Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Lusaka

For one person, living is cheaper in Lusaka: $860 a month against $1,647 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $9,400 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
41

Cost of Living Index in Lusaka
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Lusaka Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,647

/mo nomad

Lusaka

🇿🇲 Zambia

$860

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Lusaka

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

A single person spends $1,647 per month in Budapest vs $860 in Lusaka, rent included.

Budapest $1,647
Lusaka $860

A couple spends around $2,567 per month in Budapest vs $1,472 in Lusaka, rent included.

Budapest $2,567
Lusaka $1,472

A family of three spends $3,488 per month in Budapest vs $2,084 in Lusaka, rent included.

Budapest $3,488
Lusaka $2,084

Budapest costs about 92% more than Lusaka, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Budapest sits 22% above the global median, while Lusaka is 36% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.63 Ft 4,419

$5.47 ZMW 111

149.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.7 Ft 19.7K

$30.14 ZMW 609

101.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.02 Ft 3,248

$4.83 ZMW 97.7

107.45%

Cappuccino

$3.33 Ft 1,078

$2.91 ZMW 58.9

14.43%

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

$2.12 Ft 686

$0.72 ZMW 14.45

194.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 Ft 583

$0.45 ZMW 9.04

300.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.61 Ft 1,169

$1.22 ZMW 24.63

195.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.59 Ft 1,163

$2.18 ZMW 44.12

64.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 Ft 362

$1.72 ZMW 34.69

-34.88%

White Bread (500g)

$1.93 Ft 624

$1.19 ZMW 24.12

62.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 Ft 806

$2.00 ZMW 40.34

24.50%

Eggs

$3.94 Ft 1,278

$1.94 ZMW 39.27

103.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.28 Ft 3,656

$10.21 ZMW 206

10.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.73 Ft 2,183

$6.08 ZMW 123

10.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.44 Ft 4,682

$6.24 ZMW 126

131.41%

Apples (1kg)

$1.86 Ft 603

$3.23 ZMW 65.4

-42.41%

Banana (1kg)

$2.04 Ft 660

$2.45 ZMW 49.44

-16.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.29 Ft 742

$3.30 ZMW 66.7

-30.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.99 Ft 1,294

$1.49 ZMW 30.07

167.79%

Potato (1kg)

$0.94 Ft 305

$2.57 ZMW 51.9

-63.42%

Onion (1kg)

$1.02 Ft 331

$1.84 ZMW 37.23

-44.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.65 Ft 536

$1.10 ZMW 22.26

50.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 Ft 221

$0.77 ZMW 15.53

-11.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.81 Ft 2,533

$2.93 ZMW 59.2

166.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.02 Ft 1,952

$9.85 ZMW 199

-38.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 Ft 419

$1.37 ZMW 27.70

-5.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 Ft 656

$2.21 ZMW 44.65

-8.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 Ft 485

$0.96 ZMW 19.47

56.25%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.13 Ft 8,792

$60.4 ZMW 1,220

-55.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.36 Ft 1,088

$2.43 ZMW 49.14

38.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.37 Ft 445

$1.51 ZMW 30.61

-9.27%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.96 Ft 6,468

$4.90 ZMW 99.1

307.35%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 Ft 604

$1.47 ZMW 29.66

26.53%

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

$28.5K Ft 9.2M

$7,434 ZMW 150.2K

283.56%

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

$33.4K Ft 10.8M

$25.3K ZMW 511.4K

31.92%

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

$178 Ft 57.8K

$70.3 ZMW 1,422

153.30%

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

$23.58 Ft 7,643

$10.39 ZMW 210

126.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.12 Ft 7,817

$54.2 ZMW 1,095

-55.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$69.7 Ft 22.6K

$52.9 ZMW 1,069

31.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.03 Ft 5,520

$14.77 ZMW 299

15.30%

Cinema Ticket

$10.48 Ft 3,397

$5.85 ZMW 118

79.15%

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

$625 Ft 202.6K

$148 ZMW 3,000

321.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.6K Ft 6.4M

$20.4K ZMW 412.1K

-3.68%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 Ft 33.1K

$24.88 ZMW 503

310.05%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.41 Ft 14.1K

$17.32 ZMW 350

150.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 Ft 35.6K

$44.96 ZMW 909

144.33%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 Ft 39.1K

$66.4 ZMW 1,341

81.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$845 Ft 274.0K

$388 ZMW 7,846

117.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$638 Ft 206.9K

$177 ZMW 3,570

261.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,609 Ft 521.5K

$1,074 ZMW 21.7K

49.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,217 Ft 394.5K

$587 ZMW 11.9K

107.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,555 Ft 1.8M

$1,929 ZMW 39.0K

188.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,898 Ft 1.3M

$8,657 ZMW 175.0K

-54.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,724 Ft 559.0K

$364 ZMW 7,348

374.28%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.34

-78.14%

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

Last update for Budapest: November 1, 2026

Last update for Lusaka: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$638 38.8%

Lusaka

$177 20.5% 72.3% $462

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$260 15.8%

Lusaka

$232 27% 10.7% $28

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$226 13.7%

Lusaka

$135 15.7% 40.3% $91

Eating Out

Budapest

$220 13.4%

Lusaka

$108 12.6% 50.7% $112

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$169 10.3%

Lusaka

$69 8% 59.2% $100

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$91 5.5%

Lusaka

$65 7.5% 28.7% $26

Getting Around

Budapest

$43 2.6%

Lusaka

$74 8.6% 71.2% $31

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $845 in Budapest versus $388 in Lusaka. 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 $30 in Lusaka. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $260 vs $232 – making Lusaka the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇿🇲 Lusaka

🕒 Local time

09:17 9:17 AM

10:17 10:17 AM

1 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

1,742,979 Capital

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Zambian Kwacha ZMW ZK

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

100 ZMW = 4.95 USD

100 ZMW = 4.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZMW, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 324 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD). 1 EUR = 364 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

Zambian Kwacha exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 20.21 ZMW (100 ZMW = 4.95 USD). 1 EUR = 22.7 ZMW (100 ZMW = 4.41 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

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Between locations

Budapest Lusaka 7,060 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

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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 Lusaka: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 92%, 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 $1,290 in Lusaka. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Lusaka, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $388 there versus $845 in Budapest.

Public transport costs about 55% less in Budapest. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $625 per month in Budapest and $148 in Lusaka. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Lusaka, where all-in costs run around $860, than in Budapest at $1,647. In Lusaka it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Lusaka – 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 Lusaka. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Budapest makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.