Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Colombo

For one person, living is cheaper in Colombo: $811 a month against $1,647 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $10,000 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
39

Cost of Living Index in Colombo
Learn more

Colombo Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,647

/mo nomad

Colombo

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$811

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Colombo

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

A single person spends $1,647 per month in Budapest vs $811 in Colombo, rent included.

Budapest $1,647
Colombo $811

A couple spends around $2,567 per month in Budapest vs $1,298 in Colombo, rent included.

Budapest $2,567
Colombo $1,298

A family of three spends $3,488 per month in Budapest vs $1,785 in Colombo, rent included.

Budapest $3,488
Colombo $1,785

Budapest costs about 103% more than Colombo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Budapest sits 22% above the global median, while Colombo is 40% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.63 Ft 4,407

$3.92 LKR 1,304

247.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.7 Ft 19.6K

$24.58 LKR 8,174

146.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.02 Ft 3,239

$7.39 LKR 2,458

35.59%

Cappuccino

$3.33 Ft 1,075

$2.44 LKR 813

36.48%

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

$2.12 Ft 684

$0.67 LKR 222

216.42%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 Ft 581

$0.25 LKR 83.0

620.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.61 Ft 1,166

$2.14 LKR 710

68.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.59 Ft 1,160

$3.03 LKR 1,006

18.48%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 Ft 361

$1.58 LKR 525

-29.11%

White Bread (500g)

$1.93 Ft 623

$0.53 LKR 176

264.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 Ft 804

$0.81 LKR 270

207.41%

Eggs

$3.94 Ft 1,275

$1.62 LKR 539

143.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.28 Ft 3,646

$15.14 LKR 5,033

-25.50%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.73 Ft 2,177

$5.12 LKR 1,701

31.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.44 Ft 4,670

$7.66 LKR 2,546

88.51%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 Ft 601

$6.62 LKR 2,200

-71.90%

Banana (1kg)

$2.04 Ft 658

$0.88 LKR 292

131.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.29 Ft 740

$4.15 LKR 1,381

-44.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.99 Ft 1,290

$1.28 LKR 425

211.72%

Potato (1kg)

$0.94 Ft 304

$1.04 LKR 347

-9.62%

Onion (1kg)

$1.02 Ft 330

$0.82 LKR 271

24.39%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.65 Ft 534

$1.21 LKR 404

36.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 Ft 221

$0.45 LKR 150

51.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.81 Ft 2,526

$10.04 LKR 3,337

-22.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.02 Ft 1,946

$13.69 LKR 4,553

-56.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 Ft 418

$1.93 LKR 643

-33.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 Ft 655

$2.97 LKR 987

-31.99%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 Ft 484

$0.18 LKR 58.8

733.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.13 Ft 8,769

$8.15 LKR 2,708

232.88%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.36 Ft 1,085

$0.37 LKR 123

808.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.37 Ft 444

$0.34 LKR 111

302.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.96 Ft 6,451

$0.89 LKR 296

2142.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 Ft 603

$1.32 LKR 439

40.91%

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

$28.5K Ft 9.2M

$43.6K LKR 14.5M

-34.53%

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

$33.4K Ft 10.8M

$45.1K LKR 15.0M

-25.98%

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

$178 Ft 57.6K

$57.7 LKR 19.2K

208.89%

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

$23.58 Ft 7,623

$4.28 LKR 1,424

450.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.12 Ft 7,797

$20.66 LKR 6,870

16.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$69.7 Ft 22.5K

$20.37 LKR 6,773

242.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.03 Ft 5,505

$6.14 LKR 2,042

177.36%

Cinema Ticket

$10.48 Ft 3,388

$4.63 LKR 1,541

126.35%

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

$625 Ft 202.1K

$40.83 LKR 13.6K

1430.98%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.6K Ft 6.4M

$17.2K LKR 5.7M

14.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 Ft 33.0K

$18.12 LKR 6,025

463.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.41 Ft 14.0K

$17.34 LKR 5,766

150.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 Ft 35.5K

$77.6 LKR 25.8K

41.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 Ft 39.0K

$41.29 LKR 13.7K

192.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$845 Ft 273.3K

$565 LKR 187.8K

49.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$638 Ft 206.4K

$271 LKR 90.1K

135.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,609 Ft 520.1K

$1,691 LKR 562.2K

-4.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,217 Ft 393.5K

$574 LKR 191.0K

111.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,555 Ft 1.8M

$3,735 LKR 1.2M

48.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,898 Ft 1.3M

$1,158 LKR 385.1K

236.62%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,724 Ft 557.5K

$248 LKR 82.6K

594.08%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.34

12.5

-49.28%

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

Last update for Budapest: November 1, 2026

Last update for Colombo: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$638 38.8%

Colombo

$271 33.4% 57.6% $367

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$260 15.8%

Colombo

$244 30.1% 6% $16

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$226 13.7%

Colombo

$83 10.2% 63.4% $143

Eating Out

Budapest

$220 13.4%

Colombo

$103 12.7% 53% $117

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$169 10.3%

Colombo

$69 8.6% 58.9% $100

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$91 5.5%

Colombo

$30 3.7% 67.3% $61

Getting Around

Budapest

$43 2.6%

Colombo

$11 1.3% 74.9% $32

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $845 in Budapest versus $565 in Colombo. 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 6.9 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61 in Budapest versus $25 in Colombo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $260 vs $244 – making Colombo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇱🇰 Colombo

🕒 Local time

19:34 7:34 PM

00:04 12:04 AM

4 h 30 min ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

753,000

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.68 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LKR, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 333 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.01 USD). 1 EUR = 374 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.68 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Budapest Colombo 7,270 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
Colombo

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 Colombo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 103%, 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 $1,217 in Colombo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Colombo, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $565 there versus $845 in Budapest.

Public transport costs about 70% less in Colombo. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $625 per month in Budapest and $41 in Colombo. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$800 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,647 in Budapest and $811 in Colombo. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Colombo costs $811 versus $1,647 in Budapest. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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