Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Xiangtan

For one person, living is cheaper in Xiangtan: $707 a month against $1,621 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $11,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
Learn more

Budapest Living Index
35

Cost of Living Index in Xiangtan
Learn more

Xiangtan Living Index

Jump to prices

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,621

/mo nomad

Xiangtan

🇨🇳 China

$707

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Xiangtan

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

A single person spends $1,621 per month in Budapest vs $707 in Xiangtan, rent included.

Budapest $1,621
Xiangtan $707

A couple spends around $2,555 per month in Budapest vs $1,119 in Xiangtan, rent included.

Budapest $2,555
Xiangtan $1,119

A family of three spends $3,489 per month in Budapest vs $1,531 in Xiangtan, rent included.

Budapest $3,489
Xiangtan $1,531

Budapest costs about 129% more than Xiangtan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Budapest sits 21% above the global median, while Xiangtan is 47% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.99 Ft 4,570

$2.82 ¥18.84

396.10%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.3 Ft 19.7K

$21.94 ¥147

175.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.96 Ft 3,255

$4.92 ¥32.89

102.44%

Cappuccino

$3.38 Ft 1,105

$2.98 ¥19.90

13.42%

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

$2.13 Ft 696

$0.44 ¥2.93

384.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 Ft 611

$0.27 ¥1.80

592.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.75 Ft 1,226

$0.94 ¥6.28

298.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.57 Ft 1,167

$2.03 ¥13.58

75.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 Ft 370

$1.78 ¥11.89

-36.52%

White Bread (500g)

$1.84 Ft 602

$1.54 ¥10.27

19.48%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.39 Ft 780

$0.90 ¥6.04

165.56%

Eggs

$3.83 Ft 1,250

$1.59 ¥10.59

140.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.33 Ft 3,702

$12.90 ¥86.2

-12.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.74 Ft 2,201

$3.26 ¥21.76

106.75%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.69 Ft 4,800

$10.24 ¥68.4

43.46%

Apples (1kg)

$1.84 Ft 600

$1.80 ¥12.02

2.22%

Banana (1kg)

$2.01 Ft 656

$1.25 ¥8.37

60.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 Ft 770

$1.52 ¥10.17

55.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.77 Ft 1,232

$1.15 ¥7.68

227.83%

Potato (1kg)

$0.96 Ft 315

$0.69 ¥4.63

39.13%

Onion (1kg)

$1.03 Ft 336

$0.94 ¥6.31

9.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.56 Ft 511

$0.60 ¥4.02

160.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 Ft 217

$0.54 ¥3.61

22.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.96 Ft 2,602

$3.14 ¥20.99

153.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.01 Ft 1,963

$10.52 ¥70.3

-42.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 Ft 423

$0.75 ¥5.04

73.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.08 Ft 679

$1.65 ¥11.00

26.06%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 Ft 491

$0.27 ¥1.80

455.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.61 Ft 9,021

$16.93 ¥113

63.08%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.30 Ft 1,079

$1.41 ¥9.43

134.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.30 Ft 426

$0.32 ¥2.17

306.25%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.78 Ft 6,465

$6.63 ¥44.30

198.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.81 Ft 593

$1.18 ¥7.90

53.39%

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

$29.3K Ft 9.6M

$19.5K ¥130.4K

50.25%

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

$34.1K Ft 11.1M

$16.9K ¥113.1K

101.52%

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

$170 Ft 55.5K

$44.88 ¥300

278.65%

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

$23.98 Ft 7,836

$10.05 ¥67.2

138.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.42 Ft 7,654

$11.93 ¥79.7

96.31%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$66.2 Ft 21.6K

$40.95 ¥274

61.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.18 Ft 6,266

$13.70 ¥91.6

40.00%

Cinema Ticket

$9.52 Ft 3,112

$5.87 ¥39.21

62.18%

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

$537 Ft 175.4K

$337 ¥2,253

59.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K Ft 5.4M

$17.1K ¥114.2K

-2.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 Ft 33.1K

$43.90 ¥293

130.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.99 Ft 14.0K

$30.68 ¥205

40.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 Ft 36.8K

$70.5 ¥471

59.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.8K

$72.6 ¥485

63.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$805 Ft 263.1K

$274 ¥1,833

193.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$629 Ft 205.6K

$192 ¥1,286

227.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,549 Ft 506.3K

$589 ¥3,936

163.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,167 Ft 381.4K

$356 ¥2,381

227.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,618 Ft 1.8M

$3,066 ¥20.5K

83.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,968 Ft 1.3M

$2,049 ¥13.7K

93.63%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,626 Ft 531.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.43

3.89

65.30%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 5, 2026

Last update for Xiangtan: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$629 38.7%

Xiangtan

$192 27% 69.4% $437

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$258 15.8%

Xiangtan

$198 27.8% 23.1% $60

Eating Out

Budapest

$224 13.8%

Xiangtan

$85 11.9% 62.3% $140

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$217 13.4%

Xiangtan

$67 9.4% 69.2% $150

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$169 10.4%

Xiangtan

$98 13.7% 42.1% $71

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$85 5.2%

Xiangtan

$53 7.4% 38.2% $33

Getting Around

Budapest

$43 2.7%

Xiangtan

$21 3% 51.6% $22

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $805 in Budapest versus $274 in Xiangtan. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $60.0 in Budapest versus $22.00 in Xiangtan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $198 – making Xiangtan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇨🇳 Xiangtan

🕒 Local time

07:22 7:22 AM

13:22 1:22 PM

6 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

2,748,552

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.06 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.73 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 327 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.06 USD). 1 EUR = 366 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.73 EUR).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.49 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Budapest Xiangtan 8,040 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
Xiangtan

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 Xiangtan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 129%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,432 per month in Budapest and $1,061 in Xiangtan. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Public transport costs about 63% less in Xiangtan. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $537 per month in Budapest and $337 in Xiangtan. 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 Xiangtan, where all-in costs run around $707, than in Budapest at $1,621. In Xiangtan it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Xiangtan – 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 Xiangtan. 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.