Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Jalalabad

For one person, living is cheaper in Jalalabad: $501 a month against $1,619 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $13,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
Learn more

Budapest Living Index
24

Cost of Living Index in Jalalabad
Learn more

Jalalabad Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Jalalabad

🇦🇫 Afghanistan

$501

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Jalalabad

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

A single person spends $1,619 per month in Budapest vs $501 in Jalalabad, rent included.

Budapest $1,619
Jalalabad $501

A couple spends around $2,524 per month in Budapest vs $684 in Jalalabad, rent included.

Budapest $2,524
Jalalabad $684

A family of three spends $3,429 per month in Budapest vs $868 in Jalalabad, rent included.

Budapest $3,429
Jalalabad $868

Budapest costs about 223% more than Jalalabad, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Budapest sits 20% above the global median, while Jalalabad is 63% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.94 Ft 4,503

$2.26 ؋146

516.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

$7.56 ؋490

709.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.19 Ft 3,291

$3.80 ؋246

168.16%

Cappuccino

$3.26 Ft 1,055

$0.75 ؋48.49

334.67%

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

$2.14 Ft 690

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.78 Ft 577

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.71 Ft 1,198

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.77 Ft 1,217

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 Ft 371

$0.88 ؋56.9

30.68%

White Bread (500g)

$1.79 Ft 578

$0.37 ؋23.66

383.78%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 Ft 804

$1.89 ؋122

31.75%

Eggs

$3.90 Ft 1,261

$1.69 ؋110

130.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.10 Ft 3,587

$5.53 ؋359

100.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.62 Ft 2,139

$2.70 ؋175

145.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.69 Ft 4,745

$6.20 ؋402

136.94%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 Ft 591

$0.61 ؋39.26

200.00%

Banana (1kg)

$2.05 Ft 661

$0.65 ؋42.08

215.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.37 Ft 765

$0.79 ؋51.1

200.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.90 Ft 1,260

$0.48 ؋30.89

712.50%

Potato (1kg)

$0.99 Ft 320

$0.39 ؋25.38

153.85%

Onion (1kg)

$1.00 Ft 322

$0.30 ؋19.38

233.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.58 Ft 511

$0.32 ؋21.06

393.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 Ft 216

$0.30 ؋19.42

123.33%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$3.90 ؋253

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.79 ؋51.4

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.10 ؋71.1

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.96 Ft 2,572

$2.33 ؋151

241.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.22 Ft 2,009

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 Ft 411

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 Ft 654

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.52 Ft 490

$0.13 ؋8.72

1069.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.02 Ft 9,053

$10.98 ؋712

155.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.31 Ft 1,070

$0.75 ؋48.74

341.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.37 Ft 442

$0.44 ؋28.35

211.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.83 Ft 6,406

$1.56 ؋101

1171.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.82 Ft 589

$1.11 ؋71.9

63.96%

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

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

$8,453 ؋548.0K

252.49%

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

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

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

$171 Ft 55.3K

$23.42 ؋1,518

630.66%

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

$23.51 Ft 7,596

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.29 Ft 7,526

$233 ؋15.1K

-90.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

$7.62 ؋494

786.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.89 Ft 6,104

$4.76 ؋308

296.85%

Cinema Ticket

$9.30 Ft 3,004

$1.56 ؋101

496.15%

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

$533 Ft 172.3K

$15.22 ؋987

3404.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

$1,222 ؋79.2K

1270.83%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

$18.51 ؋1,200

438.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

$15.27 ؋990

184.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 Ft 35.7K

$23.21 ؋1,505

375.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.4K

$30.36 ؋1,968

291.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$830 Ft 268.3K

$114 ؋7,396

627.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$622 Ft 200.9K

$46.83 ؋3,036

1228.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

$229 ؋14.9K

594.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

$123 ؋8,000

848.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

$468 ؋30.4K

1144.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

$232 ؋15.1K

1574.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

$183 ؋11.9K

802.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

13.88

-53.53%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Last update for Jalalabad: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$622 38.4%

Jalalabad

$47 9.4% 92.5% $575

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$258 15.9%

Jalalabad

$95 18.9% 63.3% $163

Eating Out

Budapest

$223 13.8%

Jalalabad

$38 * 7.7% 82.8% $185

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$218 13.5%

Jalalabad

$256 * 51.2% 17.7% $39

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$168 10.4%

Jalalabad

$39 7.9% 76.5% $128

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$86 5.3%

Jalalabad

$11 2.2% 87.5% $75

Getting Around

Budapest

$44 2.7%

Jalalabad

$14 2.9% 67.3% $30

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 $114 in Jalalabad. 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 802% 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 $8.00 in Jalalabad. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $95.0 – making Jalalabad the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇦🇫 Jalalabad

🕒 Local time

09:10 9:10 AM

11:40 11:40 AM

2 h 30 min ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

168,600

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Afghanistan Afghani AFN ؋

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

100 AFN = 1.54 USD

100 AFN = 1.37 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AFN, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

Afghanistan Afghani exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 64.83 AFN (100 AFN = 1.54 USD). 1 EUR = 72.88 AFN (100 AFN = 1.37 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Budapest Jalalabad 4,460 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
Jalalabad

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 Jalalabad: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 223%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in utilities.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,428 per month in Budapest and $751 in Jalalabad. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Public transport costs about 155% less in Jalalabad. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $533 per month in Budapest and $15.22 in Jalalabad. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Jalalabad, where all-in costs run around $501, than in Budapest at $1,619. In Jalalabad it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Jalalabad – 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 Jalalabad. 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.