Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buenos Aires and Budapest

For one person, living costs are similar in Buenos Aires and in Budapest: $1,685 and $1,621 a month, rent and utilities included.

81

Cost of Living Index in Buenos Aires
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Buenos Aires Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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Buenos Aires

🇦🇷 Argentina

$1,685

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,621

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Buenos Aires and in Budapest

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Buenos Aires and in Budapest actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,685 per month in Buenos Aires vs $1,621 in Budapest, rent included.

Buenos Aires $1,685
Budapest $1,621

A couple spends around $2,742 per month in Buenos Aires vs $2,555 in Budapest, rent included.

Buenos Aires $2,742
Budapest $2,555

A family of three spends $3,799 per month in Buenos Aires vs $3,489 in Budapest, rent included.

Buenos Aires $3,799
Budapest $3,489

Buenos Aires costs about 4% more than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Buenos Aires and Budapest sit above the global median – Buenos Aires by 26%, Budapest by 21%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.73 ARS 28.4K

$13.99 Ft 4,555

33.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$64.5 ARS 97.7K

$60.3 Ft 19.7K

6.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.88 ARS 19.5K

$9.96 Ft 3,244

29.32%

Cappuccino

$3.98 ARS 6,027

$3.38 Ft 1,102

17.75%

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

$2.05 ARS 3,102

$2.13 Ft 693

-3.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.55 ARS 2,348

$1.87 Ft 609

-17.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 ARS 5,828

$3.75 Ft 1,222

2.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.60 ARS 6,968

$3.57 Ft 1,163

28.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 ARS 2,180

$1.13 Ft 369

27.43%

White Bread (500g)

$2.46 ARS 3,737

$1.84 Ft 600

33.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.63 ARS 2,466

$2.39 Ft 777

-31.80%

Eggs

$2.89 ARS 4,384

$3.83 Ft 1,246

-24.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.65 ARS 16.1K

$11.33 Ft 3,689

-6.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.00 ARS 15.2K

$6.74 Ft 2,194

48.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.74 ARS 20.8K

$14.69 Ft 4,784

-6.47%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 ARS 4,165

$1.84 Ft 598

49.46%

Banana (1kg)

$2.18 ARS 3,299

$2.01 Ft 654

8.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.45 ARS 2,204

$2.36 Ft 767

-38.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.99 ARS 3,012

$3.77 Ft 1,227

-47.21%

Potato (1kg)

$1.24 ARS 1,884

$0.96 Ft 314

29.17%

Onion (1kg)

$1.27 ARS 1,920

$1.03 Ft 335

23.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.70 ARS 2,574

$1.56 Ft 509

8.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.73 ARS 2,616

$0.66 Ft 216

162.12%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.18 ARS 6,335

$7.96 Ft 2,594

-47.49%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.80 ARS 8,787

$6.01 Ft 1,956

-3.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.09 ARS 3,162

$1.30 Ft 422

60.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.77 ARS 4,197

$2.08 Ft 677

33.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.75 ARS 1,131

$1.50 Ft 490

-50.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.15 ARS 41.2K

$27.61 Ft 8,991

-1.67%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.62 ARS 2,450

$3.30 Ft 1,075

-50.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.98 ARS 1,480

$1.30 Ft 424

-24.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.72 ARS 11.7K

$19.78 Ft 6,442

-60.97%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.36 ARS 2,057

$1.81 Ft 591

-24.86%

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

$28.0K ARS 42.5M

$29.3K Ft 9.6M

-4.49%

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

$34.5K ARS 52.3M

$34.1K Ft 11.1M

1.24%

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

$216 ARS 326.8K

$170 Ft 55.3K

26.85%

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

$25.61 ARS 38.8K

$23.98 Ft 7,809

6.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.36 ARS 47.5K

$23.42 Ft 7,628

33.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.82 ARS 75.5K

$66.2 Ft 21.6K

-24.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.06 ARS 25.9K

$19.18 Ft 6,245

-11.05%

Cinema Ticket

$10.43 ARS 15.8K

$9.52 Ft 3,101

9.56%

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

$466 ARS 706.5K

$537 Ft 174.8K

-13.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,057 ARS 13.7M

$16.6K Ft 5.4M

-45.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$122 ARS 185.1K

$101 Ft 33.0K

20.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$97.4 ARS 147.7K

$42.99 Ft 14.0K

126.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$117 ARS 177.3K

$113 Ft 36.7K

3.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$140 ARS 211.8K

$119 Ft 38.7K

17.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$763 ARS 1.2M

$805 Ft 262.2K

-5.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$505 ARS 765.8K

$629 Ft 204.9K

-19.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,598 ARS 2.4M

$1,549 Ft 504.6K

3.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,185 ARS 1.8M

$1,167 Ft 380.1K

1.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,678 ARS 4.1M

$5,618 Ft 1.8M

-52.33%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,858 ARS 2.8M

$3,968 Ft 1.3M

-53.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$954 ARS 1.4M

$1,626 Ft 529.5K

-41.29%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

57.25

6.43

790.36%

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

Last update for Buenos Aires: October 6, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buenos Aires

$505 30.4%

Budapest

$629 38.7% 24.6% $124

Groceries & Markets

Buenos Aires

$284 17.1%

Budapest

$258 15.8% 9.3% $26

Eating Out

Buenos Aires

$279 16.8%

Budapest

$224 13.8% 19.6% $55

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buenos Aires

$273 16.4%

Budapest

$217 13.4% 20.3% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Buenos Aires

$214 12.9%

Budapest

$169 10.4% 21.1% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Buenos Aires

$71 4.3%

Budapest

$85 5.2% 20.7% $15

Getting Around

Buenos Aires

$37 2.2%

Budapest

$43 2.7% 18.6% $6.8

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $763 in Buenos Aires versus $805 in Budapest. 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 70% higher in Budapest, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $64.0 in Buenos Aires versus $60.0 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $284 vs $258 – making Budapest the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇷 Buenos Aires

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

21:28 9:28 PM

02:28 2:28 AM

5 h ahead of Buenos Aires

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,891,082 Capital

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Argentine Peso ARS $

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 ARS = 6.6 USD

10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to ARS – Argentine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇷 Argentine Peso ($)

Argentine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,516 ARS (10,000 ARS = 6.6 USD). 1 EUR = 1,700 ARS (10,000 ARS = 5.88 EUR).

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).

USD to ARS in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Buenos Aires Budapest 11,940 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Buenos Aires
Budapest

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

Buenos Aires vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Buenos Aires is pricier by about 4%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,528 per month in Buenos Aires and $2,432 in Budapest. 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 2% less in Budapest. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $466 per month in Buenos Aires and $537 in Budapest. 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 Buenos Aires at $1,685. In Budapest it covers expenses comfortably, while in Buenos Aires 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, Buenos Aires makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.