Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Jurmala

For one person, living is cheaper in Jurmala: $1,283 a month against $1,638 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $4,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index
62

Cost of Living Index in Jurmala
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Jurmala Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,638

/mo nomad

Jurmala

🇱🇻 Latvia

$1,283

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Jurmala

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

A single person spends $1,638 per month in Budapest vs $1,283 in Jurmala, rent included.

Budapest $1,638
Jurmala $1,283

A couple spends around $2,553 per month in Budapest vs $1,891 in Jurmala, rent included.

Budapest $2,553
Jurmala $1,891

A family of three spends $3,467 per month in Budapest vs $2,498 in Jurmala, rent included.

Budapest $3,467
Jurmala $2,498

Budapest costs about 28% more than Jurmala, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Budapest sits 20% above the global median, while Jurmala is 6% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.81 Ft 4,552

$14.21 €12.76

-2.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.5 Ft 20.3K

$61.0 €54.8

0.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.16 Ft 3,349

$8.69 €7.80

16.92%

Cappuccino

$3.22 Ft 1,062

$1.66 €1.49

93.98%

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

$2.06 Ft 680

$0.97 €0.87

112.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 Ft 605

$0.58 €0.52

215.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.60 Ft 1,188

$5.07 €4.56

-28.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.66 Ft 1,208

$2.45 €2.20

49.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 Ft 392

$1.16 €1.04

2.59%

White Bread (500g)

$1.87 Ft 617

$1.51 €1.35

23.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.37 Ft 780

$2.54 €2.28

-6.69%

Eggs

$3.96 Ft 1,305

$3.66 €3.29

8.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.16 Ft 3,680

$10.56 €9.48

5.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.76 Ft 2,228

$4.42 €3.97

52.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.35 Ft 4,731

$13.55 €12.18

5.90%

Apples (1kg)

$1.81 Ft 596

$2.08 €1.87

-12.98%

Banana (1kg)

$2.11 Ft 695

$1.82 €1.64

15.93%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 Ft 770

$2.44 €2.19

-4.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.80 Ft 1,254

$3.11 €2.79

22.19%

Potato (1kg)

$0.99 Ft 327

$0.83 €0.75

19.28%

Onion (1kg)

$0.98 Ft 324

$0.90 €0.81

8.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.55 Ft 512

$1.67 €1.50

-7.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.70 Ft 230

$0.70 €0.63

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.79 Ft 2,569

$5.43 €4.88

43.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 Ft 1,995

$7.87 €7.07

-23.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 Ft 421

$2.04 €1.83

-37.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 Ft 672

$2.00 €1.80

2.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.55 Ft 511

$1.14 €1.02

35.96%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.28 Ft 8,995

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.30 Ft 1,087

$3.30 €2.97

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.31 Ft 433

$0.99 €0.89

32.32%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.26 Ft 6,679

$17.80 €15.99

13.82%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.82 Ft 600

$1.78 €1.60

2.25%

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

$28.7K Ft 9.5M

$26.8K €24.1K

7.21%

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

$33.1K Ft 10.9M

$29.8K €26.7K

11.18%

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

$172 Ft 56.8K

$257 €231

-32.94%

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

$23.95 Ft 7,897

$11.22 €10.08

113.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.31 Ft 7,685

$14.04 €12.61

66.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.6 Ft 22.6K

$18.78 €16.87

265.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.91 Ft 6,235

Cinema Ticket

$10.18 Ft 3,356

$8.46 €7.60

20.33%

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

$600 Ft 197.9K

$562 €504

6.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.8K Ft 5.5M

$17.9K €16.1K

-6.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.0 Ft 32.6K

$70.1 €62.9

41.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.25 Ft 14.3K

$49.79 €44.73

-13.14%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 Ft 37.2K

$86.5 €77.7

30.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 Ft 38.6K

$139 €125

-15.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$836 Ft 275.6K

$452 €406

84.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$640 Ft 210.9K

$360 €323

77.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,598 Ft 526.9K

$680 €611

134.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,205 Ft 397.3K

$496 €446

142.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,625 Ft 1.9M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,802 Ft 1.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,671 Ft 551.1K

$1,138 €1,022

46.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

4.2

53.57%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 27, 2026

Last update for Jurmala: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$640 39.1%

Jurmala

$360 28% 43.8% $280

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$258 15.8%

Jurmala

$242 18.8% 6.4% $17

Eating Out

Budapest

$221 13.5%

Jurmala

$196 15.3% 11.1% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$219 13.4%

Jurmala

$282 22% 28.5% $63

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$168 10.2%

Jurmala

$155 12.1% 7.3% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$89 5.4%

Jurmala

$36 2.8% 59.9% $53

Getting Around

Budapest

$43 2.7%

Jurmala

$13 * 1% 70.5% $31

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $836 in Budapest versus $452 in Jurmala. 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 47% higher in Budapest. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61 in Budapest versus $61 in Jurmala. Groceries tell a different story – $258 in Budapest vs $242 in Jurmala – so Jurmala wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇱🇻 Jurmala

🕒 Local time

23:05 11:05 PM

00:05 12:05 AM

1 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

57,671

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.03 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.72 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD 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).

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

USD to HUF in detail →

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Between locations

Budapest Jurmala 1,100 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
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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 Jurmala: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 28%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in leisure.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,457 per month in Budapest and $1,925 in Jurmala. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Jurmala, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $452 there versus $836 in Budapest.

Groceries cost about 7% more in Budapest, though the gap depends on what you buy.

Kindergarten costs $600 per month in Budapest and $562 in Jurmala. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Jurmala, where all-in costs run around $1,283, than in Budapest at $1,638. In Jurmala it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Jurmala – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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