Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Hamamatsu

For one person, living is cheaper in Hamamatsu: $783 a month against $1,638 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $10,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
Learn more

Budapest Living Index
38

Cost of Living Index in Hamamatsu
Learn more

Hamamatsu Living Index

Jump to prices

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,638

/mo nomad

Hamamatsu

🇯🇵 Japan

$783

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Hamamatsu

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

A single person spends $1,638 per month in Budapest vs $783 in Hamamatsu, rent included.

Budapest $1,638
Hamamatsu $783

A couple spends around $2,553 per month in Budapest vs $1,266 in Hamamatsu, rent included.

Budapest $2,553
Hamamatsu $1,266

A family of three spends $3,467 per month in Budapest vs $1,750 in Hamamatsu, rent included.

Budapest $3,467
Hamamatsu $1,750

Budapest costs about 109% more than Hamamatsu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Budapest sits 20% above the global median, while Hamamatsu is 42% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.81 Ft 4,552

$3.90 ¥615

254.10%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.5 Ft 20.3K

$41.78 ¥6,596

47.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.16 Ft 3,349

$5.19 ¥820

95.76%

Cappuccino

$3.22 Ft 1,062

$3.41 ¥539

-5.57%

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

$2.06 Ft 680

$1.10 ¥174

87.27%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 Ft 605

$0.75 ¥118

144.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.60 Ft 1,188

$2.61 ¥411

37.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 Ft 1,208

$3.11 ¥490

17.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 Ft 392

$1.08 ¥170

10.19%

White Bread (500g)

$1.87 Ft 617

$1.70 ¥268

10.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.37 Ft 780

$3.67 ¥579

-35.42%

Eggs

$3.96 Ft 1,305

$1.68 ¥266

135.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.16 Ft 3,680

$10.25 ¥1,618

8.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.76 Ft 2,228

$6.17 ¥973

9.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.35 Ft 4,731

$14.24 ¥2,248

0.77%

Apples (1kg)

$1.81 Ft 596

$5.80 ¥916

-68.79%

Banana (1kg)

$2.11 Ft 695

$2.84 ¥448

-25.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 Ft 770

$2.95 ¥466

-21.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.80 Ft 1,254

$4.30 ¥679

-11.63%

Potato (1kg)

$0.99 Ft 327

$2.61 ¥413

-62.07%

Onion (1kg)

$0.98 Ft 324

$2.59 ¥408

-62.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.55 Ft 512

$1.29 ¥204

20.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.70 Ft 230

$0.66 ¥104

6.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.79 Ft 2,569

$3.89 ¥613

100.26%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 Ft 1,995

$6.39 ¥1,009

-5.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 Ft 421

$1.82 ¥288

-29.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 Ft 672

$2.10 ¥331

-2.86%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.55 Ft 511

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.28 Ft 8,995

$50.1 ¥7,914

-45.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.30 Ft 1,087

$3.11 ¥490

6.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.31 Ft 433

$2.63 ¥415

-50.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.26 Ft 6,679

$20.62 ¥3,256

-1.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.82 Ft 600

$1.06 ¥168

71.70%

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

$28.7K Ft 9.5M

$21.6K ¥3.4M

33.00%

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

$33.1K Ft 10.9M

$15.8K ¥2.5M

108.96%

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

$172 Ft 56.8K

$130 ¥20.6K

32.02%

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

$23.95 Ft 7,897

$8.59 ¥1,356

178.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.31 Ft 7,685

$32.78 ¥5,176

-28.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.6 Ft 22.6K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.91 Ft 6,235

$17.40 ¥2,747

8.68%

Cinema Ticket

$10.18 Ft 3,356

$13.08 ¥2,065

-22.17%

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

$600 Ft 197.9K

$819 ¥129.3K

-26.71%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.8K Ft 5.5M

$14.8K ¥2.3M

13.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.0 Ft 32.6K

$63.6 ¥10.0K

55.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.25 Ft 14.3K

$37.10 ¥5,858

16.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 Ft 37.2K

$61.3 ¥9,677

84.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 Ft 38.6K

$103 ¥16.3K

13.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$836 Ft 275.6K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$640 Ft 210.9K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,598 Ft 526.9K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,205 Ft 397.3K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,625 Ft 1.9M

$7,787 ¥1.2M

-27.76%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,802 Ft 1.3M

$5,298 ¥836.5K

-28.24%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,671 Ft 551.1K

$1,602 ¥253.0K

4.30%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

2.64

144.32%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 27, 2026

Last update for Hamamatsu: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$640 39.1%

Hamamatsu

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$258 15.8%

Hamamatsu

$285 36.4% 10.3% $27

Eating Out

Budapest

$221 13.5%

Hamamatsu

$114 14.6% 48.1% $106

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$219 13.4%

Hamamatsu

$172 21.9% 21.7% $48

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$168 10.2%

Hamamatsu

$119 15.2% 28.8% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$89 5.4%

Hamamatsu

$26 * 3.3% 70.6% $63

Getting Around

Budapest

$43 2.7%

Hamamatsu

$66 * 8.5% 53.1% $23

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

Cost Breakdown

Salaries run about 4% 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 Hamamatsu. Groceries tell a different story – $258 in Budapest vs $285 in Hamamatsu – so Budapest wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇯🇵 Hamamatsu

🕒 Local time

21:27 9:27 PM

05:27 5:27 AM

8 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

797,033

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.03 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.72 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 330 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.03 USD). 1 EUR = 367 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.72 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Budapest Hamamatsu 9,030 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
Hamamatsu

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 Hamamatsu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 109%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,457 per month in Budapest and $1,175 in Hamamatsu. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Public transport costs about 46% less in Budapest. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $600 per month in Budapest and $819 in Hamamatsu. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Hamamatsu, where all-in costs run around $783, than in Budapest at $1,638. In Hamamatsu it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Hamamatsu costs $783 versus $1,638 in Budapest. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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