Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between El Medano and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in El Medano: $1,447 a month against $1,619 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $2,100 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Budapest outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

71

Cost of Living Index in El Medano
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El Medano Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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El Medano

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,447

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in El Medano 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 El Medano and in Budapest actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,447 per month in El Medano vs $1,619 in Budapest, rent included.

El Medano $1,447
Budapest $1,619

A couple spends around $2,394 per month in El Medano vs $2,524 in Budapest, rent included.

El Medano $2,394
Budapest $2,524

A family of three spends $3,342 per month in El Medano vs $3,429 in Budapest, rent included.

El Medano $3,342
Budapest $3,429

El Medano is about 11% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both El Medano and Budapest sit above the global median – El Medano by 7%, Budapest by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.37 €18.12

$13.94 Ft 4,503

46.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €54.9

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

0.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.38 €10.13

$10.19 Ft 3,291

11.68%

Cappuccino

$1.99 €1.77

$3.26 Ft 1,055

-38.96%

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

$1.90 €1.69

$2.14 Ft 690

-11.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.78 Ft 577

-26.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.76 €2.45

$3.71 Ft 1,198

-25.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.28 €2.91

$3.77 Ft 1,217

-13.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 €1.18

$1.15 Ft 371

14.78%

White Bread (500g)

$2.41 €2.14

$1.79 Ft 578

34.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.59 €1.41

$2.49 Ft 804

-36.14%

Eggs

$4.18 €3.72

$3.90 Ft 1,261

7.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.57 €12.96

$11.10 Ft 3,587

31.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.25 €8.23

$6.62 Ft 2,139

39.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.98 €15.99

$14.69 Ft 4,745

22.40%

Apples (1kg)

$2.48 €2.21

$1.83 Ft 591

35.52%

Banana (1kg)

$2.28 €2.03

$2.05 Ft 661

11.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 €2.00

$2.37 Ft 765

-5.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.53 €2.25

$3.90 Ft 1,260

-35.13%

Potato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$0.99 Ft 320

112.12%

Onion (1kg)

$1.93 €1.72

$1.00 Ft 322

93.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.64 €1.46

$1.58 Ft 511

3.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 €0.87

$0.67 Ft 216

46.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.52 €4.91

$7.96 Ft 2,572

-30.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.73 €6.88

$6.22 Ft 2,009

24.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.68 €1.50

$1.27 Ft 411

32.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 €1.23

$2.03 Ft 654

-32.02%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.67 €1.49

$1.52 Ft 490

9.87%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.49 €22.67

$28.02 Ft 9,053

-9.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.08 €3.63

$3.31 Ft 1,070

23.26%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.73 €1.54

$1.37 Ft 442

26.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.58 €14.75

$19.83 Ft 6,406

-16.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.25 €1.11

$1.82 Ft 589

-31.32%

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

$27.1K €24.1K

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

-8.92%

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

$28.8K €25.7K

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

-14.68%

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

$98.8 €87.9

$171 Ft 55.3K

-42.27%

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

$22.46 €19.98

$23.51 Ft 7,596

-4.47%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.17 €31.28

$23.29 Ft 7,526

51.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.58 €39.66

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

-33.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.75 €14.01

$18.89 Ft 6,104

-16.62%

Cinema Ticket

$9.90 €8.81

$9.30 Ft 3,004

6.45%

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

$407 €362

$533 Ft 172.3K

-23.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,118 €4,553

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

-69.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$92.2 €82.0

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

-7.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.86 €37.24

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

-3.75%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.2 €80.3

$110 Ft 35.7K

-18.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$114 €102

$119 Ft 38.4K

-3.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$895 €796

$830 Ft 268.3K

7.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$468 €416

$622 Ft 200.9K

-24.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,354 €1,205

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

-15.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,027 €913

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

-12.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,258 €2,898

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

-44.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,228 €1,982

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

-42.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.56

6.45

-44.81%

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

Last update for El Medano: October 11, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

El Medano

$468 32.3%

Budapest

$622 38.4% 32.9% $154

Groceries & Markets

El Medano

$307 21.2%

Budapest

$258 15.9% 16% $49

Eating Out

El Medano

$254 17.6%

Budapest

$223 13.8% 12.3% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

El Medano

$156 10.8%

Budapest

$218 13.5% 39.3% $62

Clothing & Footwear

El Medano

$152 10.5%

Budapest

$168 10.4% 10% $15

Sport & Entertainment

El Medano

$64 4.5%

Budapest

$86 5.3% 33.8% $22

Getting Around

El Medano

$45 3.1%

Budapest

$44 2.7% 1.5% $0.7

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $895 in El Medano versus $830 in Budapest. 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 $62.0 in El Medano versus $61.0 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $307 vs $258 – making Budapest the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇸 El Medano

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

01:48 1:48 AM

02:48 2:48 AM

1 h ahead of El Medano

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,500

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

El Medano Budapest 3,750 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

El Medano
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

El Medano vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 12%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,171 per month in El Medano and $2,428 in Budapest. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Public transport costs about 10% less in El Medano. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $407 per month in El Medano and $533 in Budapest. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in El Medano, where all-in costs run around $1,447, than in Budapest at $1,619. In El Medano it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward El Medano – 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 El Medano. 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.