Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Kolkata (Calcutta)

For one person, living is cheaper in Kolkata (Calcutta): $436 a month against $1,647 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $14,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index
21

Cost of Living Index in Kolkata (Calcutta)
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Kolkata (Calcutta) Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,647

/mo nomad

Kolkata (Calcutta)

🇮🇳 India

$436

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Kolkata (Calcutta)

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 Kolkata (Calcutta) actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,647 per month in Budapest vs $436 in Kolkata (Calcutta), rent included.

Budapest $1,647
Kolkata (Calcutta) $436

A couple spends around $2,567 per month in Budapest vs $692 in Kolkata (Calcutta), rent included.

Budapest $2,567
Kolkata (Calcutta) $692

A family of three spends $3,488 per month in Budapest vs $948 in Kolkata (Calcutta), rent included.

Budapest $3,488
Kolkata (Calcutta) $948

Budapest costs about 278% more than Kolkata (Calcutta), and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Budapest sits 22% above the global median, while Kolkata (Calcutta) is 68% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.63 Ft 4,407

$2.16 ₹204

531.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.7 Ft 19.6K

$14.07 ₹1,329

331.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.02 Ft 3,239

$4.15 ₹392

141.45%

Cappuccino

$3.33 Ft 1,075

$1.69 ₹159

97.04%

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

$2.12 Ft 684

$0.44 ₹41.85

381.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 Ft 581

$0.13 ₹12.73

1284.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.61 Ft 1,166

$1.85 ₹174

95.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.59 Ft 1,160

$3.00 ₹283

19.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 Ft 361

$0.72 ₹67.6

55.56%

White Bread (500g)

$1.93 Ft 623

$0.46 ₹43.15

319.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 Ft 804

$0.72 ₹68.4

245.83%

Eggs

$3.94 Ft 1,275

$1.06 ₹99.8

271.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.28 Ft 3,646

$6.09 ₹576

85.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.73 Ft 2,177

$3.05 ₹288

120.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.44 Ft 4,670

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 Ft 601

$2.51 ₹237

-25.90%

Banana (1kg)

$2.04 Ft 658

$0.82 ₹77.3

148.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.29 Ft 740

$1.42 ₹134

61.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.99 Ft 1,290

$0.66 ₹62.2

504.55%

Potato (1kg)

$0.94 Ft 304

$0.29 ₹27.07

224.14%

Onion (1kg)

$1.02 Ft 330

$0.47 ₹44.53

117.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.65 Ft 534

$0.30 ₹27.92

450.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 Ft 221

$0.26 ₹24.24

161.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.81 Ft 2,526

$4.96 ₹469

57.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.02 Ft 1,946

$10.53 ₹994

-42.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 Ft 418

$1.75 ₹165

-26.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 Ft 655

$2.81 ₹265

-28.11%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$7.06 ₹667

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 Ft 484

$0.16 ₹14.77

837.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.13 Ft 8,769

$3.21 ₹304

745.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.36 Ft 1,085

$0.59 ₹56.1

469.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.37 Ft 444

$0.31 ₹29.20

341.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.96 Ft 6,451

$1.69 ₹159

1081.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 Ft 603

$1.12 ₹106

66.07%

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

$28.5K Ft 9.2M

$13.4K ₹1.3M

112.41%

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

$33.4K Ft 10.8M

$22.7K ₹2.1M

47.19%

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

$178 Ft 57.6K

$51.1 ₹4,830

248.53%

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

$23.58 Ft 7,623

$4.70 ₹444

401.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.12 Ft 7,797

$7.51 ₹710

221.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$69.7 Ft 22.5K

$14.88 ₹1,406

368.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.03 Ft 5,505

$12.41 ₹1,173

37.23%

Cinema Ticket

$10.48 Ft 3,388

$3.10 ₹293

238.06%

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

$625 Ft 202.1K

$42.62 ₹4,026

1366.68%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.6K Ft 6.4M

$3,792 ₹358.3K

417.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 Ft 33.0K

$24.85 ₹2,348

310.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.41 Ft 14.0K

$25.78 ₹2,435

68.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 Ft 35.5K

$33.96 ₹3,208

223.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 Ft 39.0K

$27.91 ₹2,637

332.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$845 Ft 273.3K

$174 ₹16.4K

387.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$638 Ft 206.4K

$107 ₹10.1K

495.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,609 Ft 520.1K

$416 ₹39.3K

286.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,217 Ft 393.5K

$241 ₹22.8K

405.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,555 Ft 1.8M

$1,072 ₹101.3K

418.09%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,898 Ft 1.3M

$623 ₹58.9K

525.51%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,724 Ft 557.5K

$365 ₹34.5K

371.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.34

-29.56%

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

Last update for Budapest: November 1, 2026

Last update for Kolkata (Calcutta): November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$638 38.8%

Kolkata (Calcutta)

$107 24.6% 83.2% $531

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$260 15.8%

Kolkata (Calcutta)

$120 27.6% 53.7% $140

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$226 13.7%

Kolkata (Calcutta)

$63 14.5% 72% $163

Eating Out

Budapest

$220 13.4%

Kolkata (Calcutta)

$68 15.5% 69.3% $152

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$169 10.3%

Kolkata (Calcutta)

$51 11.6% 70.1% $119

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$91 5.5%

Kolkata (Calcutta)

$21 4.8% 76.7% $70

Getting Around

Budapest

$43 2.6%

Kolkata (Calcutta)

$6 1.4% 86.2% $37

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $845 in Budapest versus $174 in Kolkata (Calcutta). 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 4.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61 in Budapest versus $14 in Kolkata (Calcutta). Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $260 vs $120 – making Kolkata (Calcutta) the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇮🇳 Kolkata (Calcutta)

🕒 Local time

02:30 2:30 AM

07:00 7:00 AM

4 h 30 min ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

4,486,679

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.76 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.59 USD

1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.76 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).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Budapest Kolkata (Calcutta) 6,650 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
Kolkata (Calcutta)

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 Kolkata (Calcutta): Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 278%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,471 per month in Budapest and $654 in Kolkata (Calcutta). That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Kolkata (Calcutta), especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $174 there versus $845 in Budapest.

Public transport costs about 88% less in Kolkata (Calcutta). For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $625 per month in Budapest and $43 in Kolkata (Calcutta). For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Kolkata (Calcutta), where all-in costs run around $436, than in Budapest at $1,647. In Kolkata (Calcutta) it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

If budget matters most, go with Kolkata (Calcutta). If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Budapest makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.