Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Itanagar

For one person, living is cheaper in Itanagar: $350 a month against $1,647 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $15,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Budapest, Hungary
Itanagar, India
Budapest
🇭🇺 Hungary
$1,647
/mo nomad
Itanagar
🇮🇳 India
$350
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Itanagar

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

A single person spends $1,647 per month in Budapest vs $350 in Itanagar, rent included.

  • Budapest $1,647
  • Itanagar $350

A couple spends around $2,567 per month in Budapest vs $558 in Itanagar, rent included.

  • Budapest $2,567
  • Itanagar $558

A family of three spends $3,488 per month in Budapest vs $765 in Itanagar, rent included.

  • Budapest $3,488
  • Itanagar $765

Budapest costs about 371% more than Itanagar, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Budapest sits 22% above the global median, while Itanagar is 74% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Budapest
Itanagar
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$13.63 Ft 4,419
$2.84 ₹268
379.93%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$60.7 Ft 19.7K
$11.71 ₹1,106
417.93%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.02 Ft 3,248
$5.40 ₹511
85.56%
Cappuccino
$3.33 Ft 1,078
$2.46 ₹233
35.37%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.12 Ft 686
$0.43 ₹41.04
393.02%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.80 Ft 583
$0.16 ₹15.51
1025.00%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.61 Ft 1,169
$1.30 ₹123
177.69%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.59 Ft 1,163
$3.50 ₹330
2.57%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Budapest
Itanagar
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.12 Ft 362
$0.67 ₹62.9
67.16%
White Bread (500g)
$1.93 Ft 624
$0.38 ₹36.26
407.89%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.49 Ft 806
$0.61 ₹57.5
308.20%
Eggs
$3.94 Ft 1,278
$0.95 ₹90.0
314.74%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$11.28 Ft 3,656
$2.07 ₹196
444.93%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.73 Ft 2,183
$3.30 ₹312
103.94%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$14.44 Ft 4,682
-
-
Apples (1kg)
$1.86 Ft 603
$2.20 ₹208
-15.45%
Banana (1kg)
$2.04 Ft 660
$0.73 ₹68.6
179.45%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.29 Ft 742
$0.95 ₹89.6
141.05%
Tomato (1kg)
$3.99 Ft 1,294
$0.62 ₹58.9
543.55%
Potato (1kg)
$0.94 Ft 305
$0.35 ₹33.23
168.57%
Onion (1kg)
$1.02 Ft 331
$0.35 ₹32.84
191.43%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.65 Ft 536
$0.31 ₹28.89
432.26%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.68 Ft 221
$0.25 ₹23.53
172.00%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$7.81 Ft 2,533
$3.66 ₹345
113.39%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.02 Ft 1,952
$4.61 ₹435
30.59%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.29 Ft 419
$1.52 ₹143
-15.13%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.02 Ft 656
$1.24 ₹117
62.90%
Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)
-
$4.84 ₹457
-
🚌 Getting Around
Budapest
Itanagar
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.50 Ft 485
-
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$27.13 Ft 8,792
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.36 Ft 1,088
$0.68 ₹64.3
394.12%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.37 Ft 445
$0.28 ₹26.14
389.29%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$19.96 Ft 6,468
$1.31 ₹124
1423.66%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.86 Ft 604
$0.96 ₹91.0
93.75%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$28.5K Ft 9.2M
$11.3K ₹1.1M
152.60%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$33.4K Ft 10.8M
$16.8K ₹1.6M
99.19%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Budapest
Itanagar
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$178 Ft 57.8K
$34.74 ₹3,282
412.87%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$23.58 Ft 7,643
$3.36 ₹318
601.79%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$24.12 Ft 7,817
$6.41 ₹606
276.29%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Budapest
Itanagar
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$69.7 Ft 22.6K
$21.33 ₹2,015
226.63%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$17.03 Ft 5,520
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$10.48 Ft 3,397
$3.26 ₹308
221.47%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Budapest
Itanagar
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$625 Ft 202.6K
$28.09 ₹2,653
2125.35%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$19.6K Ft 6.4M
$470 ₹44.4K
4075.34%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Budapest
Itanagar
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$102 Ft 33.1K
$16.04 ₹1,515
536.03%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$43.41 Ft 14.1K
$34.53 ₹3,261
25.72%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$110 Ft 35.6K
$36.18 ₹3,418
203.62%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$121 Ft 39.1K
$26.92 ₹2,543
348.14%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Budapest
Itanagar
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$845 Ft 274.0K
$72.7 ₹6,871
1062.22%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$638 Ft 206.9K
$53.0 ₹5,003
1105.36%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,609 Ft 521.5K
$161 ₹15.2K
900.37%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,217 Ft 394.5K
$127 ₹12.0K
855.89%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$5,555 Ft 1.8M
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$3,898 Ft 1.3M
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Budapest
Itanagar
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,724 Ft 559.0K
$321 ₹30.3K
436.87%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
6.34
7.26
-12.67%

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

Last update for Budapest: November 1, 2026

Last update for Itanagar: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Budapest
$638
Itanagar
$53 91.7% $585
Groceries & Markets
Budapest
$260
Itanagar
$87 66.5% $173
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Budapest
$226
Itanagar
$45 80.3% $181
Eating Out
Budapest
$220
Itanagar
$84 61.6% $136
Clothing & Footwear
Budapest
$169
Itanagar
$51 69.8% $118
Sport & Entertainment
Budapest
$91
Itanagar
$28 69.3% $63
Getting Around
Budapest
$43
Itanagar
$2.1 * 95.2% $41

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $845 in Budapest versus $73 in Itanagar. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Budapest are about 5.4 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61 in Budapest versus $12 in Itanagar. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $260 vs $87 – making Itanagar the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇭🇺 Budapest
🇮🇳 Itanagar
🕒 Local time
06:04 6:04 AM
10:34 10:34 AM
4 h 30 min ahead of Budapest
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
1,686,222 Capital
60,000
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

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).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 94.47 INR (100 INR = 1.06 USD). 1 EUR = 106 INR (1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Budapest Itanagar 6,700 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Budapest
  • Itanagar

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 Itanagar: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Itanagar cheaper than Budapest?
Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 371%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,471 per month in Budapest and $525 in Itanagar. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Itanagar, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $73 there versus $845 in Budapest.
Is eating out cheaper in Budapest or in Itanagar?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $61 in Budapest and $12 in Itanagar. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
How do food prices compare in Budapest and in Itanagar?
Groceries cost about 199% more in Budapest, though the gap depends on what you buy.
Is $1,000 a realistic budget for living in Budapest or in Itanagar?
A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Itanagar, where all-in costs run around $350, than in Budapest at $1,647. In Itanagar it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is Budapest or Itanagar more family-friendly?
Families tend to lean toward Itanagar – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with Itanagar. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Budapest makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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