Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between General Santos and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in General Santos: $628 a month against $1,619 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $11,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

31

Cost of Living Index in General Santos
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General Santos Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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General Santos

🇵🇭 Philippines

$628

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $628 per month in General Santos vs $1,619 in Budapest, rent included.

General Santos $628
Budapest $1,619

A couple spends around $1,009 per month in General Santos vs $2,524 in Budapest, rent included.

General Santos $1,009
Budapest $2,524

A family of three spends $1,391 per month in General Santos vs $3,429 in Budapest, rent included.

General Santos $1,391
Budapest $3,429

General Santos is about 61% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

General Santos sits 53% below the global median, while Budapest is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.38 ₱213

$13.94 Ft 4,503

-75.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$27.40 ₱1,725

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

-55.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.72 ₱172

$10.19 Ft 3,291

-73.31%

Cappuccino

$2.56 ₱161

$3.26 Ft 1,055

-21.47%

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

$0.28 ₱17.41

$2.14 Ft 690

-86.92%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.25 ₱15.83

$1.78 Ft 577

-85.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.58 ₱99.3

$3.71 Ft 1,198

-57.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.34 ₱147

$3.77 Ft 1,217

-37.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.00 ₱126

$1.15 Ft 371

73.91%

White Bread (500g)

$1.08 ₱68.2

$1.79 Ft 578

-39.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.87 ₱54.7

$2.49 Ft 804

-65.06%

Eggs

$1.86 ₱117

$3.90 Ft 1,261

-52.31%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.38 ₱402

$11.10 Ft 3,587

-42.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.77 ₱300

$6.62 Ft 2,139

-27.95%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.25 ₱582

$14.69 Ft 4,745

-37.03%

Apples (1kg)

$2.74 ₱172

$1.83 Ft 591

49.73%

Banana (1kg)

$1.07 ₱67.2

$2.05 Ft 661

-47.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.45 ₱154

$2.37 Ft 765

3.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.19 ₱74.6

$3.90 Ft 1,260

-69.49%

Potato (1kg)

$1.98 ₱125

$0.99 Ft 320

100.00%

Onion (1kg)

$3.28 ₱207

$1.00 Ft 322

228.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.24 ₱78.2

$1.58 Ft 511

-21.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 ₱42.60

$0.67 Ft 216

1.49%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.46 ₱155

$7.96 Ft 2,572

-69.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.76 ₱488

$6.22 Ft 2,009

24.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 ₱78.5

$1.27 Ft 411

-1.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 ₱106

$2.03 Ft 654

-17.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.39 ₱24.37

$1.52 Ft 490

-74.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.15 ₱513

$28.02 Ft 9,053

-70.91%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.78 ₱49.25

$3.31 Ft 1,070

-76.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.25 ₱15.79

$1.37 Ft 442

-81.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$0.82 ₱51.4

$19.83 Ft 6,406

-95.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.12 ₱70.7

$1.82 Ft 589

-38.46%

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

$20.9K ₱1.3M

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

-29.96%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

-43.45%

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

$76.6 ₱4,825

$171 Ft 55.3K

-55.21%

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

$6.53 ₱411

$23.51 Ft 7,596

-72.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.67 ₱1,994

$23.29 Ft 7,526

35.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.89 Ft 6,104

Cinema Ticket

$4.91 ₱309

$9.30 Ft 3,004

-47.20%

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

$109 ₱6,840

$533 Ft 172.3K

-79.63%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,532 ₱474.2K

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

-55.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.8 ₱3,767

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

-39.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.67 ₱1,931

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

-29.48%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.3 ₱4,428

$110 Ft 35.7K

-36.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.7 ₱3,823

$119 Ft 38.4K

-48.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$174 ₱11.0K

$830 Ft 268.3K

-78.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$112 ₱7,068

$622 Ft 200.9K

-81.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$359 ₱22.6K

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

-77.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$238 ₱15.0K

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

-79.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.31

6.45

28.84%

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

Last update for General Santos: October 11, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

General Santos

$199 31.7%

Budapest

$258 15.9% 29.6% $59

Monthly Utilities & Internet

General Santos

$115 18.3%

Budapest

$218 13.5% 89.8% $103

Accommodation & Living

General Santos

$112 17.9%

Budapest

$622 38.4% 454% $510

Clothing & Footwear

General Santos

$100 15.9%

Budapest

$168 10.4% 68.1% $68

Eating Out

General Santos

$81 12.8%

Budapest

$223 13.8% 177% $142

Getting Around

General Santos

$12 1.9%

Budapest

$44 2.7% 277% $33

Sport & Entertainment

General Santos

$9.8 * 1.6%

Budapest

$86 5.3% 777% $76

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $174 in General Santos 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 $27.00 in General Santos versus $61.0 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $199 vs $258 – making General Santos the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇭 General Santos

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

08:49 8:49 AM

02:49 2:49 AM

6 h behind General Santos

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

697,315

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

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).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

General Santos Budapest 10,700 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

General Santos
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

General Santos vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 158%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $942 per month in General Santos 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 General Santos, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 244% less in General Santos. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $109 per month in General Santos and $533 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 General Santos, where all-in costs run around $628, than in Budapest at $1,619. In General Santos it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward General Santos – 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 General Santos. 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.