Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Kaunas

For one person, living is cheaper in Kaunas: $1,477 a month against $1,621 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
Learn more

Budapest Living Index
71

Cost of Living Index in Kaunas
Learn more

Kaunas Living Index

Jump to prices

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,621

/mo nomad

Kaunas

🇱🇹 Lithuania

$1,477

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Kaunas

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

A single person spends $1,621 per month in Budapest vs $1,477 in Kaunas, rent included.

Budapest $1,621
Kaunas $1,477

A couple spends around $2,555 per month in Budapest vs $2,241 in Kaunas, rent included.

Budapest $2,555
Kaunas $2,241

A family of three spends $3,489 per month in Budapest vs $3,005 in Kaunas, rent included.

Budapest $3,489
Kaunas $3,005

Budapest costs about 10% more than Kaunas, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both Budapest and Kaunas sit above the global median – Budapest by 21%, Kaunas by 10%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.99 Ft 4,551

$11.80 €10.53

18.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.3 Ft 19.6K

$68.4 €61.1

-11.80%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.96 Ft 3,241

$9.90 €8.84

0.61%

Cappuccino

$3.38 Ft 1,100

$3.46 €3.08

-2.31%

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

$2.13 Ft 692

$3.33 €2.97

-36.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 Ft 608

$3.22 €2.87

-41.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.75 Ft 1,221

$5.07 €4.52

-26.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.57 Ft 1,162

$4.36 €3.89

-18.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 Ft 368

$1.57 €1.40

-28.03%

White Bread (500g)

$1.84 Ft 599

$1.79 €1.59

2.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.39 Ft 777

$2.22 €1.98

7.66%

Eggs

$3.83 Ft 1,245

$3.36 €3.00

13.99%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.33 Ft 3,686

$14.71 €13.13

-22.98%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.74 Ft 2,192

$8.13 €7.25

-17.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.69 Ft 4,780

$13.60 €12.14

8.01%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 Ft 597

$1.55 €1.38

18.71%

Banana (1kg)

$2.01 Ft 653

$1.50 €1.34

34.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 Ft 767

$2.17 €1.94

8.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.77 Ft 1,226

$3.33 €2.97

13.21%

Potato (1kg)

$0.96 Ft 313

$0.94 €0.84

2.13%

Onion (1kg)

$1.03 Ft 334

$0.98 €0.87

5.10%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.56 Ft 509

$1.83 €1.63

-14.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 Ft 216

$0.96 €0.86

-31.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.96 Ft 2,591

$6.14 €5.48

29.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.01 Ft 1,954

$10.19 €9.10

-41.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 Ft 421

$1.74 €1.55

-25.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.08 Ft 676

$2.11 €1.89

-1.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 Ft 489

$1.09 €0.98

37.61%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.61 Ft 8,982

$31.96 €28.52

-13.61%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.30 Ft 1,074

$1.14 €1.02

189.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.30 Ft 424

$0.87 €0.77

49.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.78 Ft 6,436

$15.71 €14.02

25.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.81 Ft 591

$1.91 €1.71

-5.24%

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

$29.3K Ft 9.5M

$26.9K €24.0K

9.01%

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

$34.1K Ft 11.1M

$28.8K €25.7K

18.35%

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

$170 Ft 55.3K

$203 €181

-16.16%

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

$23.98 Ft 7,802

$16.06 €14.34

49.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.42 Ft 7,621

$15.30 €13.65

53.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.2 Ft 21.6K

$32.92 €29.38

101.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.18 Ft 6,239

$28.67 €25.59

-33.10%

Cinema Ticket

$9.52 Ft 3,098

$11.99 €10.70

-20.60%

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

$537 Ft 174.6K

$682 €609

-21.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K Ft 5.4M

$8,760 €7,818

89.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 Ft 33.0K

$85.7 €76.5

18.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.99 Ft 14.0K

$40.43 €36.08

6.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 Ft 36.7K

$121 €108

-6.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.6K

$164 €146

-27.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$805 Ft 262.0K

$627 €560

28.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$629 Ft 204.7K

$438 €391

43.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,549 Ft 504.1K

$929 €829

66.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,167 Ft 379.7K

$657 €586

77.71%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,618 Ft 1.8M

$3,679 €3,283

52.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,968 Ft 1.3M

$2,386 €2,130

66.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,626 Ft 529.0K

$1,696 €1,513

-4.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.43

4.05

58.77%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 5, 2026

Last update for Kaunas: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$629 38.7%

Kaunas

$438 30% 30.4% $191

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$258 15.8%

Kaunas

$280 19.2% 8.8% $23

Eating Out

Budapest

$224 13.8%

Kaunas

$226 15.5% 0.7% $1.6

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$217 13.4%

Kaunas

$234 16% 7.7% $17

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$169 10.4%

Kaunas

$185 12.7% 9.3% $16

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$85 5.2%

Kaunas

$57 3.9% 33.3% $28

Getting Around

Budapest

$43 2.7%

Kaunas

$42 2.9% 3.7% $1.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $805 in Budapest versus $627 in Kaunas. 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 4% higher in Kaunas, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $60.0 in Budapest versus $68.0 in Kaunas. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $280 – making Budapest the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇱🇹 Kaunas

🕒 Local time

12:05 12:05 PM

13:05 1:05 PM

1 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

315,993

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 325 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD). 1 EUR = 365 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Budapest Kaunas 890 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
Kaunas

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 Kaunas: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 10%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in leisure.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,432 per month in Budapest and $2,215 in Kaunas. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Public transport costs about 16% less in Kaunas. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $537 per month in Budapest and $682 in Kaunas. 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 Kaunas, where all-in costs run around $1,477, than in Budapest at $1,621. In Kaunas it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Kaunas – 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 Kaunas. 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.