Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Yoshkar-Ola

For one person, living is cheaper in Yoshkar-Ola: $934 a month against $1,619 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $8,200 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
46

Cost of Living Index in Yoshkar-Ola
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Yoshkar-Ola Living Index

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Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Yoshkar-Ola

🇷🇺 Russia

$934

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Yoshkar-Ola

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 Yoshkar-Ola actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,619 per month in Budapest vs $934 in Yoshkar-Ola, rent included.

Budapest $1,619
Yoshkar-Ola $934

A couple spends around $2,524 per month in Budapest vs $1,519 in Yoshkar-Ola, rent included.

Budapest $2,524
Yoshkar-Ola $1,519

A family of three spends $3,429 per month in Budapest vs $2,104 in Yoshkar-Ola, rent included.

Budapest $3,429
Yoshkar-Ola $2,104

Budapest costs about 73% more than Yoshkar-Ola, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Budapest sits 20% above the global median, while Yoshkar-Ola is 31% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.94 Ft 4,503

$5.87 ₽490

137.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

$54.1 ₽4,516

13.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.19 Ft 3,291

$4.70 ₽392

116.81%

Cappuccino

$3.26 Ft 1,055

$1.68 ₽140

94.05%

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

$2.14 Ft 690

$0.79 ₽66.0

170.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.78 Ft 577

$0.26 ₽21.67

584.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.71 Ft 1,198

$0.85 ₽71.2

336.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.77 Ft 1,217

$1.69 ₽141

123.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 Ft 371

$0.76 ₽63.8

51.32%

White Bread (500g)

$1.79 Ft 578

$0.77 ₽63.9

132.47%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 Ft 804

$1.40 ₽117

77.86%

Eggs

$3.90 Ft 1,261

$1.61 ₽134

142.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.10 Ft 3,587

$11.57 ₽966

-4.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.62 Ft 2,139

$4.72 ₽394

40.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.69 Ft 4,745

$13.16 ₽1,099

11.63%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 Ft 591

$1.76 ₽147

3.98%

Banana (1kg)

$2.05 Ft 661

$1.65 ₽138

24.24%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.37 Ft 765

$1.71 ₽143

38.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.90 Ft 1,260

$3.52 ₽294

10.80%

Potato (1kg)

$0.99 Ft 320

$0.64 ₽53.6

54.69%

Onion (1kg)

$1.00 Ft 322

$0.60 ₽50.4

66.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.58 Ft 511

$1.27 ₽106

24.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 Ft 216

$0.71 ₽59.1

-5.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.96 Ft 2,572

$2.90 ₽242

174.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.22 Ft 2,009

$8.27 ₽690

-24.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 Ft 411

$1.10 ₽92.2

15.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 Ft 654

$2.31 ₽193

-12.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.52 Ft 490

$0.47 ₽39.21

223.40%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.02 Ft 9,053

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.31 Ft 1,070

$1.40 ₽116

136.43%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.37 Ft 442

$0.40 ₽33.64

242.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.83 Ft 6,406

$7.10 ₽592

179.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.82 Ft 589

$0.78 ₽64.8

133.33%

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

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

$41.5K ₽3.5M

-28.12%

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

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

$32.2K ₽2.7M

4.92%

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

$171 Ft 55.3K

$93.4 ₽7,795

83.21%

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

$23.51 Ft 7,596

$7.19 ₽600

226.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.29 Ft 7,526

$7.75 ₽647

200.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

$36.13 ₽3,016

86.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.89 Ft 6,104

$23.87 ₽1,992

-20.86%

Cinema Ticket

$9.30 Ft 3,004

$7.36 ₽614

26.36%

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

$533 Ft 172.3K

$315 ₽26.3K

69.10%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

$6,827 ₽569.8K

145.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

$69.6 ₽5,812

43.04%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

$52.7 ₽4,402

-17.54%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 Ft 35.7K

$138 ₽11.5K

-20.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.4K

$82.7 ₽6,904

43.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$830 Ft 268.3K

$474 ₽39.6K

75.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$622 Ft 200.9K

$310 ₽25.9K

100.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

$880 ₽73.4K

81.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

$557 ₽46.5K

109.95%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

$2,269 ₽189.4K

157.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

$1,295 ₽108.1K

200.29%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

20.81

-69.01%

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

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Last update for Yoshkar-Ola: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$622 38.4%

Yoshkar-Ola

$310 33.2% 50.2% $312

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$258 15.9%

Yoshkar-Ola

$212 22.7% 17.9% $46

Eating Out

Budapest

$223 13.8%

Yoshkar-Ola

$93 10% 58.2% $130

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$218 13.5%

Yoshkar-Ola

$108 11.6% 50.3% $110

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$168 10.4%

Yoshkar-Ola

$155 16.6% 7.8% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$86 5.3%

Yoshkar-Ola

$51 5.5% 41% $35

Getting Around

Budapest

$44 2.7%

Yoshkar-Ola

$5.3 * 0.6% 88% $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 $474 in Yoshkar-Ola. 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 $61.0 in Budapest versus $54.0 in Yoshkar-Ola. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $212 – making Yoshkar-Ola the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇷🇺 Yoshkar-Ola

🕒 Local time

05:44 5:44 AM

06:44 6:44 AM

1 h ahead of Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

276,155

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Russian Ruble RUB ₽

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

100 RUB = 1.2 USD

100 RUB = 1.07 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RUB, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 83.46 RUB (100 RUB = 1.2 USD). 1 EUR = 93.83 RUB (100 RUB = 1.07 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Budapest Yoshkar-Ola 2,200 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
Yoshkar-Ola

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 Yoshkar-Ola: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 73%, 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 $1,400 in Yoshkar-Ola. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Yoshkar-Ola, 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 $54.0 in Yoshkar-Ola. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 22% 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 $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Yoshkar-Ola, where all-in costs run around $934, than in Budapest at $1,619. In Yoshkar-Ola it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Yoshkar-Ola – 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 Yoshkar-Ola. 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.