Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Targovishte

For one person, living is cheaper in Targovishte: $553 a month against $1,619 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $12,800 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
27

Cost of Living Index in Targovishte
Learn more

Targovishte Living Index

Jump to prices

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Targovishte

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$553

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Targovishte

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

A single person spends $1,619 per month in Budapest vs $553 in Targovishte, rent included.

Budapest $1,619
Targovishte $553

A couple spends around $2,524 per month in Budapest vs $1,128 in Targovishte, rent included.

Budapest $2,524
Targovishte $1,128

A family of three spends $3,429 per month in Budapest vs $1,704 in Targovishte, rent included.

Budapest $3,429
Targovishte $1,704

Budapest costs about 193% more than Targovishte, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Budapest sits 20% above the global median, while Targovishte is 59% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.94 Ft 4,503

$6.90 BGN 12.01

102.03%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

$39.55 BGN 68.8

54.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.19 Ft 3,291

$6.49 BGN 11.29

57.01%

Cappuccino

$3.26 Ft 1,055

$1.50 BGN 2.61

117.33%

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

$2.14 Ft 690

$1.04 BGN 1.81

105.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.78 Ft 577

$0.61 BGN 1.06

191.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.71 Ft 1,198

$0.94 BGN 1.64

294.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.77 Ft 1,217

$4.14 BGN 7.21

-8.94%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 Ft 371

$1.50 BGN 2.61

-23.33%

White Bread (500g)

$1.79 Ft 578

$0.76 BGN 1.32

135.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 Ft 804

$2.27 BGN 3.94

9.69%

Eggs

$3.90 Ft 1,261

$2.64 BGN 4.59

47.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.10 Ft 3,587

$8.17 BGN 14.21

35.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.62 Ft 2,139

$5.48 BGN 9.53

20.80%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.69 Ft 4,745

$8.23 BGN 14.32

78.49%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 Ft 591

$1.71 BGN 2.98

7.02%

Banana (1kg)

$2.05 Ft 661

$1.79 BGN 3.12

14.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.37 Ft 765

$1.73 BGN 3.01

36.99%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.90 Ft 1,260

$2.61 BGN 4.54

49.43%

Potato (1kg)

$0.99 Ft 320

$1.03 BGN 1.79

-3.88%

Onion (1kg)

$1.00 Ft 322

$1.03 BGN 1.79

-2.91%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.58 Ft 511

$0.94 BGN 1.64

68.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 Ft 216

$0.56 BGN 0.97

19.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.96 Ft 2,572

$3.53 BGN 6.13

125.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.22 Ft 2,009

$6.09 BGN 10.60

2.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 Ft 411

$0.65 BGN 1.13

95.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 Ft 654

$1.05 BGN 1.82

93.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.52 Ft 490

$0.47 BGN 0.82

223.40%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.02 Ft 9,053

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.31 Ft 1,070

$1.10 BGN 1.91

200.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.37 Ft 442

$0.52 BGN 0.90

163.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.83 Ft 6,406

$10.40 BGN 18.09

90.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.82 Ft 589

$1.70 BGN 2.96

7.06%

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

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

$30.5K BGN 53.0K

-2.26%

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

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

$19.8K BGN 34.5K

70.52%

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

$171 Ft 55.3K

$57.4 BGN 99.9

197.91%

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

$23.51 Ft 7,596

$8.70 BGN 15.14

170.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.29 Ft 7,526

$12.69 BGN 22.08

83.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

$17.07 BGN 29.70

295.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.89 Ft 6,104

$22.42 BGN 39.01

-15.74%

Cinema Ticket

$9.30 Ft 3,004

$5.82 BGN 10.13

59.79%

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

$533 Ft 172.3K

$503 BGN 876

5.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

$5,395 BGN 9,388

210.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

$68.0 BGN 118

46.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

$41.71 BGN 72.6

4.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 Ft 35.7K

$89.6 BGN 156

23.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.4K

$103 BGN 180

15.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$830 Ft 268.3K

$141 BGN 245

489.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$622 Ft 200.9K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

$373 BGN 650

326.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

$348 BGN 605

236.48%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

$1,342 BGN 2,335

334.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

$1,132 BGN 1,970

243.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

$1,250 BGN 2,175

32.10%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

3.1

108.06%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Last update for Targovishte: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$622 38.4%

Targovishte

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$258 15.9%

Targovishte

$191 34.6% 25.9% $67

Eating Out

Budapest

$223 13.8%

Targovishte

$112 20.3% 49.6% $111

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$218 13.5%

Targovishte

$79 14.3% 63.8% $139

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$168 10.4%

Targovishte

$136 24.6% 18.7% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$86 5.3%

Targovishte

$29 5.2% 66.7% $57

Getting Around

Budapest

$44 2.7%

Targovishte

$5.6 * 1% 87.4% $39

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $830 in Budapest versus $141 in Targovishte. 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 32% 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 $40.00 in Targovishte. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $191 – making Targovishte the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇧🇬 Targovishte

🕒 Local time

01:22 1:22 AM

02:22 2:22 AM

1 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

39,578

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BGN, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BGN (1 BGN = 0.575 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.511 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

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Budapest Targovishte 750 km ≈ 1 h 30 min 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 Targovishte: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 193%, 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 $829 in Targovishte. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Targovishte, 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 $40.00 in Targovishte. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 35% more in Budapest, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Targovishte, where all-in costs run around $553, than in Budapest at $1,619. In Targovishte it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Targovishte – 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 Targovishte. 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.