Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Byblos

For one person, living is cheaper in Byblos: $1,026 a month against $1,621 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $7,100 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
49

Cost of Living Index in Byblos
Learn more

Byblos Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,621

/mo nomad

Byblos

🇱🇧 Lebanon

$1,026

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Byblos

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

A single person spends $1,621 per month in Budapest vs $1,026 in Byblos, rent included.

Budapest $1,621
Byblos $1,026

A couple spends around $2,555 per month in Budapest vs $1,629 in Byblos, rent included.

Budapest $2,555
Byblos $1,629

A family of three spends $3,489 per month in Budapest vs $2,231 in Byblos, rent included.

Budapest $3,489
Byblos $2,231

Budapest costs about 58% more than Byblos, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Budapest sits 21% above the global median, while Byblos is 23% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.99 Ft 4,551

$9.17 LBP 820.3K

52.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.3 Ft 19.6K

$42.55 LBP 3.8M

41.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.96 Ft 3,241

$7.19 LBP 643.6K

38.53%

Cappuccino

$3.38 Ft 1,100

$2.94 LBP 262.9K

14.97%

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

$2.13 Ft 692

$0.98 LBP 88.0K

117.35%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 Ft 608

$1.01 LBP 90.5K

85.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.75 Ft 1,221

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.57 Ft 1,162

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 Ft 368

$1.26 LBP 113.2K

-10.32%

White Bread (500g)

$1.84 Ft 599

$0.66 LBP 59.4K

178.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.39 Ft 777

$1.54 LBP 137.9K

55.19%

Eggs

$3.83 Ft 1,245

$2.15 LBP 192.3K

78.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.33 Ft 3,686

$9.16 LBP 820.2K

23.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.74 Ft 2,192

$8.09 LBP 724.5K

-16.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.69 Ft 4,780

$12.19 LBP 1.1M

20.51%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 Ft 597

$3.03 LBP 271.0K

-39.27%

Banana (1kg)

$2.01 Ft 653

$1.95 LBP 174.7K

3.08%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 Ft 767

$1.01 LBP 90.6K

133.66%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.77 Ft 1,226

$2.06 LBP 184.1K

83.01%

Potato (1kg)

$0.96 Ft 313

$0.98 LBP 88.0K

-2.04%

Onion (1kg)

$1.03 Ft 334

$0.98 LBP 87.3K

5.10%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.56 Ft 509

$1.03 LBP 91.9K

51.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 Ft 216

$1.02 LBP 90.9K

-35.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.96 Ft 2,591

Wine (Bottle)

$6.01 Ft 1,954

$3.98 LBP 356.3K

51.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 Ft 421

$1.53 LBP 137.2K

-15.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.08 Ft 676

$1.98 LBP 177.4K

5.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 Ft 489

$0.97 LBP 87.2K

54.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.61 Ft 8,982

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.30 Ft 1,074

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.30 Ft 424

$0.98 LBP 87.5K

32.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.78 Ft 6,436

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.81 Ft 591

$0.93 LBP 82.8K

94.62%

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

$29.3K Ft 9.5M

$22.2K LBP 2.0B

32.03%

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

$34.1K Ft 11.1M

$22.6K LBP 2.0B

51.12%

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

$170 Ft 55.3K

$101 LBP 9.0M

68.21%

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

$23.98 Ft 7,802

$22.81 LBP 2.0M

5.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.42 Ft 7,621

$24.64 LBP 2.2M

-4.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.2 Ft 21.6K

$37.96 LBP 3.4M

74.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.18 Ft 6,239

$40.26 LBP 3.6M

-52.36%

Cinema Ticket

$9.52 Ft 3,098

$10.17 LBP 910.4K

-6.39%

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

$537 Ft 174.6K

$392 LBP 35.1M

36.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K Ft 5.4M

$3,053 LBP 273.2M

443.98%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 Ft 33.0K

$98.2 LBP 8.8M

3.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.99 Ft 14.0K

$101 LBP 9.0M

-57.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 Ft 36.7K

$118 LBP 10.6M

-4.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.6K

$151 LBP 13.5M

-21.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$805 Ft 262.0K

$304 LBP 27.2M

164.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$629 Ft 204.7K

$223 LBP 20.0M

181.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,549 Ft 504.1K

$792 LBP 70.9M

95.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,167 Ft 379.7K

$403 LBP 36.0M

189.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,618 Ft 1.8M

$1,360 LBP 121.7M

313.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,968 Ft 1.3M

$841 LBP 75.2M

371.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,626 Ft 529.0K

$1,005 LBP 89.9M

61.80%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.43

-19.63%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 5, 2026

Last update for Byblos: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$629 38.7%

Byblos

$223 22.1% 64.5% $406

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$258 15.8%

Byblos

$221 21.9% 14.4% $37

Eating Out

Budapest

$224 13.8%

Byblos

$138 * 13.7% 38.4% $86

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$217 13.4%

Byblos

$148 14.7% 31.7% $69

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$169 10.4%

Byblos

$211 20.9% 24.6% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$85 5.2%

Byblos

$58 5.8% 31.6% $27

Getting Around

Budapest

$43 2.7%

Byblos

$8.8 * 0.9% 79.8% $35

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $805 in Budapest versus $304 in Byblos. 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 62% higher in Budapest, 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 $43.00 in Byblos. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $221 – making Byblos the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇱🇧 Byblos

🕒 Local time

05:07 5:07 AM

06:07 6:07 AM

1 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

20,784

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Lebanese Pound LBP ل.ل

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR

1,000,000 LBP = 11.17 USD

1,000,000 LBP = 9.96 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LBP, 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).

Lebanese Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 89,500 LBP (100,000 LBP = 1.12 USD). 1 EUR = 100,381 LBP (1,000,000 LBP = 9.96 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Budapest Byblos 2,030 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
Byblos

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 Byblos: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 58%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,432 per month in Budapest and $1,539 in Byblos. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Byblos, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $60.0 in Budapest and $43.00 in Byblos. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 17% more in Budapest, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Byblos, where all-in costs run around $1,026, than in Budapest at $1,621. In Byblos it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

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 Byblos. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Budapest makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.