Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and El Gouna

For one person, living is cheaper in El Gouna: $457 a month against $1,621 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $14,000 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
22

Cost of Living Index in El Gouna
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El Gouna Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,621

/mo nomad

El Gouna

🇪🇬 Egypt

$457

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in El Gouna

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

A single person spends $1,621 per month in Budapest vs $457 in El Gouna, rent included.

Budapest $1,621
El Gouna $457

A couple spends around $2,555 per month in Budapest vs $730 in El Gouna, rent included.

Budapest $2,555
El Gouna $730

A family of three spends $3,489 per month in Budapest vs $1,002 in El Gouna, rent included.

Budapest $3,489
El Gouna $1,002

Budapest costs about 254% more than El Gouna, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Budapest sits 21% above the global median, while El Gouna is 66% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.99 Ft 4,570

$3.59 E£189

289.69%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.3 Ft 19.7K

$15.95 E£839

278.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.96 Ft 3,255

$4.64 E£244

114.66%

Cappuccino

$3.38 Ft 1,105

$1.49 E£78.4

126.85%

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

$2.13 Ft 696

$0.29 E£15.07

634.48%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 Ft 611

$0.10 E£5.25

1770.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.75 Ft 1,226

$1.21 E£63.6

209.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.57 Ft 1,167

$2.91 E£153

22.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 Ft 370

$0.87 E£45.61

29.89%

White Bread (500g)

$1.84 Ft 602

$0.59 E£30.86

211.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.39 Ft 780

$0.71 E£37.11

236.62%

Eggs

$3.83 Ft 1,250

$1.39 E£72.9

175.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.33 Ft 3,702

$3.37 E£177

236.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.74 Ft 2,201

$4.23 E£222

59.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.69 Ft 4,800

$8.53 E£448

72.22%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 Ft 600

$1.47 E£77.2

25.17%

Banana (1kg)

$2.01 Ft 656

$0.57 E£30.14

252.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 Ft 770

$0.43 E£22.47

448.84%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.77 Ft 1,232

$0.40 E£20.93

842.50%

Potato (1kg)

$0.96 Ft 315

$0.37 E£19.56

159.46%

Onion (1kg)

$1.03 Ft 336

$0.41 E£21.43

151.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.56 Ft 511

$0.24 E£12.66

550.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 Ft 217

$0.21 E£11.23

214.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.96 Ft 2,602

$1.96 E£103

306.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.01 Ft 1,963

$6.48 E£341

-7.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 Ft 423

$1.26 E£66.1

3.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.08 Ft 679

$1.88 E£98.6

10.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 Ft 491

$0.17 E£8.98

782.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.61 Ft 9,021

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.30 Ft 1,079

$0.39 E£20.46

746.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.30 Ft 426

$0.29 E£15.24

348.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.78 Ft 6,465

$2.00 E£105

889.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.81 Ft 593

$0.33 E£17.57

448.48%

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

$29.3K Ft 9.6M

$35.9K E£1.9M

-18.21%

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

$34.1K Ft 11.1M

$32.7K E£1.7M

4.46%

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

$170 Ft 55.5K

$11.82 E£622

1337.73%

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

$23.98 Ft 7,836

$6.88 E£362

248.55%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.42 Ft 7,654

$11.01 E£579

112.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.2 Ft 21.6K

$20.42 E£1,074

224.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.18 Ft 6,266

Cinema Ticket

$9.52 Ft 3,112

$2.98 E£157

219.46%

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

$537 Ft 175.4K

$89.3 E£4,695

501.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K Ft 5.4M

$1,820 E£95.7K

812.27%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 Ft 33.1K

$27.68 E£1,456

266.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.99 Ft 14.0K

$44.99 E£2,367

-4.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 Ft 36.8K

$109 E£5,707

3.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.8K

$49.98 E£2,629

137.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$805 Ft 263.1K

$190 E£9,998

323.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$629 Ft 205.6K

$100 E£5,286

526.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,549 Ft 506.3K

$271 E£14.3K

470.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,167 Ft 381.4K

$153 E£8,056

662.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,618 Ft 1.8M

$795 E£41.8K

606.56%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,968 Ft 1.3M

$488 E£25.6K

713.88%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,626 Ft 531.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.43

16.67

-61.43%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 5, 2026

Last update for El Gouna: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$629 38.7%

El Gouna

$100 21.9% 84% $529

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$258 15.8%

El Gouna

$123 26.7% 52.4% $135

Eating Out

Budapest

$224 13.8%

El Gouna

$74 16.1% 67% $150

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$217 13.4%

El Gouna

$30 6.5% 86.3% $188

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$169 10.4%

El Gouna

$104 22.6% 38.5% $65

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$85 5.2%

El Gouna

$26 5.7% 69.1% $59

Getting Around

Budapest

$43 2.7%

El Gouna

$2.5 * 0.6% 94.2% $41

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 $190 in El Gouna. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $60.0 in Budapest versus $16.00 in El Gouna. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $123 – making El Gouna the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇪🇬 El Gouna

🕒 Local time

08:42 8:42 AM

09:42 9:42 AM

1 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

15,000

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.06 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.73 EUR

100 EGP = 1.9 USD

100 EGP = 1.7 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 327 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.06 USD). 1 EUR = 366 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.73 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 52.6 EGP (100 EGP = 1.9 USD). 1 EUR = 58.95 EGP (100 EGP = 1.7 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Budapest El Gouna 2,570 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
El Gouna

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 El Gouna: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 254%, 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 $686 in El Gouna. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in El Gouna, 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 $16.00 in El Gouna. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 110% 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 El Gouna, where all-in costs run around $457, than in Budapest at $1,621. In El Gouna it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward El Gouna – 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 El Gouna. 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.