Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Birmingham

For one person, living is cheaper in Budapest: $1,621 a month against $2,500 in Birmingham, rent and utilities included – about $10,500 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
121

Cost of Living Index in Birmingham
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Birmingham Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,621

/mo nomad

Birmingham

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,500

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Birmingham

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

A single person spends $1,621 per month in Budapest vs $2,500 in Birmingham, rent included.

Budapest $1,621
Birmingham $2,500

A couple spends around $2,555 per month in Budapest vs $3,627 in Birmingham, rent included.

Budapest $2,555
Birmingham $3,627

A family of three spends $3,489 per month in Budapest vs $4,753 in Birmingham, rent included.

Budapest $3,489
Birmingham $4,753

Budapest is about 35% cheaper than Birmingham, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Budapest and Birmingham sit above the global median – Budapest by 21%, Birmingham by 87%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.99 Ft 4,551

$20.14 £15.22

-30.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.3 Ft 19.6K

$101 £76.2

-40.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.96 Ft 3,241

$9.44 £7.14

5.51%

Cappuccino

$3.38 Ft 1,100

$5.06 £3.82

-33.20%

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

$2.13 Ft 692

$2.54 £1.92

-16.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 Ft 608

$1.95 £1.47

-4.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.75 Ft 1,221

$7.11 £5.38

-47.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.57 Ft 1,162

$6.68 £5.05

-46.56%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 Ft 368

$1.89 £1.43

-40.21%

White Bread (500g)

$1.84 Ft 599

$1.85 £1.40

-0.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.39 Ft 777

$2.50 £1.89

-4.40%

Eggs

$3.83 Ft 1,245

$3.91 £2.96

-2.05%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.33 Ft 3,686

$9.06 £6.85

25.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.74 Ft 2,192

$8.71 £6.58

-22.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.69 Ft 4,780

$15.03 £11.36

-2.26%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 Ft 597

$2.58 £1.95

-28.68%

Banana (1kg)

$2.01 Ft 653

$1.76 £1.33

14.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 Ft 767

$2.44 £1.84

-3.28%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.77 Ft 1,226

$3.70 £2.79

1.89%

Potato (1kg)

$0.96 Ft 313

$1.57 £1.19

-38.85%

Onion (1kg)

$1.03 Ft 334

$1.76 £1.33

-41.48%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.56 Ft 509

$1.32 £1.00

18.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 Ft 216

$1.58 £1.19

-58.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.96 Ft 2,591

$21.86 £16.52

-63.59%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.01 Ft 1,954

$12.09 £9.14

-50.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 Ft 421

$3.67 £2.77

-64.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.08 Ft 676

$3.34 £2.53

-37.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 Ft 489

$3.94 £2.98

-61.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.61 Ft 8,982

$94.2 £71.2

-70.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.30 Ft 1,074

$4.97 £3.76

-33.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.30 Ft 424

$2.39 £1.81

-45.61%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.78 Ft 6,436

$24.23 £18.31

-18.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.81 Ft 591

$2.07 £1.56

-12.56%

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

$29.3K Ft 9.5M

$37.5K £28.3K

-21.74%

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

$34.1K Ft 11.1M

$41.1K £31.1K

-17.06%

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

$170 Ft 55.3K

$316 £239

-46.19%

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

$23.98 Ft 7,802

$21.37 £16.15

12.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.42 Ft 7,621

$47.44 £35.85

-50.63%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.2 Ft 21.6K

$38.70 £29.24

71.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.18 Ft 6,239

$30.29 £22.89

-36.68%

Cinema Ticket

$9.52 Ft 3,098

$15.89 £12.01

-40.09%

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

$537 Ft 174.6K

$1,601 £1,210

-66.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K Ft 5.4M

$23.5K £17.8K

-29.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 Ft 33.0K

$106 £80.5

-4.83%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.99 Ft 14.0K

$49.76 £37.61

-13.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 Ft 36.7K

$118 £89.0

-4.21%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.6K

$149 £112

-20.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$805 Ft 262.0K

$1,395 £1,054

-42.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$629 Ft 204.7K

$1,104 £834

-43.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,549 Ft 504.1K

$2,128 £1,608

-27.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,167 Ft 379.7K

$1,719 £1,299

-32.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,618 Ft 1.8M

$5,354 £4,046

4.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,968 Ft 1.3M

$4,174 £3,154

-4.94%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,626 Ft 529.0K

$4,523 £3,418

-64.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.43

5.09

26.33%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 5, 2026

Last update for Birmingham: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$629 38.7%

Birmingham

$1.1K 44.1% 75.4% $475

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$258 15.8%

Birmingham

$312 12.5% 21.2% $55

Eating Out

Budapest

$224 13.8%

Birmingham

$317 12.7% 41.4% $93

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$217 13.4%

Birmingham

$385 15.4% 77% $167

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$169 10.4%

Birmingham

$190 7.6% 12.5% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$85 5.2%

Birmingham

$70 2.8% 17.4% $15

Getting Around

Budapest

$43 2.7%

Birmingham

$127 5.1% 192% $83

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $805 in Budapest versus $1,395 in Birmingham. 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 178% higher in Birmingham, 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 $60.0 in Budapest versus $101 in Birmingham. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $312 – making Budapest the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇬🇧 Birmingham

🕒 Local time

06:47 6:47 AM

05:47 5:47 AM

1 h behind Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

1,036,878

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 325 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD). 1 EUR = 365 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Budapest Birmingham 1,590 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
Birmingham

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 Birmingham: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,621 in Budapest, $2,500 in Birmingham – roughly 54% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,432 per month in Budapest and $3,750 in Birmingham. 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.

Kindergarten costs $537 per month in Budapest and $1,601 in Birmingham. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 21% more in Birmingham, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Budapest, where all-in costs run around $1,621, than in Birmingham at $2,500. In Budapest it covers expenses comfortably, while in Birmingham 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 $1,621 in Budapest to $2,500 in Birmingham. 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, Birmingham makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.