Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Bulawayo

For one person, living is cheaper in Bulawayo: $753 a month against $1,647 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $10,700 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
36

Cost of Living Index in Bulawayo
Learn more

Bulawayo Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,647

/mo nomad

Bulawayo

🇿🇼 Zimbabwe

$753

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Bulawayo

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

A single person spends $1,647 per month in Budapest vs $753 in Bulawayo, rent included.

Budapest $1,647
Bulawayo $753

A couple spends around $2,567 per month in Budapest vs $1,201 in Bulawayo, rent included.

Budapest $2,567
Bulawayo $1,201

A family of three spends $3,488 per month in Budapest vs $1,650 in Bulawayo, rent included.

Budapest $3,488
Bulawayo $1,650

Budapest costs about 119% more than Bulawayo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Budapest sits 22% above the global median, while Bulawayo is 44% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.63 Ft 4,407

$4.56 ZWL 121

198.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.7 Ft 19.6K

$30.25 ZWL 803

100.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.02 Ft 3,239

$4.93 ZWL 131

103.25%

Cappuccino

$3.33 Ft 1,075

$2.09 ZWL 55.4

59.33%

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

$2.12 Ft 684

$0.48 ZWL 12.68

341.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 Ft 581

$0.39 ZWL 10.47

361.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.61 Ft 1,166

$1.48 ZWL 39.40

143.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.59 Ft 1,160

$2.02 ZWL 53.6

77.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 Ft 361

$1.60 ZWL 42.45

-30.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.93 Ft 623

$1.02 ZWL 27.10

89.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 Ft 804

$1.52 ZWL 40.37

63.82%

Eggs

$3.94 Ft 1,275

$1.82 ZWL 48.24

116.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.28 Ft 3,646

$9.72 ZWL 258

16.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.73 Ft 2,177

$3.85 ZWL 102

74.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.44 Ft 4,670

$4.51 ZWL 120

220.18%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 Ft 601

$1.87 ZWL 49.74

-0.53%

Banana (1kg)

$2.04 Ft 658

$1.54 ZWL 40.80

32.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.29 Ft 740

$2.52 ZWL 66.8

-9.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.99 Ft 1,290

$1.02 ZWL 27.07

291.18%

Potato (1kg)

$0.94 Ft 304

$1.22 ZWL 32.39

-22.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.02 Ft 330

$1.37 ZWL 36.28

-25.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.65 Ft 534

$1.15 ZWL 30.49

43.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 Ft 221

$0.75 ZWL 20.03

-9.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.81 Ft 2,526

$1.54 ZWL 40.87

407.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.02 Ft 1,946

$5.05 ZWL 134

19.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 Ft 418

$1.39 ZWL 36.92

-7.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 Ft 655

$1.85 ZWL 49.07

9.19%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 Ft 484

$0.79 ZWL 20.87

89.87%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.13 Ft 8,769

$30.12 ZWL 799

-9.93%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.36 Ft 1,085

$3.02 ZWL 80.1

11.26%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.37 Ft 444

$1.94 ZWL 51.5

-29.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.96 Ft 6,451

$5.14 ZWL 137

288.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 Ft 603

$1.68 ZWL 44.63

10.71%

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

$28.5K Ft 9.2M

$24.5K ZWL 650.3K

16.37%

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

$33.4K Ft 10.8M

$24.9K ZWL 661.7K

33.89%

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

$178 Ft 57.6K

$94.5 ZWL 2,508

88.54%

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

$23.58 Ft 7,623

$17.77 ZWL 472

32.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.12 Ft 7,797

$106 ZWL 2,807

-77.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$69.7 Ft 22.5K

$30.88 ZWL 820

125.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.03 Ft 5,505

$19.80 ZWL 526

-13.99%

Cinema Ticket

$10.48 Ft 3,388

$10.20 ZWL 271

2.75%

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

$625 Ft 202.1K

$229 ZWL 6,088

172.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.6K Ft 6.4M

$3,490 ZWL 92.6K

462.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 Ft 33.0K

$21.65 ZWL 574

371.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.41 Ft 14.0K

$11.60 ZWL 308

274.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 Ft 35.5K

$47.10 ZWL 1,250

133.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 Ft 39.0K

$59.1 ZWL 1,567

104.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$845 Ft 273.3K

$172 ZWL 4,566

391.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$638 Ft 206.4K

$108 ZWL 2,855

493.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,609 Ft 520.1K

$412 ZWL 10.9K

290.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,217 Ft 393.5K

$320 ZWL 8,497

280.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,555 Ft 1.8M

$2,116 ZWL 56.2K

162.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,898 Ft 1.3M

$2,069 ZWL 54.9K

88.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,724 Ft 557.5K

$305 ZWL 8,094

465.45%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.34

-57.73%

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

Last update for Budapest: November 1, 2026

Last update for Bulawayo: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$638 38.8%

Bulawayo

$108 14.3% 83.1% $531

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$260 15.8%

Bulawayo

$176 23.4% 32.2% $84

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$226 13.7%

Bulawayo

$218 29% 3.5% $7.8

Eating Out

Budapest

$220 13.4%

Bulawayo

$91 12.1% 58.5% $129

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$169 10.3%

Bulawayo

$63 8.3% 62.9% $106

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$91 5.5%

Bulawayo

$51 6.8% 43.4% $39

Getting Around

Budapest

$43 2.6%

Bulawayo

$46 6.1% 6.1% $2.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $845 in Budapest versus $172 in Bulawayo. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Budapest are about 5.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61 in Budapest versus $30 in Bulawayo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $260 vs $176 – making Bulawayo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇿🇼 Bulawayo

🕒 Local time

01:28 1:28 AM

02:28 2:28 AM

1 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

653,337

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Zimbabwean Dollar ZWL $

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.76 EUR

100 ZWL = 3.77 USD

100 ZWL = 3.36 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZWL, 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).

Zimbabwean Dollar exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 26.54 ZWL (100 ZWL = 3.77 USD). 1 EUR = 29.79 ZWL (100 ZWL = 3.36 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Budapest Bulawayo 7,580 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
Bulawayo

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 Bulawayo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 119%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,471 per month in Budapest and $1,129 in Bulawayo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Bulawayo, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $172 there versus $845 in Budapest.

Public transport costs about 10% less in Budapest. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $625 per month in Budapest and $229 in Bulawayo. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Bulawayo, where all-in costs run around $753, than in Budapest at $1,647. In Bulawayo it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Bulawayo – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Bulawayo. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Budapest makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.