Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Perm

For one person, living is cheaper in Perm: $917 a month against $1,621 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 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
44

Cost of Living Index in Perm
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Perm Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,621

/mo nomad

Perm

🇷🇺 Russia

$917

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Perm

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

A single person spends $1,621 per month in Budapest vs $917 in Perm, rent included.

Budapest $1,621
Perm $917

A couple spends around $2,555 per month in Budapest vs $1,387 in Perm, rent included.

Budapest $2,555
Perm $1,387

A family of three spends $3,489 per month in Budapest vs $1,858 in Perm, rent included.

Budapest $3,489
Perm $1,858

Budapest costs about 77% more than Perm, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Budapest sits 21% above the global median, while Perm is 32% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.99 Ft 4,555

$8.05 ₽684

73.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.3 Ft 19.7K

$26.22 ₽2,229

130.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.96 Ft 3,244

$6.06 ₽515

64.36%

Cappuccino

$3.38 Ft 1,102

$2.18 ₽186

55.05%

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

$2.13 Ft 693

$0.78 ₽66.7

173.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 Ft 609

$0.40 ₽33.93

367.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.75 Ft 1,222

$1.21 ₽103

209.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.57 Ft 1,163

$1.55 ₽131

130.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 Ft 369

$1.07 ₽91.3

5.61%

White Bread (500g)

$1.84 Ft 600

$0.83 ₽70.8

121.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.39 Ft 777

$1.25 ₽106

91.20%

Eggs

$3.83 Ft 1,246

$1.28 ₽109

199.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.33 Ft 3,689

$7.83 ₽666

44.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.74 Ft 2,194

$5.23 ₽445

28.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.69 Ft 4,784

$11.68 ₽993

25.77%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 Ft 598

$2.15 ₽182

-14.42%

Banana (1kg)

$2.01 Ft 654

$2.10 ₽178

-4.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 Ft 767

$2.09 ₽178

12.92%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.77 Ft 1,227

$2.29 ₽195

64.63%

Potato (1kg)

$0.96 Ft 314

$0.56 ₽47.90

71.43%

Onion (1kg)

$1.03 Ft 335

$0.44 ₽37.10

134.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.56 Ft 509

$0.86 ₽73.0

81.40%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 Ft 216

$0.82 ₽69.4

-19.51%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.96 Ft 2,594

$2.62 ₽222

203.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.01 Ft 1,956

$9.26 ₽787

-35.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 Ft 422

$0.87 ₽74.0

49.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.08 Ft 677

$1.63 ₽139

27.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 Ft 490

$0.52 ₽44.51

188.46%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.61 Ft 8,991

$24.53 ₽2,085

12.56%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.30 Ft 1,075

$1.75 ₽149

88.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.30 Ft 424

$0.45 ₽38.66

188.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.78 Ft 6,442

$4.16 ₽354

375.48%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.81 Ft 591

$0.81 ₽68.7

123.46%

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

$29.3K Ft 9.6M

$40.7K ₽3.5M

-27.87%

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

$34.1K Ft 11.1M

$39.3K ₽3.3M

-13.22%

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

$170 Ft 55.3K

$128 ₽10.8K

33.17%

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

$23.98 Ft 7,809

$5.68 ₽483

322.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.42 Ft 7,628

$8.33 ₽708

181.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.2 Ft 21.6K

$27.00 ₽2,295

145.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.18 Ft 6,245

$13.23 ₽1,125

44.97%

Cinema Ticket

$9.52 Ft 3,101

$8.30 ₽706

14.70%

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

$537 Ft 174.8K

$233 ₽19.8K

129.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K Ft 5.4M

$4,398 ₽373.9K

277.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 Ft 33.0K

$53.3 ₽4,534

90.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.99 Ft 14.0K

$32.85 ₽2,793

30.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 Ft 36.7K

$61.9 ₽5,266

82.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.7K

$69.9 ₽5,943

69.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$805 Ft 262.2K

$471 ₽40.0K

70.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$629 Ft 204.9K

$265 ₽22.5K

137.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,549 Ft 504.6K

$603 ₽51.3K

156.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,167 Ft 380.1K

$479 ₽40.8K

143.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,618 Ft 1.8M

$2,358 ₽200.5K

138.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,968 Ft 1.3M

$1,543 ₽131.2K

157.13%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,626 Ft 529.5K

$973 ₽82.7K

67.09%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.43

23.33

-72.44%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 5, 2026

Last update for Perm: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$629 38.7%

Perm

$265 29.4% 57.9% $364

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$258 15.8%

Perm

$199 22.1% 22.8% $59

Eating Out

Budapest

$224 13.8%

Perm

$123 13.6% 45.3% $102

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$217 13.4%

Perm

$142 15.7% 34.8% $76

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$169 10.4%

Perm

$98 10.9% 42% $71

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$85 5.2%

Perm

$44 4.8% 48.9% $42

Getting Around

Budapest

$43 2.7%

Perm

$31 3.4% 29.4% $13

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $805 in Budapest versus $471 in Perm. 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 67% 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 $60.0 in Budapest versus $26.00 in Perm. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $199 – making Perm the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇷🇺 Perm

🕒 Local time

07:22 7:22 AM

10:22 10:22 AM

3 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

1,026,908

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Russian Ruble RUB ₽

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR

100 RUB = 1.18 USD

100 RUB = 1.05 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RUB, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 326 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD). 1 EUR = 365 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR).

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 85.02 RUB (100 RUB = 1.18 USD). 1 EUR = 95.36 RUB (100 RUB = 1.05 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

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Between locations

Budapest Perm 2,720 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
Perm

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 Perm: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 77%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,432 per month in Budapest and $1,375 in Perm. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Public transport costs about 13% less in Perm. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $537 per month in Budapest and $233 in Perm. 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 Perm, where all-in costs run around $917, than in Budapest at $1,621. In Perm it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Perm – 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 Perm. 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.