Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and İzmit

For one person, living is cheaper in İzmit: $916 a month against $1,619 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Budapest
🇭🇺 Hungary
$1,619
/mo nomad
İzmit
🇹🇷 Turkey
$916
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in İzmit

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

A single person spends $1,619 per month in Budapest vs $916 in İzmit, rent included.

  • Budapest $1,619
  • İzmit $916

A couple spends around $2,524 per month in Budapest vs $1,441 in İzmit, rent included.

  • Budapest $2,524
  • İzmit $1,441

A family of three spends $3,429 per month in Budapest vs $1,966 in İzmit, rent included.

  • Budapest $3,429
  • İzmit $1,966

Budapest costs about 77% more than İzmit, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Budapest sits 20% above the global median, while İzmit is 32% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Budapest
İzmit
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$13.94 Ft 4,503
$7.20 ₺357
93.61%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$61.2 Ft 19.8K
$30.59 ₺1,515
100.13%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.19 Ft 3,291
$7.71 ₺382
32.17%
Cappuccino
$3.26 Ft 1,055
$3.45 ₺171
-5.51%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.14 Ft 690
$1.14 ₺56.6
87.72%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.78 Ft 577
$0.33 ₺16.11
439.39%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.71 Ft 1,198
$2.53 ₺125
46.64%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.77 Ft 1,217
$2.89 ₺143
30.45%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Budapest
İzmit
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.15 Ft 371
$0.90 ₺44.58
27.78%
White Bread (500g)
$1.79 Ft 578
$0.89 ₺44.11
101.12%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.49 Ft 804
$2.29 ₺113
8.73%
Eggs
$3.90 Ft 1,261
$2.11 ₺104
84.83%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$11.10 Ft 3,587
$7.79 ₺385
42.49%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.62 Ft 2,139
$3.77 ₺187
75.60%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$14.69 Ft 4,745
$19.31 ₺956
-23.93%
Apples (1kg)
$1.83 Ft 591
$1.66 ₺82.2
10.24%
Banana (1kg)
$2.05 Ft 661
$1.86 ₺92.2
10.22%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.37 Ft 765
$1.03 ₺51.0
130.10%
Tomato (1kg)
$3.90 Ft 1,260
$1.18 ₺58.6
230.51%
Potato (1kg)
$0.99 Ft 320
$0.49 ₺24.05
102.04%
Onion (1kg)
$1.00 Ft 322
$0.38 ₺19.03
163.16%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.58 Ft 511
$0.74 ₺36.73
113.51%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.67 Ft 216
$0.65 ₺32.37
3.08%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$7.96 Ft 2,572
$2.25 ₺111
253.78%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.22 Ft 2,009
$8.38 ₺415
-25.78%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.27 Ft 411
$2.02 ₺100
-37.13%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.03 Ft 654
$2.17 ₺108
-6.45%
🚌 Getting Around
Budapest
İzmit
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.52 Ft 490
$0.68 ₺33.74
123.53%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$28.02 Ft 9,053
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.31 Ft 1,070
$1.04 ₺51.6
218.27%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.37 Ft 442
$1.14 ₺56.4
20.18%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$19.83 Ft 6,406
$4.11 ₺203
382.48%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.82 Ft 589
$1.28 ₺63.4
42.19%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$29.8K Ft 9.6M
$41.5K ₺2.1M
-28.26%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$33.8K Ft 10.9M
$40.3K ₺2.0M
-16.16%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Budapest
İzmit
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$171 Ft 55.3K
$45.29 ₺2,242
277.83%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$23.51 Ft 7,596
$11.76 ₺582
99.91%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$23.29 Ft 7,526
$12.82 ₺635
81.67%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Budapest
İzmit
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$67.5 Ft 21.8K
$52.6 ₺2,603
28.43%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$18.89 Ft 6,104
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$9.30 Ft 3,004
$5.22 ₺258
78.16%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Budapest
İzmit
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$533 Ft 172.3K
$467 ₺23.1K
14.29%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$16.8K Ft 5.4M
$6,160 ₺305.0K
172.02%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Budapest
İzmit
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$99.6 Ft 32.2K
$47.79 ₺2,366
108.43%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$43.49 Ft 14.0K
$42.93 ₺2,125
1.30%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$110 Ft 35.7K
$83.4 ₺4,129
32.33%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$119 Ft 38.4K
$76.6 ₺3,794
55.23%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Budapest
İzmit
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$830 Ft 268.3K
$420 ₺20.8K
97.88%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$622 Ft 200.9K
$305 ₺15.1K
103.83%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,594 Ft 514.9K
$782 ₺38.7K
103.86%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,170 Ft 378.1K
$557 ₺27.6K
110.00%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$5,832 Ft 1.9M
$1,452 ₺71.9K
301.75%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$3,889 Ft 1.3M
$1,022 ₺50.6K
280.53%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Budapest
İzmit
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,651 Ft 533.4K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
6.45
40
-83.87%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Last update for İzmit: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Budapest
$622
İzmit
$305 50.9% $317
Groceries & Markets
Budapest
$258
İzmit
$209 18.8% $49
Eating Out
Budapest
$223
İzmit
$146 34.3% $77
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Budapest
$218
İzmit
$70 67.9% $148
Clothing & Footwear
Budapest
$168
İzmit
$113 32.7% $55
Sport & Entertainment
Budapest
$86
İzmit
$63 26.8% $23
Getting Around
Budapest
$44
İzmit
$9.5 * 78.6% $35

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 $420 in İzmit. 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 $31.00 in İzmit. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $209 – making İzmit the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇭🇺 Budapest
🇹🇷 İzmit
🕒 Local time
06:04 6:04 AM
07:04 7:04 AM
1 h ahead of Budapest
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
1,686,222 Capital
376,056
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

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).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 49.51 TRY (100 TRY = 2.02 USD). 1 EUR = 55.66 TRY (100 TRY = 1.8 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Budapest İzmit 1,150 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Budapest
  • İzmit

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 İzmit: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is İzmit cheaper than Budapest?
Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 77%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,428 per month in Budapest and $1,374 in İzmit. 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 İzmit, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.
Is eating out cheaper in Budapest or in İzmit?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $61.0 in Budapest and $31.00 in İzmit. 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 İzmit?
Groceries cost about 23% more in Budapest, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.
Is $2,000 a realistic budget for living in Budapest or in İzmit?
A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in İzmit, where all-in costs run around $916, than in Budapest at $1,619. In İzmit it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is Budapest or İzmit more family-friendly?
Families tend to lean toward İzmit – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.
Which city is safer, Budapest or İzmit?
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.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with İzmit. 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.

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