Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Bhilai

For one person, living is cheaper in Bhilai: $329 a month against $1,647 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $15,800 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
16

Cost of Living Index in Bhilai
Learn more

Bhilai Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,647

/mo nomad

Bhilai

🇮🇳 India

$329

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Bhilai

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,647 in Budapest versus $329 in Bhilai.

Budapest $1,647
Bhilai $329

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,567 in Budapest versus $560 in Bhilai.

Budapest $2,567
Bhilai $560

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,488 in Budapest versus $791 in Bhilai.

Budapest $3,488
Bhilai $791

Living in Budapest is roughly 400% more expensive than in Bhilai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Budapest is 22% above, Bhilai is 76% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.63 Ft 4,407

$2.59 ₹245

426.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.7 Ft 19.6K

$8.72 ₹824

595.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.02 Ft 3,239

$3.13 ₹295

220.13%

Cappuccino

$3.33 Ft 1,075

$1.92 ₹181

73.44%

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

$2.12 Ft 684

$0.30 ₹28.16

606.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 Ft 581

$0.20 ₹18.77

800.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.61 Ft 1,166

$1.55 ₹147

132.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.59 Ft 1,160

$2.49 ₹235

44.18%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 Ft 361

$0.56 ₹53.2

100.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.93 Ft 623

$0.37 ₹34.78

421.62%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 Ft 804

$0.59 ₹55.8

322.03%

Eggs

$3.94 Ft 1,275

$0.93 ₹88.1

323.66%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.28 Ft 3,646

$4.19 ₹396

169.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.73 Ft 2,177

$3.18 ₹300

111.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.44 Ft 4,670

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 Ft 601

$2.33 ₹220

-20.17%

Banana (1kg)

$2.04 Ft 658

$0.54 ₹50.6

277.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.29 Ft 740

$0.92 ₹86.5

148.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.99 Ft 1,290

$0.48 ₹45.39

731.25%

Potato (1kg)

$0.94 Ft 304

$0.38 ₹36.15

147.37%

Onion (1kg)

$1.02 Ft 330

$0.46 ₹43.46

121.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.65 Ft 534

$0.27 ₹25.55

511.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 Ft 221

$0.31 ₹29.50

119.35%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.81 Ft 2,526

$5.21 ₹493

49.90%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.02 Ft 1,946

$4.28 ₹404

40.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 Ft 418

$1.73 ₹164

-25.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 Ft 655

$2.81 ₹266

-28.11%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$4.68 ₹443

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 Ft 484

$0.36 ₹33.80

316.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.13 Ft 8,769

$6.69 ₹632

305.53%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.36 Ft 1,085

$1.08 ₹102

211.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.37 Ft 444

$0.24 ₹22.50

470.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.96 Ft 6,451

$1.82 ₹172

996.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 Ft 603

$1.12 ₹106

66.07%

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

$28.5K Ft 9.2M

$11.2K ₹1.1M

153.96%

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

$33.4K Ft 10.8M

$20.9K ₹2.0M

59.80%

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

$178 Ft 57.6K

$32.19 ₹3,041

453.49%

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

$23.58 Ft 7,623

$3.10 ₹293

660.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.12 Ft 7,797

$4.91 ₹464

391.24%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$69.7 Ft 22.5K

$6.66 ₹629

946.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.03 Ft 5,505

$3.12 ₹295

445.83%

Cinema Ticket

$10.48 Ft 3,388

$3.41 ₹322

207.33%

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

$625 Ft 202.1K

$105 ₹9,961

492.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.6K Ft 6.4M

$1,059 ₹100.0K

1754.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 Ft 33.0K

$23.30 ₹2,201

337.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.41 Ft 14.0K

$29.01 ₹2,741

49.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 Ft 35.5K

$23.73 ₹2,242

362.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 Ft 39.0K

$24.10 ₹2,277

400.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$845 Ft 273.3K

$74.0 ₹6,993

1041.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$638 Ft 206.4K

$57.9 ₹5,465

1003.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,609 Ft 520.1K

$262 ₹24.7K

515.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,217 Ft 393.5K

$211 ₹19.9K

477.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,555 Ft 1.8M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,898 Ft 1.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,724 Ft 557.5K

$665 ₹62.9K

159.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.34

9.1

-30.33%

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

Last update for Budapest: November 1, 2026

Last update for Bhilai: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$638 38.8%

Bhilai

$58 17.6% 90.9% $581

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$260 15.8%

Bhilai

$95 28.7% 63.6% $165

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$226 13.7%

Bhilai

$40 12.2% 82.2% $186

Eating Out

Budapest

$220 13.4%

Bhilai

$68 20.6% 69.2% $152

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$169 10.3%

Bhilai

$45 13.7% 73.4% $124

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$91 5.5%

Bhilai

$13 4.1% 85.1% $77

Getting Around

Budapest

$43 2.6%

Bhilai

$10 3.2% 76% $33

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $845 in Budapest and $74 in Bhilai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Budapest pays about 2.6 times 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: $61 in Budapest vs $9 in Bhilai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $260 vs $95 per month, with Bhilai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇮🇳 Bhilai

🕒 Local time

02:15 2:15 AM

06:45 6:45 AM

4 h 30 min ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

627,734

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.76 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.59 USD

1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.76 EUR).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 94.47 INR (100 INR = 1.06 USD). 1 EUR = 106 INR (1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

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Budapest Bhilai 6,230 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

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City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

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Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Budapest vs Bhilai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,647 in Budapest and $329 in Bhilai, so Bhilai is about 80% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Budapest is about 2.6 times higher, 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: $845 in Budapest versus $74 in Bhilai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $625 in Budapest versus $105 in Bhilai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 175% higher in Budapest. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $329 in Bhilai versus $1,647 in Budapest, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Bhilai but tight or insufficient in Budapest. The gap between the two cities makes Bhilai 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.

Expats usually find Bhilai gentler on the wallet – expenses run 80% less than in Budapest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.