Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Gaborone and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Gaborone: $838 a month against $1,647 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $9,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

40

Cost of Living Index in Gaborone
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Gaborone Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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Gaborone

🇧🇼 Botswana

$838

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,647

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $838 per month in Gaborone vs $1,647 in Budapest, rent included.

Gaborone $838
Budapest $1,647

A couple spends around $1,292 per month in Gaborone vs $2,567 in Budapest, rent included.

Gaborone $1,292
Budapest $2,567

A family of three spends $1,747 per month in Gaborone vs $3,488 in Budapest, rent included.

Gaborone $1,747
Budapest $3,488

Gaborone is about 49% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Gaborone sits 38% below the global median, while Budapest is 22% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.00 P 147

$13.63 Ft 4,407

-19.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$28.59 P 381

$60.7 Ft 19.6K

-52.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.75 P 76.7

$10.02 Ft 3,239

-42.61%

Cappuccino

$2.26 P 30.17

$3.33 Ft 1,075

-32.13%

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

$0.73 P 9.78

$2.12 Ft 684

-65.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.43 P 5.77

$1.80 Ft 581

-76.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.04 P 27.19

$3.61 Ft 1,166

-43.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.59 P 34.48

$3.59 Ft 1,160

-27.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 P 19.68

$1.12 Ft 361

32.14%

White Bread (500g)

$0.84 P 11.25

$1.93 Ft 623

-56.48%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.80 P 23.95

$2.49 Ft 804

-27.71%

Eggs

$2.45 P 32.60

$3.94 Ft 1,275

-37.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.48 P 86.4

$11.28 Ft 3,646

-42.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.41 P 58.7

$6.73 Ft 2,177

-34.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$5.01 P 66.8

$14.44 Ft 4,670

-65.30%

Apples (1kg)

$1.65 P 22.06

$1.86 Ft 601

-11.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 P 19.43

$2.04 Ft 658

-28.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.00 P 26.64

$2.29 Ft 740

-12.66%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.60 P 21.32

$3.99 Ft 1,290

-59.90%

Potato (1kg)

$1.35 P 17.99

$0.94 Ft 304

43.62%

Onion (1kg)

$1.21 P 16.06

$1.02 Ft 330

18.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.29 P 17.13

$1.65 Ft 534

-21.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 P 11.79

$0.68 Ft 221

29.41%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.72 P 49.63

$7.81 Ft 2,526

-52.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.22 P 56.2

$6.02 Ft 1,946

-29.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 P 19.33

$1.29 Ft 418

12.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.72 P 22.93

$2.02 Ft 655

-14.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.66 P 8.81

$1.50 Ft 484

-56.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.63 P 395

$27.13 Ft 8,769

9.21%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.63 P 8.41

$3.36 Ft 1,085

-81.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.51 P 33.43

$1.37 Ft 444

83.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.91 P 38.84

$19.96 Ft 6,451

-85.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.37 P 18.24

$1.86 Ft 603

-26.34%

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

$30.5K P 406.1K

$28.5K Ft 9.2M

6.86%

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

$20.0K P 267.0K

$33.4K Ft 10.8M

-39.98%

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

$59.4 P 792

$178 Ft 57.6K

-66.66%

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

$14.85 P 198

$23.58 Ft 7,623

-37.02%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.18 P 589

$24.12 Ft 7,797

83.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.18 P 442

$69.7 Ft 22.5K

-52.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.15 P 215

$17.03 Ft 5,505

-5.17%

Cinema Ticket

$6.18 P 82.4

$10.48 Ft 3,388

-41.03%

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

$126 P 1,675

$625 Ft 202.1K

-79.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,136 P 68.5K

$19.6K Ft 6.4M

-73.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$47.50 P 633

$102 Ft 33.0K

-53.44%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.63 P 222

$43.41 Ft 14.0K

-61.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.2 P 976

$110 Ft 35.5K

-33.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$77.9 P 1,038

$121 Ft 39.0K

-35.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$352 P 4,696

$845 Ft 273.3K

-58.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$208 P 2,775

$638 Ft 206.4K

-67.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$540 P 7,201

$1,609 Ft 520.1K

-66.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$347 P 4,625

$1,217 Ft 393.5K

-71.49%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,042 P 27.2K

$5,555 Ft 1.8M

-63.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,251 P 16.7K

$3,898 Ft 1.3M

-67.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$453 P 6,042

$1,724 Ft 557.5K

-73.71%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.33

6.34

78.71%

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

Last update for Gaborone: November 3, 2026

Last update for Budapest: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Gaborone

$208 24.8%

Budapest

$638 38.8% 207% $430

Groceries & Markets

Gaborone

$171 20.4%

Budapest

$260 15.8% 51.9% $89

Eating Out

Gaborone

$152 18.2%

Budapest

$220 13.4% 44.3% $67

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Gaborone

$118 14.1%

Budapest

$226 13.7% 90.7% $107

Clothing & Footwear

Gaborone

$97 11.6%

Budapest

$169 10.3% 74.7% $72

Sport & Entertainment

Gaborone

$46 5.4%

Budapest

$91 5.5% 99% $45

Getting Around

Gaborone

$45 5.4%

Budapest

$43 2.6% 4.6% $2.1

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $352 in Gaborone versus $845 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 in Budapest are about 3.8 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $29 in Gaborone versus $61 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $171 vs $260 – making Gaborone the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇼 Gaborone

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

22:03 10:03 PM

21:03 9:03 PM

1 h behind Gaborone

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

231,626 Capital

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Botswana Pula BWP P

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

100 BWP = 7.5 USD

100 BWP = 6.68 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.76 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to BWP – Botswana Pula Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇼 Botswana Pula (P)

Botswana Pula exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 13.33 BWP (100 BWP = 7.5 USD). 1 EUR = 14.96 BWP (100 BWP = 6.68 EUR).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.76 EUR).

USD to BWP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Gaborone Budapest 8,050 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Gaborone
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

Gaborone vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 97%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,257 per month in Gaborone and $2,471 in Budapest. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Gaborone, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $352 there versus $845 in Budapest.

Public transport costs about 8% less in Budapest. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $126 per month in Gaborone and $625 in Budapest. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Gaborone, where all-in costs run around $838, than in Budapest at $1,647. In Gaborone it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Gaborone – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

If budget matters most, go with Gaborone. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Budapest makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.