Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Shiga

For one person, living is cheaper in Shiga: $1,191 a month against $1,619 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $5,100 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
58

Cost of Living Index in Shiga
Learn more

Shiga Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Shiga

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,191

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Shiga

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

A single person spends $1,619 per month in Budapest vs $1,191 in Shiga, rent included.

Budapest $1,619
Shiga $1,191

A couple spends around $2,524 per month in Budapest vs $1,880 in Shiga, rent included.

Budapest $2,524
Shiga $1,880

A family of three spends $3,429 per month in Budapest vs $2,568 in Shiga, rent included.

Budapest $3,429
Shiga $2,568

Budapest costs about 36% more than Shiga, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Budapest sits 20% above the global median, while Shiga is 12% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.94 Ft 4,503

$6.14 ¥970

127.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

$31.73 ¥5,013

92.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.19 Ft 3,291

$4.96 ¥783

105.44%

Cappuccino

$3.26 Ft 1,055

$2.90 ¥458

12.41%

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

$2.14 Ft 690

$1.28 ¥202

67.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.78 Ft 577

$0.69 ¥108

157.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.71 Ft 1,198

$2.69 ¥425

37.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.77 Ft 1,217

$3.50 ¥554

7.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 Ft 371

$1.28 ¥203

-10.16%

White Bread (500g)

$1.79 Ft 578

$1.29 ¥204

38.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 Ft 804

$3.81 ¥602

-34.65%

Eggs

$3.90 Ft 1,261

$2.05 ¥325

90.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.10 Ft 3,587

$9.35 ¥1,478

18.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.62 Ft 2,139

$9.43 ¥1,490

-29.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.69 Ft 4,745

$18.30 ¥2,891

-19.73%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 Ft 591

$3.26 ¥515

-43.87%

Banana (1kg)

$2.05 Ft 661

$2.01 ¥318

1.99%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.37 Ft 765

$2.04 ¥322

16.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.90 Ft 1,260

$4.10 ¥647

-4.88%

Potato (1kg)

$0.99 Ft 320

$1.57 ¥248

-36.94%

Onion (1kg)

$1.00 Ft 322

$1.17 ¥184

-14.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.58 Ft 511

$1.30 ¥205

21.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 Ft 216

$0.86 ¥136

-22.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.96 Ft 2,572

$3.88 ¥614

105.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.22 Ft 2,009

$9.26 ¥1,462

-32.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 Ft 411

$1.95 ¥308

-34.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 Ft 654

$3.14 ¥495

-35.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.52 Ft 490

$1.10 ¥174

38.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.02 Ft 9,053

$52.9 ¥8,350

-46.98%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.31 Ft 1,070

$3.70 ¥584

-10.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.37 Ft 442

$3.09 ¥488

-55.66%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.83 Ft 6,406

$21.14 ¥3,340

-6.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.82 Ft 589

$1.04 ¥165

75.00%

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

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

$21.7K ¥3.4M

37.40%

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

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

$15.1K ¥2.4M

123.23%

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

$171 Ft 55.3K

$137 ¥21.6K

24.91%

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

$23.51 Ft 7,596

$24.21 ¥3,825

-2.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.29 Ft 7,526

$18.71 ¥2,955

24.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

$52.5 ¥8,288

28.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.89 Ft 6,104

Cinema Ticket

$9.30 Ft 3,004

$11.77 ¥1,859

-20.99%

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

$533 Ft 172.3K

$518 ¥81.8K

3.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

$12.8K ¥2.0M

30.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

$47.28 ¥7,469

110.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

$30.38 ¥4,800

43.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 Ft 35.7K

$73.6 ¥11.6K

49.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.4K

$91.0 ¥14.4K

30.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$830 Ft 268.3K

$536 ¥84.7K

54.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$622 Ft 200.9K

$329 ¥52.1K

88.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

$1,113 ¥175.8K

43.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

$724 ¥114.3K

61.75%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

$4,138 ¥653.7K

40.94%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

$1,525 ¥241.0K

154.95%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

$1,192 ¥188.3K

38.54%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

2.21

191.86%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Last update for Shiga: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$622 38.4%

Shiga

$330 27.7% 47% $292

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$258 15.9%

Shiga

$293 24.6% 13.7% $35

Eating Out

Budapest

$223 13.8%

Shiga

$127 10.7% 43% $96

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$218 13.5%

Shiga

$180 15.1% 17.4% $38

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$168 10.4%

Shiga

$109 9.2% 35% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$86 5.3%

Shiga

$76 6.4% 11.8% $10

Getting Around

Budapest

$44 2.7%

Shiga

$76 6.4% 72.7% $32

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $830 in Budapest versus $536 in Shiga. 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 39% 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 $32.00 in Shiga. Groceries tell a different story – $258 in Budapest vs $293 in Shiga – so Budapest wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇯🇵 Shiga

🕒 Local time

10:25 10:25 AM

17:25 5:25 PM

7 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

23,836

💱 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 19, 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 19, 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 →

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Budapest Shiga 8,880 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 Shiga: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 36%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,428 per month in Budapest and $1,787 in Shiga. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Public transport costs about 89% less in Shiga. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $533 per month in Budapest and $518 in Shiga. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Shiga, where all-in costs run around $1,191, than in Budapest at $1,619. In Shiga it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Shiga – 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 Shiga. 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.