Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Ismailia

For one person, living is cheaper in Ismailia: $330 a month against $1,641 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $15,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index
16

Cost of Living Index in Ismailia
Learn more

Ismailia Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,641

/mo nomad

Ismailia

🇪🇬 Egypt

$330

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Ismailia

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

A single person spends $1,641 per month in Budapest vs $330 in Ismailia, rent included.

Budapest $1,641
Ismailia $330

A couple spends around $2,562 per month in Budapest vs $561 in Ismailia, rent included.

Budapest $2,562
Ismailia $561

A family of three spends $3,483 per month in Budapest vs $792 in Ismailia, rent included.

Budapest $3,483
Ismailia $792

Budapest costs about 398% more than Ismailia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Budapest sits 21% above the global median, while Ismailia is 76% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.04 Ft 4,536

$3.30 E£176

325.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.9 Ft 19.7K

$14.58 E£778

317.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.37 Ft 3,351

$3.76 E£201

175.80%

Cappuccino

$3.46 Ft 1,117

$1.04 E£55.5

232.69%

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

$2.07 Ft 669

$0.30 E£15.91

590.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.77 Ft 572

$0.13 E£6.85

1261.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.69 Ft 1,191

$1.32 E£70.6

179.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.80 Ft 1,229

$1.80 E£96.0

111.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 Ft 374

$0.79 E£42.30

46.84%

White Bread (500g)

$1.85 Ft 598

$0.36 E£19.07

413.89%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.40 Ft 776

$0.60 E£32.12

300.00%

Eggs

$3.99 Ft 1,289

$1.15 E£61.5

246.96%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.40 Ft 3,683

$3.49 E£186

226.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.87 Ft 2,221

$3.98 E£213

72.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.49 Ft 4,682

$6.95 E£371

108.49%

Apples (1kg)

$1.88 Ft 607

$1.45 E£77.3

29.66%

Banana (1kg)

$2.14 Ft 693

$0.54 E£29.05

296.30%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.30 Ft 744

$0.41 E£22.01

460.98%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.04 Ft 1,304

$0.31 E£16.79

1203.23%

Potato (1kg)

$1.02 Ft 329

$0.26 E£13.89

292.31%

Onion (1kg)

$0.99 Ft 320

$0.32 E£17.12

209.37%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.58 Ft 510

$0.23 E£12.31

586.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.70 Ft 225

$0.20 E£10.67

250.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.03 Ft 2,594

$1.86 E£99.5

331.72%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.18 Ft 1,997

$5.48 E£293

12.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 Ft 401

$1.04 E£55.4

19.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 Ft 666

$1.89 E£101

8.99%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.59 Ft 513

$0.23 E£12.26

591.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.52 Ft 8,893

$3.77 E£201

629.97%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.43 Ft 1,110

$0.39 E£20.60

779.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.33 Ft 431

$0.48 E£25.72

177.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.45 Ft 6,607

$1.13 E£60.2

1709.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.93 Ft 624

$0.42 E£22.18

359.52%

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

$29.1K Ft 9.4M

$27.6K E£1.5M

5.41%

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

$34.7K Ft 11.2M

$14.6K E£780.2K

137.70%

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

$175 Ft 56.4K

$13.94 E£744

1152.44%

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

$23.62 Ft 7,631

$6.66 E£355

254.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.60 Ft 7,625

$7.33 E£391

221.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.8 Ft 22.2K

$9.65 E£515

613.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.26 Ft 6,224

$18.42 E£984

4.56%

Cinema Ticket

$10.31 Ft 3,333

$1.82 E£97.4

466.48%

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

$535 Ft 172.9K

$65.6 E£3,502

716.27%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

$1,171 E£62.5K

1337.83%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.9 Ft 32.3K

$12.92 E£690

672.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.27 Ft 14.0K

$9.19 E£491

370.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 Ft 36.1K

$127 E£6,764

-11.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.4K

$27.53 E£1,470

332.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$832 Ft 268.8K

$78.3 E£4,181

962.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$629 Ft 203.3K

$31.44 E£1,679

1901.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,586 Ft 512.4K

$120 E£6,414

1220.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 Ft 386.6K

$75.2 E£4,017

1490.70%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,718 Ft 1.8M

$458 E£24.5K

1147.32%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,947 Ft 1.3M

$131 E£6,984

2918.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,712 Ft 553.1K

$101 E£5,387

1597.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

21.33

-69.76%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 19, 2026

Last update for Ismailia: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$629 38.4%

Ismailia

$31 9.5% 95% $598

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$262 16%

Ismailia

$108 32.8% 58.7% $154

Eating Out

Budapest

$226 13.8%

Ismailia

$62 18.8% 72.6% $164

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$222 13.5%

Ismailia

$28 8.5% 87.4% $194

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$168 10.3%

Ismailia

$79 24.1% 52.8% $89

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$89 5.5%

Ismailia

$13 4% 85.1% $76

Getting Around

Budapest

$44 2.7%

Ismailia

$7.5 2.3% 83% $37

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $832 in Budapest versus $78.3 in Ismailia. 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 1597% 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 $61.0 in Budapest versus $15.00 in Ismailia. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $262 vs $108 – making Ismailia the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇪🇬 Ismailia

🕒 Local time

21:55 9:55 PM

22:55 10:55 PM

1 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

352,000

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

100 EGP = 1.87 USD

100 EGP = 1.67 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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 53.4 EGP (100 EGP = 1.87 USD). 1 EUR = 60.03 EGP (100 EGP = 1.67 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Budapest Ismailia 2,190 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
Ismailia

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 Ismailia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 398%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,461 per month in Budapest and $494 in Ismailia. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Public transport costs about 630% less in Ismailia. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $535 per month in Budapest and $65.6 in Ismailia. 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 Ismailia, where all-in costs run around $330, than in Budapest at $1,641. In Ismailia it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Ismailia – 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 Ismailia. 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.