Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Thiva

For one person, living is cheaper in Thiva: $1,135 a month against $1,641 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 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
55

Cost of Living Index in Thiva
Learn more

Thiva Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,641

/mo nomad

Thiva

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,135

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Thiva

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

A single person spends $1,641 per month in Budapest vs $1,135 in Thiva, rent included.

Budapest $1,641
Thiva $1,135

A couple spends around $2,562 per month in Budapest vs $1,551 in Thiva, rent included.

Budapest $2,562
Thiva $1,551

A family of three spends $3,483 per month in Budapest vs $1,966 in Thiva, rent included.

Budapest $3,483
Thiva $1,966

Budapest costs about 44% more than Thiva, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Budapest sits 21% above the global median, while Thiva is 16% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.04 Ft 4,536

$11.10 €9.88

26.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.9 Ft 19.7K

$59.5 €52.9

2.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.37 Ft 3,351

$6.65 €5.92

55.94%

Cappuccino

$3.46 Ft 1,117

$2.48 €2.21

39.52%

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

$2.07 Ft 669

$2.42 €2.15

-14.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.77 Ft 572

$0.52 €0.46

240.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.69 Ft 1,191

$4.59 €4.08

-19.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.80 Ft 1,229

$2.72 €2.42

39.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 Ft 374

$1.55 €1.38

-25.16%

White Bread (500g)

$1.85 Ft 598

$1.41 €1.26

31.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.40 Ft 776

$2.30 €2.05

4.35%

Eggs

$3.99 Ft 1,289

$5.21 €4.63

-23.42%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.40 Ft 3,683

$11.47 €10.20

-0.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.87 Ft 2,221

$9.51 €8.46

-27.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.49 Ft 4,682

$14.29 €12.71

1.40%

Apples (1kg)

$1.88 Ft 607

$1.64 €1.45

14.63%

Banana (1kg)

$2.14 Ft 693

$1.94 €1.73

10.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.30 Ft 744

$1.10 €0.98

109.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.04 Ft 1,304

$1.81 €1.61

123.20%

Potato (1kg)

$1.02 Ft 329

$0.95 €0.84

7.37%

Onion (1kg)

$0.99 Ft 320

$1.31 €1.17

-24.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.58 Ft 510

$0.88 €0.78

79.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.70 Ft 225

$0.64 €0.57

9.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.03 Ft 2,594

$4.79 €4.26

67.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.18 Ft 1,997

$6.64 €5.91

-6.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 Ft 401

$1.70 €1.52

-27.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 Ft 666

$1.97 €1.75

4.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.59 Ft 513

$1.33 €1.19

19.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.52 Ft 8,893

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.43 Ft 1,110

$3.71 €3.30

-7.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.33 Ft 431

$1.14 €1.02

16.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.45 Ft 6,607

$13.84 €12.31

47.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.93 Ft 624

$2.07 €1.85

-6.76%

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

$29.1K Ft 9.4M

$28.1K €25.0K

3.54%

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

$34.7K Ft 11.2M

$24.6K €21.8K

41.39%

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

$175 Ft 56.4K

$163 €145

7.34%

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

$23.62 Ft 7,631

$24.50 €21.80

-3.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.60 Ft 7,625

$28.35 €25.22

-16.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.8 Ft 22.2K

$49.46 €43.99

39.18%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.26 Ft 6,224

$25.64 €22.80

-24.88%

Cinema Ticket

$10.31 Ft 3,333

$7.78 €6.92

32.52%

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

$535 Ft 172.9K

$331 €294

61.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

$4,491 €3,994

275.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.9 Ft 32.3K

$50.1 €44.59

99.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.27 Ft 14.0K

$34.23 €30.45

26.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 Ft 36.1K

$75.4 €67.1

48.20%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.4K

$107 €94.9

11.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$832 Ft 268.8K

$338 €300

146.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$629 Ft 203.3K

$281 €250

123.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,586 Ft 512.4K

$616 €548

157.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 Ft 386.6K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,718 Ft 1.8M

$1,723 €1,532

231.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,947 Ft 1.3M

$1,408 €1,253

180.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,712 Ft 553.1K

$1,142 €1,016

49.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

4.36

47.94%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 19, 2026

Last update for Thiva: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$629 38.4%

Thiva

$281 24.8% 55.3% $348

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$262 16%

Thiva

$260 22.9% 0.6% $1.5

Eating Out

Budapest

$226 13.8%

Thiva

$179 15.7% 21% $48

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$222 13.5%

Thiva

$216 19% 2.8% $6.3

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$168 10.3%

Thiva

$120 10.6% 28.7% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$89 5.5%

Thiva

$65 5.7% 27.3% $24

Getting Around

Budapest

$44 2.7%

Thiva

$15 * 1.3% 66.5% $29

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 $338 in Thiva. 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 50% 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 $59.0 in Thiva. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $262 vs $260 – making Thiva the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇬🇷 Thiva

🕒 Local time

23:44 11:44 PM

00:44 12:44 AM

1 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

22,883

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD 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).

Euro exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Budapest Thiva 1,080 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
Thiva

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 Thiva: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 44%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,461 per month in Budapest and $1,703 in Thiva. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Thiva, 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 $59.0 in Thiva. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 1% 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 $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Thiva, where all-in costs run around $1,135, than in Budapest at $1,641. In Thiva it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Thiva – 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 Thiva. 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.