Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Botosani

For one person, living is cheaper in Botosani: $895 a month against $1,619 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $8,700 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
43

Cost of Living Index in Botosani
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Botosani Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Botosani

🇷🇴 Romania

$895

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Botosani

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,619 in Budapest versus $895 in Botosani.

Budapest $1,619
Botosani $895

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,524 in Budapest versus $1,325 in Botosani.

Budapest $2,524
Botosani $1,325

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,429 in Budapest versus $1,755 in Botosani.

Budapest $3,429
Botosani $1,755

Living in Budapest is roughly 81% more expensive than in Botosani, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Budapest is 20% above, Botosani is 34% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.94 Ft 4,503

$9.09 RON 42.99

53.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

$28.43 RON 135

115.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.19 Ft 3,291

$7.48 RON 35.40

36.23%

Cappuccino

$3.26 Ft 1,055

$2.23 RON 10.56

46.19%

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

$2.14 Ft 690

$1.40 RON 6.62

52.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.78 Ft 577

$1.17 RON 5.54

52.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.71 Ft 1,198

$1.89 RON 8.96

96.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.77 Ft 1,217

$2.25 RON 10.63

67.56%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 Ft 371

$1.39 RON 6.58

-17.27%

White Bread (500g)

$1.79 Ft 578

$1.08 RON 5.10

65.74%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 Ft 804

$1.45 RON 6.85

71.72%

Eggs

$3.90 Ft 1,261

$2.80 RON 13.27

39.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.10 Ft 3,587

$6.86 RON 32.45

61.81%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.62 Ft 2,139

$5.86 RON 27.74

12.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.69 Ft 4,745

$9.21 RON 43.58

59.50%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 Ft 591

$0.93 RON 4.40

96.77%

Banana (1kg)

$2.05 Ft 661

$1.25 RON 5.92

64.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.37 Ft 765

$1.39 RON 6.59

70.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.90 Ft 1,260

$1.84 RON 8.73

111.96%

Potato (1kg)

$0.99 Ft 320

$0.71 RON 3.34

39.44%

Onion (1kg)

$1.00 Ft 322

$0.54 RON 2.55

85.19%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.58 Ft 511

$0.87 RON 4.11

81.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 Ft 216

$0.70 RON 3.31

-4.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.96 Ft 2,572

$6.02 RON 28.47

32.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.22 Ft 2,009

$6.51 RON 30.79

-4.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 Ft 411

$1.03 RON 4.87

23.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 Ft 654

$1.62 RON 7.65

25.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.52 Ft 490

$0.72 RON 3.39

111.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.02 Ft 9,053

$29.18 RON 138

-3.98%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.31 Ft 1,070

$0.75 RON 3.57

341.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.37 Ft 442

$0.71 RON 3.34

92.96%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.83 Ft 6,406

$7.51 RON 35.52

164.05%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.82 Ft 589

$1.75 RON 8.28

4.00%

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

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

$26.2K RON 124.1K

13.57%

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

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

$26.1K RON 123.3K

29.74%

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

$171 Ft 55.3K

$98.4 RON 465

73.94%

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

$23.51 Ft 7,596

$7.35 RON 34.78

219.86%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.29 Ft 7,526

$8.24 RON 39.00

182.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

$31.99 RON 151

111.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.89 Ft 6,104

$22.82 RON 108

-17.22%

Cinema Ticket

$9.30 Ft 3,004

$5.34 RON 25.25

74.16%

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

$533 Ft 172.3K

$315 RON 1,492

69.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

$45.55 RON 215

118.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

$29.29 RON 139

48.48%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 Ft 35.7K

$62.2 RON 294

77.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.4K

$66.4 RON 314

79.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$830 Ft 268.3K

$388 RON 1,836

114.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$622 Ft 200.9K

$282 RON 1,332

120.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

$536 RON 2,538

197.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

$387 RON 1,831

202.48%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

$1,364 RON 6,453

327.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

$1,012 RON 4,789

284.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

$964 RON 4,562

71.24%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

6.57

-1.83%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Last update for Botosani: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$622 38.4%

Botosani

$282 31.5% 54.7% $340

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$258 15.9%

Botosani

$183 20.4% 29.2% $75

Eating Out

Budapest

$223 13.8%

Botosani

$146 16.3% 34.5% $77

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$218 13.5%

Botosani

$114 12.7% 47.7% $104

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$168 10.4%

Botosani

$92 10.2% 45.4% $76

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$86 5.3%

Botosani

$43 4.8% 50.5% $43

Getting Around

Budapest

$44 2.7%

Botosani

$36 4.1% 17.9% $7.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $830 in Budapest and $388 in Botosani. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Budapest pays 71% 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: $61.0 in Budapest vs $28.00 in Botosani for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $258 vs $183 per month, with Botosani cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇷🇴 Botosani

🕒 Local time

07:02 7:02 AM

08:02 8:02 AM

1 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

106,847

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

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Between locations

Budapest Botosani 570 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

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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 Botosani: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Budapest and Botosani differ by about 81% in total monthly costs ($1,619 vs $895 including rent). Botosani is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 71% 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: $830 in Budapest versus $388 in Botosani. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $533 in Budapest versus $315 in Botosani. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 41% higher in Budapest. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $895 in Botosani versus $1,619 in Budapest, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Botosani but tight or insufficient in Budapest. The gap between the two cities makes Botosani 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 Botosani 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 Botosani gentler on the wallet – expenses run 81% less than in Budapest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.