Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Barbados

For one person, living is cheaper in Budapest: $1,621 a month against $1,862 in Barbados, rent and utilities included – about $2,900 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
89

Cost of Living Index in Barbados
Learn more

Barbados Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,621

/mo nomad

Barbados

🇧🇧 Barbados

$1,862

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Barbados

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,621 in Budapest versus $1,862 in Barbados.

Budapest $1,621
Barbados $1,862

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,555 in Budapest versus $4,060 in Barbados.

Budapest $2,555
Barbados $4,060

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,489 in Budapest versus $6,257 in Barbados.

Budapest $3,489
Barbados $6,257

Living in Budapest costs roughly 13% less than in Barbados, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Budapest 21% above, Barbados 39% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.99 Ft 4,551

$25.31 BBD 50.6

-44.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.3 Ft 19.6K

$113 BBD 227

-46.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.96 Ft 3,241

$12.63 BBD 25.26

-21.14%

Cappuccino

$3.38 Ft 1,100

$4.53 BBD 9.07

-25.39%

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

$2.13 Ft 692

$2.13 BBD 4.26

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 Ft 608

$1.70 BBD 3.40

10.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.75 Ft 1,221

$3.04 BBD 6.07

23.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.57 Ft 1,162

$3.88 BBD 7.77

-7.99%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 Ft 368

$3.65 BBD 7.29

-69.04%

White Bread (500g)

$1.84 Ft 599

$2.70 BBD 5.39

-31.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.39 Ft 777

$4.08 BBD 8.16

-41.42%

Eggs

$3.83 Ft 1,245

$6.07 BBD 12.14

-36.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.33 Ft 3,686

$6.65 BBD 13.29

70.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.74 Ft 2,192

$10.15 BBD 20.30

-33.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.69 Ft 4,780

$11.16 BBD 22.32

31.63%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 Ft 597

$4.98 BBD 9.97

-63.05%

Banana (1kg)

$2.01 Ft 653

$4.34 BBD 8.68

-53.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 Ft 767

$5.52 BBD 11.05

-57.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.77 Ft 1,226

$5.75 BBD 11.51

-34.43%

Potato (1kg)

$0.96 Ft 313

$6.70 BBD 13.40

-85.67%

Onion (1kg)

$1.03 Ft 334

$4.93 BBD 9.86

-79.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.56 Ft 509

$2.78 BBD 5.55

-43.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 Ft 216

$2.62 BBD 5.24

-74.81%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.96 Ft 2,591

$6.80 BBD 13.61

17.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.01 Ft 1,954

$16.18 BBD 32.37

-62.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 Ft 421

$1.77 BBD 3.54

-26.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.08 Ft 676

$3.01 BBD 6.02

-30.90%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 Ft 489

$1.72 BBD 3.43

-12.79%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.61 Ft 8,982

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.30 Ft 1,074

$5.10 BBD 10.20

-35.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.30 Ft 424

$3.46 BBD 6.92

-62.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.78 Ft 6,436

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.81 Ft 591

$2.09 BBD 4.18

-13.40%

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

$29.3K Ft 9.5M

$50.8K BBD 101.6K

-42.25%

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

$34.1K Ft 11.1M

$40.2K BBD 80.3K

-15.09%

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

$170 Ft 55.3K

$99.5 BBD 199

70.83%

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

$23.98 Ft 7,802

$48.94 BBD 97.9

-51.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.42 Ft 7,621

$87.3 BBD 175

-73.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.2 Ft 21.6K

$76.1 BBD 152

-13.00%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.18 Ft 6,239

Cinema Ticket

$9.52 Ft 3,098

$8.64 BBD 17.28

10.19%

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

$537 Ft 174.6K

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K Ft 5.4M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 Ft 33.0K

$46.50 BBD 93.0

117.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.99 Ft 14.0K

$20.34 BBD 40.67

111.36%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 Ft 36.7K

$60.2 BBD 120

87.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.6K

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$805 Ft 262.0K

$664 BBD 1,327

21.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$629 Ft 204.7K

$680 BBD 1,359

-7.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,549 Ft 504.1K

$1,822 BBD 3,644

-14.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,167 Ft 379.7K

$3,402 BBD 6,804

-65.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,618 Ft 1.8M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,968 Ft 1.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,626 Ft 529.0K

$1,308 BBD 2,616

24.29%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.43

-41.55%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 5, 2026

Last update for Barbados: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$629 38.7%

Barbados

$680 36.6% 8% $50

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$258 15.8%

Barbados

$430 23.1% 66.8% $172

Eating Out

Budapest

$224 13.8%

Barbados

$333 17.9% 48.5% $109

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$217 13.4%

Barbados

$236 12.7% 8.5% $18

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$169 10.4%

Barbados

$57 * 3.1% 66.2% $112

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$85 5.2%

Barbados

$93 5% 9.5% $8.1

Getting Around

Budapest

$43 2.7%

Barbados

$29 * 1.6% 32.6% $14

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 $805 in Budapest and $664 in Barbados. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Budapest pays 24% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $60.0 in Budapest vs $113 in Barbados for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $258 vs $430 per month, with Budapest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇧🇧 Barbados

🕒 Local time

13:52 1:52 PM

07:52 7:52 AM

6 h behind Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

623

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Barbados Dollar BBD $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR

1 BBD = 0.5 USD

1 BBD = 0.446 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BBD, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 325 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD). 1 EUR = 365 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR).

Barbados Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 2 BBD (1 BBD = 0.5 USD). 1 EUR = 2.24 BBD (1 BBD = 0.446 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Budapest Barbados 8,080 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
Barbados

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 Barbados: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Budapest and Barbados differ by about 15% in total monthly costs ($1,621 vs $1,862 including rent). Budapest is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 24% higher in Budapest, 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: $805 in Budapest versus $664 in Barbados. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Budapest – a meal for two runs $60.0 versus $113 in Barbados. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,621 per month in Budapest versus $1,862 in Barbados – a 15% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,621 in Budapest versus $1,862 in Barbados, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Budapest but tight or insufficient in Barbados. The gap between the two cities makes Budapest the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Budapest and Barbados 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 Budapest gentler on the wallet – expenses run 15% less than in Barbados. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.