Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Vaslui

For one person, living is cheaper in Vaslui: $964 a month against $1,641 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index
47

Cost of Living Index in Vaslui
Learn more

Vaslui Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,641

/mo nomad

Vaslui

🇷🇴 Romania

$964

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Vaslui

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

A single person spends $1,641 per month in Budapest vs $964 in Vaslui, rent included.

Budapest $1,641
Vaslui $964

A couple spends around $2,562 per month in Budapest vs $1,454 in Vaslui, rent included.

Budapest $2,562
Vaslui $1,454

A family of three spends $3,483 per month in Budapest vs $1,945 in Vaslui, rent included.

Budapest $3,483
Vaslui $1,945

Budapest costs about 70% more than Vaslui, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Budapest sits 21% above the global median, while Vaslui is 29% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.04 Ft 4,536

$6.24 RON 29.52

125.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.9 Ft 19.7K

$31.42 RON 149

93.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.37 Ft 3,351

$6.18 RON 29.23

67.80%

Cappuccino

$3.46 Ft 1,117

$2.19 RON 10.34

57.99%

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

$2.07 Ft 669

$2.10 RON 9.95

-1.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.77 Ft 572

$1.61 RON 7.60

9.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.69 Ft 1,191

$2.55 RON 12.06

44.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.80 Ft 1,229

$3.08 RON 14.55

23.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 Ft 374

$1.28 RON 6.06

-9.38%

White Bread (500g)

$1.85 Ft 598

$1.08 RON 5.11

71.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.40 Ft 776

$1.69 RON 7.98

42.01%

Eggs

$3.99 Ft 1,289

$2.58 RON 12.20

54.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.40 Ft 3,683

$8.12 RON 38.41

40.39%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.87 Ft 2,221

$6.12 RON 28.94

12.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.49 Ft 4,682

$11.12 RON 52.6

30.31%

Apples (1kg)

$1.88 Ft 607

$0.91 RON 4.31

106.59%

Banana (1kg)

$2.14 Ft 693

$1.47 RON 6.94

45.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.30 Ft 744

$1.55 RON 7.34

48.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.04 Ft 1,304

$1.99 RON 9.39

103.02%

Potato (1kg)

$1.02 Ft 329

$0.77 RON 3.64

32.47%

Onion (1kg)

$0.99 Ft 320

$0.97 RON 4.61

2.06%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.58 Ft 510

$1.08 RON 5.10

46.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.70 Ft 225

$0.64 RON 3.02

9.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.03 Ft 2,594

$5.42 RON 25.64

48.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.18 Ft 1,997

$5.11 RON 24.16

20.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 Ft 401

$0.87 RON 4.10

42.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 Ft 666

$1.45 RON 6.88

42.07%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.59 Ft 513

$0.77 RON 3.63

106.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.52 Ft 8,893

$21.66 RON 102

27.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.43 Ft 1,110

$0.76 RON 3.60

351.32%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.33 Ft 431

$0.71 RON 3.34

87.32%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.45 Ft 6,607

$7.40 RON 35.01

176.35%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.93 Ft 624

$1.65 RON 7.80

16.97%

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

$29.1K Ft 9.4M

$27.5K RON 130.3K

5.80%

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

$34.7K Ft 11.2M

$24.7K RON 117.1K

40.32%

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

$175 Ft 56.4K

$183 RON 864

-4.43%

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

$23.62 Ft 7,631

$5.76 RON 27.27

310.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.60 Ft 7,625

$7.94 RON 37.57

197.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.8 Ft 22.2K

$38.60 RON 183

78.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.26 Ft 6,224

$18.03 RON 85.3

6.82%

Cinema Ticket

$10.31 Ft 3,333

$7.58 RON 35.87

36.02%

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

$535 Ft 172.9K

$316 RON 1,495

69.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

$9,034 RON 42.7K

86.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.9 Ft 32.3K

$38.08 RON 180

162.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.27 Ft 14.0K

$14.69 RON 69.5

194.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 Ft 36.1K

$66.6 RON 315

67.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.4K

$73.1 RON 346

62.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$832 Ft 268.8K

$389 RON 1,840

113.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$629 Ft 203.3K

$278 RON 1,314

126.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,586 Ft 512.4K

$636 RON 3,011

149.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 Ft 386.6K

$505 RON 2,388

137.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,718 Ft 1.8M

$1,998 RON 9,452

186.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,947 Ft 1.3M

$1,263 RON 5,977

212.43%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,712 Ft 553.1K

$444 RON 2,100

285.68%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

6.5

-0.77%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 19, 2026

Last update for Vaslui: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$629 38.4%

Vaslui

$278 28.8% 55.9% $352

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$262 16%

Vaslui

$192 19.9% 26.6% $70

Eating Out

Budapest

$226 13.8%

Vaslui

$128 13.3% 43.3% $98

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$222 13.5%

Vaslui

$196 20.4% 11.5% $25

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$168 10.3%

Vaslui

$87 9% 48.5% $82

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$89 5.5%

Vaslui

$54 5.6% 39.9% $36

Getting Around

Budapest

$44 2.7%

Vaslui

$29 3% 34% $15

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $832 in Budapest versus $389 in Vaslui. 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 286% 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 $31.00 in Vaslui. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $262 vs $192 – making Vaslui the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇷🇴 Vaslui

🕒 Local time

09:33 9:33 AM

10:33 10:33 AM

1 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

55,407

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

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Between locations

Budapest Vaslui 660 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
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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 Vaslui: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 70%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,461 per month in Budapest and $1,446 in Vaslui. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Public transport costs about 27% less in Vaslui. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $535 per month in Budapest and $316 in Vaslui. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Vaslui, where all-in costs run around $964, than in Budapest at $1,641. In Vaslui it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Vaslui – 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 Vaslui. 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.