Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and General Santos

For one person, living is cheaper in General Santos: $628 a month against $1,619 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $11,900 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
31

Cost of Living Index in General Santos
Learn more

General Santos Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

General Santos

🇵🇭 Philippines

$628

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in General Santos

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

A single person spends $1,619 per month in Budapest vs $628 in General Santos, rent included.

Budapest $1,619
General Santos $628

A couple spends around $2,524 per month in Budapest vs $1,009 in General Santos, rent included.

Budapest $2,524
General Santos $1,009

A family of three spends $3,429 per month in Budapest vs $1,391 in General Santos, rent included.

Budapest $3,429
General Santos $1,391

Budapest costs about 158% more than General Santos, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Budapest sits 20% above the global median, while General Santos is 53% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.94 Ft 4,503

$3.38 ₱213

312.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

$27.40 ₱1,725

123.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.19 Ft 3,291

$2.72 ₱172

274.63%

Cappuccino

$3.26 Ft 1,055

$2.56 ₱161

27.34%

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

$2.14 Ft 690

$0.28 ₱17.41

664.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.78 Ft 577

$0.25 ₱15.83

612.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.71 Ft 1,198

$1.58 ₱99.3

134.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.77 Ft 1,217

$2.34 ₱147

61.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 Ft 371

$2.00 ₱126

-42.50%

White Bread (500g)

$1.79 Ft 578

$1.08 ₱68.2

65.74%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 Ft 804

$0.87 ₱54.7

186.21%

Eggs

$3.90 Ft 1,261

$1.86 ₱117

109.68%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.10 Ft 3,587

$6.38 ₱402

73.98%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.62 Ft 2,139

$4.77 ₱300

38.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.69 Ft 4,745

$9.25 ₱582

58.81%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 Ft 591

$2.74 ₱172

-33.21%

Banana (1kg)

$2.05 Ft 661

$1.07 ₱67.2

91.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.37 Ft 765

$2.45 ₱154

-3.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.90 Ft 1,260

$1.19 ₱74.6

227.73%

Potato (1kg)

$0.99 Ft 320

$1.98 ₱125

-50.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.00 Ft 322

$3.28 ₱207

-69.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.58 Ft 511

$1.24 ₱78.2

27.42%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 Ft 216

$0.68 ₱42.60

-1.47%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.96 Ft 2,572

$2.46 ₱155

223.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.22 Ft 2,009

$7.76 ₱488

-19.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 Ft 411

$1.25 ₱78.5

1.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 Ft 654

$1.68 ₱106

20.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.52 Ft 490

$0.39 ₱24.37

289.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.02 Ft 9,053

$8.15 ₱513

243.80%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.31 Ft 1,070

$0.78 ₱49.25

324.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.37 Ft 442

$0.25 ₱15.79

448.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.83 Ft 6,406

$0.82 ₱51.4

2318.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.82 Ft 589

$1.12 ₱70.7

62.50%

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

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

$20.9K ₱1.3M

42.77%

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

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

$19.1K ₱1.2M

76.84%

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

$171 Ft 55.3K

$76.6 ₱4,825

123.28%

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

$23.51 Ft 7,596

$6.53 ₱411

260.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.29 Ft 7,526

$31.67 ₱1,994

-26.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.89 Ft 6,104

Cinema Ticket

$9.30 Ft 3,004

$4.91 ₱309

89.41%

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

$533 Ft 172.3K

$109 ₱6,840

390.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

$7,532 ₱474.2K

122.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

$59.8 ₱3,767

66.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

$30.67 ₱1,931

41.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 Ft 35.7K

$70.3 ₱4,428

56.94%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.4K

$60.7 ₱3,823

95.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$830 Ft 268.3K

$174 ₱11.0K

376.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$622 Ft 200.9K

$112 ₱7,068

454.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

$359 ₱22.6K

344.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

$238 ₱15.0K

391.24%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

8.31

-22.38%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Last update for General Santos: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$622 38.4%

General Santos

$112 17.9% 81.9% $510

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$258 15.9%

General Santos

$199 31.7% 22.8% $59

Eating Out

Budapest

$223 13.8%

General Santos

$81 12.8% 63.9% $142

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$218 13.5%

General Santos

$115 18.3% 47.3% $103

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$168 10.4%

General Santos

$100 15.9% 40.5% $68

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$86 5.3%

General Santos

$9.8 * 1.6% 88.6% $76

Getting Around

Budapest

$44 2.7%

General Santos

$12 1.9% 73.5% $33

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $830 in Budapest versus $174 in General Santos. 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 $61.0 in Budapest versus $27.00 in General Santos. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $199 – making General Santos the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇵🇭 General Santos

🕒 Local time

04:25 4:25 AM

10:25 10:25 AM

6 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

697,315

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, 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).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Budapest General Santos 10,700 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
General Santos

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 General Santos: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 158%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,428 per month in Budapest and $942 in General Santos. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Public transport costs about 244% less in General Santos. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $533 per month in Budapest and $109 in General Santos. 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 General Santos, where all-in costs run around $628, than in Budapest at $1,619. In General Santos it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward General Santos – 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 General Santos. 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.