Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Grahamstown

For one person, living is cheaper in Grahamstown: $1,120 a month against $1,647 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $6,300 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
54

Cost of Living Index in Grahamstown
Learn more

Grahamstown Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,647

/mo nomad

Grahamstown

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,120

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Grahamstown

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

A single person spends $1,647 per month in Budapest vs $1,120 in Grahamstown, rent included.

Budapest $1,647
Grahamstown $1,120

A couple spends around $2,567 per month in Budapest vs $1,775 in Grahamstown, rent included.

Budapest $2,567
Grahamstown $1,775

A family of three spends $3,488 per month in Budapest vs $2,430 in Grahamstown, rent included.

Budapest $3,488
Grahamstown $2,430

Budapest costs about 47% more than Grahamstown, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Budapest sits 22% above the global median, while Grahamstown is 17% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.63 Ft 4,419

$10.93 R 180

24.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.7 Ft 19.7K

$41.85 R 690

44.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.02 Ft 3,248

$6.04 R 99.6

65.89%

Cappuccino

$3.33 Ft 1,078

$2.17 R 35.79

53.46%

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

$2.12 Ft 686

$1.05 R 17.26

101.90%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 Ft 583

$0.72 R 11.84

150.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.61 Ft 1,169

$2.75 R 45.29

31.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.59 Ft 1,163

$3.10 R 51.1

15.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 Ft 362

$1.17 R 19.33

-4.27%

White Bread (500g)

$1.93 Ft 624

$1.00 R 16.49

93.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 Ft 806

$1.49 R 24.47

67.11%

Eggs

$3.94 Ft 1,278

$2.72 R 44.85

44.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.28 Ft 3,656

$8.51 R 140

32.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.73 Ft 2,183

$5.34 R 88.1

26.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.44 Ft 4,682

$8.25 R 136

75.03%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 Ft 603

$2.16 R 35.52

-13.89%

Banana (1kg)

$2.04 Ft 660

$1.52 R 25.03

34.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.29 Ft 742

$1.63 R 26.88

40.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.99 Ft 1,294

$1.79 R 29.43

122.91%

Potato (1kg)

$0.94 Ft 305

$1.68 R 27.70

-44.05%

Onion (1kg)

$1.02 Ft 331

$1.37 R 22.64

-25.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.65 Ft 536

$1.22 R 20.16

35.25%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 Ft 221

$1.01 R 16.65

-32.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.81 Ft 2,533

$3.26 R 53.7

139.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.02 Ft 1,952

$4.74 R 78.2

27.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 Ft 419

$1.27 R 20.93

1.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 Ft 656

$1.79 R 29.53

12.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 Ft 485

$1.49 R 24.56

0.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.13 Ft 8,792

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.36 Ft 1,088

$0.85 R 14.02

295.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.37 Ft 445

$0.46 R 7.58

197.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.96 Ft 6,468

$8.54 R 141

133.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 Ft 604

$1.49 R 24.59

24.83%

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

$28.5K Ft 9.2M

$34.6K R 570.5K

-17.64%

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

$33.4K Ft 10.8M

$35.2K R 580.7K

-5.28%

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

$178 Ft 57.8K

$121 R 1,991

47.49%

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

$23.58 Ft 7,643

$34.27 R 565

-31.19%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.12 Ft 7,817

$44.91 R 740

-46.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$69.7 Ft 22.6K

$35.56 R 586

95.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.03 Ft 5,520

$11.03 R 182

54.40%

Cinema Ticket

$10.48 Ft 3,397

$10.48 R 173

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

$625 Ft 202.6K

$175 R 2,891

256.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.6K Ft 6.4M

$5,021 R 82.7K

291.23%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 Ft 33.1K

$71.2 R 1,173

43.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.41 Ft 14.1K

$38.95 R 642

11.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 Ft 35.6K

$111 R 1,829

-1.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 Ft 39.1K

$97.8 R 1,612

23.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$845 Ft 274.0K

$395 R 6,504

114.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$638 Ft 206.9K

$357 R 5,878

78.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,609 Ft 521.5K

$742 R 12.2K

116.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,217 Ft 394.5K

$743 R 12.2K

63.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,555 Ft 1.8M

$727 R 12.0K

663.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,898 Ft 1.3M

$741 R 12.2K

426.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,724 Ft 559.0K

$1,205 R 19.8K

43.16%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.34

11.94

-46.90%

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

Last update for Budapest: November 1, 2026

Last update for Grahamstown: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$638 38.8%

Grahamstown

$357 31.9% 44.1% $282

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$260 15.8%

Grahamstown

$195 17.4% 24.9% $65

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$226 13.7%

Grahamstown

$200 17.9% 11.5% $26

Eating Out

Budapest

$220 13.4%

Grahamstown

$159 14.2% 27.8% $61

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$169 10.3%

Grahamstown

$144 12.8% 15.2% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$91 5.5%

Grahamstown

$57 5.1% 37.6% $34

Getting Around

Budapest

$43 2.6%

Grahamstown

$9.1 * 0.8% 79% $34

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $845 in Budapest versus $395 in Grahamstown. 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 43% 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 $61 in Budapest versus $42 in Grahamstown. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $260 vs $195 – making Grahamstown the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇿🇦 Grahamstown

🕒 Local time

03:30 3:30 AM

04:30 4:30 AM

1 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

67,264

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 324 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD). 1 EUR = 364 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Budapest Grahamstown 9,020 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
Grahamstown

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 Grahamstown: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 47%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,471 per month in Budapest and $1,679 in Grahamstown. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Grahamstown, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $395 there versus $845 in Budapest.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61 in Budapest and $42 in Grahamstown. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 33% more in Budapest, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,647 in Budapest and $1,120 in Grahamstown. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

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

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

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