Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Tokyo

For one person, living costs are similar in Budapest and in Tokyo: $1,621 and $1,635 a month, rent and utilities included.

79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Tokyo
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Tokyo Living Index

Jump to prices

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,621

/mo nomad

Tokyo

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,635

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Tokyo

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

A single person spends $1,621 per month in Budapest vs $1,635 in Tokyo, rent included.

Budapest $1,621
Tokyo $1,635

A couple spends around $2,555 per month in Budapest vs $2,608 in Tokyo, rent included.

Budapest $2,555
Tokyo $2,608

A family of three spends $3,489 per month in Budapest vs $3,581 in Tokyo, rent included.

Budapest $3,489
Tokyo $3,581

Budapest is about 1% cheaper than Tokyo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Budapest and Tokyo sit above the global median – Budapest by 21%, Tokyo by 22%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.99 Ft 4,555

$7.64 ¥1,207

83.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.3 Ft 19.7K

$38.51 ¥6,087

56.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.96 Ft 3,244

$5.05 ¥799

97.23%

Cappuccino

$3.38 Ft 1,102

$3.61 ¥570

-6.37%

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

$2.13 Ft 693

$1.62 ¥257

31.48%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 Ft 609

$0.86 ¥135

117.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.75 Ft 1,222

$3.69 ¥583

1.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.57 Ft 1,163

$5.27 ¥834

-32.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 Ft 369

$1.53 ¥242

-26.14%

White Bread (500g)

$1.84 Ft 600

$1.76 ¥278

4.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.39 Ft 777

$5.59 ¥883

-57.25%

Eggs

$3.83 Ft 1,246

$2.24 ¥354

70.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.33 Ft 3,689

$10.65 ¥1,684

6.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.74 Ft 2,194

$6.60 ¥1,043

2.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.69 Ft 4,784

$16.74 ¥2,646

-12.25%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 Ft 598

$4.86 ¥768

-62.14%

Banana (1kg)

$2.01 Ft 654

$2.35 ¥371

-14.47%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 Ft 767

$4.33 ¥684

-45.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.77 Ft 1,227

$5.28 ¥835

-28.60%

Potato (1kg)

$0.96 Ft 314

$3.41 ¥539

-71.85%

Onion (1kg)

$1.03 Ft 335

$3.19 ¥504

-67.71%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.56 Ft 509

$1.18 ¥187

32.20%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 Ft 216

$0.83 ¥131

-20.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.96 Ft 2,594

$3.84 ¥607

107.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.01 Ft 1,956

$9.27 ¥1,466

-35.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 Ft 422

$1.64 ¥259

-20.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.08 Ft 677

$2.75 ¥434

-24.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 Ft 490

$1.29 ¥204

16.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.61 Ft 8,991

$62.1 ¥9,819

-55.55%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.30 Ft 1,075

$3.08 ¥487

7.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.30 Ft 424

$3.21 ¥507

-59.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.78 Ft 6,442

$18.41 ¥2,909

7.44%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.81 Ft 591

$1.07 ¥169

69.16%

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

$29.3K Ft 9.6M

$22.2K ¥3.5M

32.29%

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

$34.1K Ft 11.1M

$15.3K ¥2.4M

123.09%

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

$170 Ft 55.3K

$148 ¥23.3K

15.14%

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

$23.98 Ft 7,809

$21.97 ¥3,472

9.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.42 Ft 7,628

$30.43 ¥4,810

-23.04%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.2 Ft 21.6K

$65.1 ¥10.3K

1.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.18 Ft 6,245

$25.55 ¥4,039

-24.93%

Cinema Ticket

$9.52 Ft 3,101

$12.87 ¥2,034

-26.03%

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

$537 Ft 174.8K

$1,360 ¥215.0K

-60.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K Ft 5.4M

$18.3K ¥2.9M

-9.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 Ft 33.0K

$56.5 ¥8,932

79.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.99 Ft 14.0K

$33.16 ¥5,241

29.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 Ft 36.7K

$64.4 ¥10.2K

75.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.7K

$71.8 ¥11.3K

65.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$805 Ft 262.2K

$1,275 ¥201.5K

-36.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$629 Ft 204.9K

$702 ¥111.0K

-10.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,549 Ft 504.6K

$2,565 ¥405.5K

-39.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,167 Ft 380.1K

$1,480 ¥234.0K

-21.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,618 Ft 1.8M

$9,152 ¥1.4M

-38.61%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,968 Ft 1.3M

$4,191 ¥662.4K

-5.32%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,626 Ft 529.5K

$2,998 ¥473.8K

-45.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.43

2.25

185.78%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 5, 2026

Last update for Tokyo: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$629 38.7%

Tokyo

$702 42.2% 11.6% $73

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$258 15.8%

Tokyo

$325 19.5% 26.2% $67

Eating Out

Budapest

$224 13.8%

Tokyo

$158 9.5% 29.3% $66

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$217 13.4%

Tokyo

$200 12% 8% $17

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$169 10.4%

Tokyo

$102 6.1% 39.9% $68

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$85 5.2%

Tokyo

$91 5.5% 6.5% $5.5

Getting Around

Budapest

$43 2.7%

Tokyo

$86 5.2% 99% $43

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $805 in Budapest versus $1,275 in Tokyo. 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 84% higher in Tokyo, 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 $39.00 in Tokyo. Groceries tell a different story – $258 in Budapest vs $325 in Tokyo – so Budapest wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇯🇵 Tokyo

🕒 Local time

13:14 1:14 PM

20:14 8:14 PM

7 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

13,613,660 Capital

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.65 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 326 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD). 1 EUR = 365 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 177 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.65 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

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Budapest Tokyo 9,050 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

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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 Tokyo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Tokyo is pricier by about 1%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,432 per month in Budapest and $2,453 in Tokyo. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Public transport costs about 125% less in Budapest. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $537 per month in Budapest and $1,360 in Tokyo. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Budapest, where all-in costs run around $1,621, than in Tokyo at $1,635. In Budapest it covers expenses comfortably, while in Tokyo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Budapest – 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 Budapest. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Tokyo makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.