Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Saitama

For one person, living is cheaper in Saitama: $1,007 a month against $1,641 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $7,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Saitama
Learn more

Saitama Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,641

/mo nomad

Saitama

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,007

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Saitama

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

A single person spends $1,641 per month in Budapest vs $1,007 in Saitama, rent included.

Budapest $1,641
Saitama $1,007

A couple spends around $2,562 per month in Budapest vs $1,330 in Saitama, rent included.

Budapest $2,562
Saitama $1,330

A family of three spends $3,483 per month in Budapest vs $1,653 in Saitama, rent included.

Budapest $3,483
Saitama $1,653

Budapest costs about 63% more than Saitama, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Budapest sits 21% above the global median, while Saitama is 26% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.04 Ft 4,536

$5.55 ¥876

152.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.9 Ft 19.7K

$31.14 ¥4,920

95.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.37 Ft 3,351

$4.86 ¥768

113.37%

Cappuccino

$3.46 Ft 1,117

$3.07 ¥486

12.70%

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

$2.07 Ft 669

$0.72 ¥114

187.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.77 Ft 572

$0.65 ¥103

172.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.69 Ft 1,191

$2.46 ¥389

50.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.80 Ft 1,229

$3.18 ¥503

19.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 Ft 374

$1.45 ¥229

-20.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.85 Ft 598

$1.64 ¥260

12.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.40 Ft 776

$2.68 ¥423

-10.45%

Eggs

$3.99 Ft 1,289

$2.00 ¥316

99.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.40 Ft 3,683

$10.14 ¥1,601

12.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.87 Ft 2,221

$5.45 ¥861

26.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.49 Ft 4,682

$14.44 ¥2,281

0.35%

Apples (1kg)

$1.88 Ft 607

$5.58 ¥882

-66.31%

Banana (1kg)

$2.14 Ft 693

$2.25 ¥355

-4.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.30 Ft 744

$2.84 ¥449

-19.01%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.04 Ft 1,304

$4.19 ¥662

-3.58%

Potato (1kg)

$1.02 Ft 329

$2.61 ¥412

-60.92%

Onion (1kg)

$0.99 Ft 320

$1.56 ¥247

-36.54%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.58 Ft 510

$1.25 ¥197

26.40%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.70 Ft 225

$0.80 ¥126

-12.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.03 Ft 2,594

$3.70 ¥585

117.03%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.18 Ft 1,997

$6.32 ¥999

-2.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 Ft 401

$1.74 ¥274

-28.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 Ft 666

$2.11 ¥333

-2.37%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.59 Ft 513

$3.45 ¥545

-53.91%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.52 Ft 8,893

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.43 Ft 1,110

$3.11 ¥492

10.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.33 Ft 431

$2.70 ¥427

-50.74%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.45 Ft 6,607

$20.19 ¥3,190

1.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.93 Ft 624

$1.10 ¥174

75.45%

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

$29.1K Ft 9.4M

$21.9K ¥3.5M

32.95%

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

$34.7K Ft 11.2M

$14.4K ¥2.3M

141.29%

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

$175 Ft 56.4K

$131 ¥20.7K

33.23%

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

$23.62 Ft 7,631

$17.62 ¥2,784

34.05%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.60 Ft 7,625

$31.87 ¥5,036

-25.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.8 Ft 22.2K

$61.5 ¥9,721

11.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.26 Ft 6,224

Cinema Ticket

$10.31 Ft 3,333

$11.12 ¥1,757

-7.28%

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

$535 Ft 172.9K

$620 ¥97.9K

-13.64%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

$14.8K ¥2.3M

13.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.9 Ft 32.3K

$34.90 ¥5,514

186.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.27 Ft 14.0K

$25.61 ¥4,047

68.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 Ft 36.1K

$55.5 ¥8,772

101.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.4K

$61.9 ¥9,773

92.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$832 Ft 268.8K

$414 ¥65.3K

101.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$629 Ft 203.3K

$237 ¥37.4K

165.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,586 Ft 512.4K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 Ft 386.6K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,718 Ft 1.8M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,947 Ft 1.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,712 Ft 553.1K

$1,505 ¥237.7K

13.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

2.06

213.11%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 19, 2026

Last update for Saitama: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$629 38.4%

Saitama

$237 23.5% 62.4% $393

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$262 16%

Saitama

$275 27.4% 5.2% $14

Eating Out

Budapest

$226 13.8%

Saitama

$120 11.9% 47% $106

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$222 13.5%

Saitama

$181 17.9% 18.6% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$168 10.3%

Saitama

$80 8% 52.4% $88

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$89 5.5%

Saitama

$84 8.3% 6.4% $5.7

Getting Around

Budapest

$44 2.7%

Saitama

$30 * 3% 30.8% $14

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $832 in Budapest versus $414 in Saitama. 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 14% 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 $61.0 in Budapest versus $31.00 in Saitama. Groceries tell a different story – $262 in Budapest vs $275 in Saitama – so Budapest wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇯🇵 Saitama

🕒 Local time

14:30 2:30 PM

21:30 9:30 PM

7 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

1,182,115

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Budapest Saitama 9,030 km ≈ 12 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 Saitama: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 63%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,461 per month in Budapest and $1,510 in Saitama. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61.0 in Budapest and $31.00 in Saitama. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 5% cheaper in Budapest – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Saitama, where all-in costs run around $1,007, than in Budapest at $1,641. In Saitama it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Saitama – 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 Saitama. 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.