Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Taichung

For one person, living is cheaper in Taichung: $1,143 a month against $1,621 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $5,700 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
56

Cost of Living Index in Taichung
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Taichung Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,621

/mo nomad

Taichung

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,143

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Taichung

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

A single person spends $1,621 per month in Budapest vs $1,143 in Taichung, rent included.

Budapest $1,621
Taichung $1,143

A couple spends around $2,555 per month in Budapest vs $1,887 in Taichung, rent included.

Budapest $2,555
Taichung $1,887

A family of three spends $3,489 per month in Budapest vs $2,631 in Taichung, rent included.

Budapest $3,489
Taichung $2,631

Budapest costs about 42% more than Taichung, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Budapest sits 21% above the global median, while Taichung is 15% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.99 Ft 4,551

$4.68 NT$149

198.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.3 Ft 19.6K

$32.12 NT$1,025

87.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.96 Ft 3,241

$4.85 NT$155

105.36%

Cappuccino

$3.38 Ft 1,100

$2.75 NT$87.6

22.91%

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

$2.13 Ft 692

$1.03 NT$32.80

106.80%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 Ft 608

$0.74 NT$23.56

152.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.75 Ft 1,221

$1.56 NT$49.69

140.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.57 Ft 1,162

$2.78 NT$88.7

28.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 Ft 368

$3.27 NT$104

-65.44%

White Bread (500g)

$1.84 Ft 599

$1.76 NT$56.2

4.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.39 Ft 777

$2.66 NT$84.7

-10.15%

Eggs

$3.83 Ft 1,245

$2.62 NT$83.7

46.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.33 Ft 3,686

$29.33 NT$936

-61.37%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.74 Ft 2,192

$8.13 NT$259

-17.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.69 Ft 4,780

$17.14 NT$547

-14.29%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 Ft 597

$4.22 NT$135

-56.40%

Banana (1kg)

$2.01 Ft 653

$1.92 NT$61.3

4.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 Ft 767

$2.99 NT$95.3

-21.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.77 Ft 1,226

$2.15 NT$68.6

75.35%

Potato (1kg)

$0.96 Ft 313

$1.20 NT$38.28

-20.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.03 Ft 334

$1.97 NT$62.9

-47.72%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.56 Ft 509

$2.40 NT$76.7

-35.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 Ft 216

$0.90 NT$28.80

-26.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.96 Ft 2,591

$3.75 NT$120

112.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.01 Ft 1,954

$15.53 NT$495

-61.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 Ft 421

$1.64 NT$52.3

-20.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.08 Ft 676

$2.47 NT$78.8

-15.79%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 Ft 489

$0.72 NT$23.05

108.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.61 Ft 8,982

$31.97 NT$1,020

-13.64%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.30 Ft 1,074

$2.70 NT$86.1

22.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.30 Ft 424

$0.92 NT$29.49

41.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.78 Ft 6,436

$9.61 NT$307

105.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.81 Ft 591

$1.03 NT$32.76

75.73%

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

$29.3K Ft 9.5M

$33.0K NT$1.1M

-11.22%

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

$34.1K Ft 11.1M

$22.7K NT$725.9K

49.93%

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

$170 Ft 55.3K

$127 NT$4,037

34.33%

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

$23.98 Ft 7,802

$14.84 NT$474

61.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.42 Ft 7,621

$21.00 NT$670

11.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.2 Ft 21.6K

$32.96 NT$1,052

100.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.18 Ft 6,239

$11.63 NT$371

64.92%

Cinema Ticket

$9.52 Ft 3,098

$10.02 NT$320

-4.99%

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

$537 Ft 174.6K

$347 NT$11.1K

54.71%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K Ft 5.4M

$16.8K NT$537.2K

-1.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 Ft 33.0K

$72.5 NT$2,314

39.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.99 Ft 14.0K

$35.93 NT$1,147

19.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 Ft 36.7K

$85.8 NT$2,738

31.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.6K

$117 NT$3,727

1.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$805 Ft 262.0K

$396 NT$12.6K

103.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$629 Ft 204.7K

$273 NT$8,722

130.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,549 Ft 504.1K

$1,217 NT$38.8K

27.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,167 Ft 379.7K

$774 NT$24.7K

50.71%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,618 Ft 1.8M

$8,642 NT$275.8K

-34.99%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,968 Ft 1.3M

$5,368 NT$171.3K

-26.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,626 Ft 529.0K

$1,432 NT$45.7K

13.54%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.43

2.27

183.26%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 5, 2026

Last update for Taichung: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$629 38.7%

Taichung

$273 23.7% 56.6% $356

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$258 15.8%

Taichung

$379 32.8% 47.1% $121

Eating Out

Budapest

$224 13.8%

Taichung

$105 9.1% 53% $119

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$217 13.4%

Taichung

$162 14.1% 25.3% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$169 10.4%

Taichung

$140 12.1% 17.2% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$85 5.2%

Taichung

$53 4.6% 37.9% $32

Getting Around

Budapest

$43 2.7%

Taichung

$42 3.7% 2.9% $1.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $805 in Budapest versus $396 in Taichung. 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 $60.0 in Budapest versus $32.00 in Taichung. Groceries tell a different story – $258 in Budapest vs $379 in Taichung – so Budapest wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇹🇼 Taichung

🕒 Local time

06:59 6:59 AM

12:59 12:59 PM

6 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

2,767,239

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR

100 TWD = 3.13 USD

100 TWD = 2.79 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TWD, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 325 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD). 1 EUR = 365 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR).

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 31.91 TWD (100 TWD = 3.13 USD). 1 EUR = 35.79 TWD (100 TWD = 2.79 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

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Between locations

Budapest Taichung 8,870 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

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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 Taichung: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 42%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,432 per month in Budapest and $1,714 in Taichung. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Public transport costs about 16% less in Taichung. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $537 per month in Budapest and $347 in Taichung. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Taichung, where all-in costs run around $1,143, than in Budapest at $1,621. In Taichung it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Taichung – 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 Taichung. 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.