1.25

-40.72%

Onion (1kg)

$1.00 Ft 322

$1.81 £1.36

-44.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.58 Ft 511

$1.45 £1.09

8.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 Ft 216

$1.87 £1.40

-64.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.96 Ft 2,572

$23.32 £17.49

-65.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.22 Ft 2,009

$10.63 £7.98

-41.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 Ft 411

$2.34 £1.76

-45.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 Ft 654

$2.67 £2.01

-23.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.52 Ft 490

$3.34 £2.51

-54.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.02 Ft 9,053

$96.8 £72.6

-71.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.31 Ft 1,070

$5.49 £4.12

-39.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.37 Ft 442

$3.37 £2.53

-59.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.83 Ft 6,406

$25.82 £19.37

-23.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.82 Ft 589

$2.12 £1.59

-14.15%

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

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

$38.8K £29.1K

-23.21%

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

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

$40.6K £30.4K

-16.65%

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

$171 Ft 55.3K

$366 £275

-53.25%

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

$23.51 Ft 7,596

$17.92 £13.44

31.19%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.29 Ft 7,526

$40.71 £30.54

-42.79%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

$45.21 £33.92

49.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.89 Ft 6,104

Cinema Ticket

$9.30 Ft 3,004

$17.61 £13.21

-47.19%

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

$533 Ft 172.3K

$2,896 £2,173

-81.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

$35.1K £26.3K

-52.27%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

$113 £84.6

-11.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

$54.4 £40.77

-19.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 Ft 35.7K

$125 £94.1

-11.99%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.4K

$97.4 £73.0

22.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$830 Ft 268.3K

$1,241 £931

-33.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$622 Ft 200.9K

$992 £744

-37.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

$2,118 £1,589

-24.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

$1,668 £1,252

-29.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

$5,099 £3,825

14.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

$3,932 £2,950

-1.10%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

4.65

38.71%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Last update for Alton: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$622 38.4%

Alton

$992 39.2% 59.5% $370

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$258 15.9%

Alton

$334 13.2% 29.4% $76

Eating Out

Budapest

$223 13.8%

Alton

$391 15.4% 75.2% $168

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$218 13.5%

Alton

$425 16.8% 94.9% $207

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$168 10.4%

Alton

$175 6.9% 4.7% $7.8

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$86 5.3%

Alton

$80 3.2% 6.6% $5.7

Getting Around

Budapest

$44 2.7%

Alton

$133 5.2% 200% $88

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $830 in Budapest versus $1,241 in Alton. 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 $61.0 in Budapest versus $105 in Alton. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $334 – making Budapest the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇬🇧 Alton

🕒 Local time

04:42 4:42 AM

03:42 3:42 AM

1 h behind Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

17,816

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

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).

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).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

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

From you

Budapest
Alton

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 Alton: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

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

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,428 per month in Budapest and $3,795 in Alton. 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 $533 per month in Budapest and $2,896 in Alton. 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.