Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hamamatsu and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Hamamatsu: $783 a month against $1,638 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $10,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

38

Cost of Living Index in Hamamatsu
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Hamamatsu Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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Hamamatsu

🇯🇵 Japan

$783

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,638

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $783 per month in Hamamatsu vs $1,638 in Budapest, rent included.

Hamamatsu $783
Budapest $1,638

A couple spends around $1,266 per month in Hamamatsu vs $2,553 in Budapest, rent included.

Hamamatsu $1,266
Budapest $2,553

A family of three spends $1,750 per month in Hamamatsu vs $3,467 in Budapest, rent included.

Hamamatsu $1,750
Budapest $3,467

Hamamatsu is about 52% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Hamamatsu sits 42% below the global median, while Budapest is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.90 ¥616

$13.81 Ft 4,548

-71.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$41.78 ¥6,601

$61.5 Ft 20.2K

-32.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.19 ¥821

$10.16 Ft 3,345

-48.92%

Cappuccino

$3.41 ¥540

$3.22 Ft 1,061

5.90%

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

$1.10 ¥174

$2.06 Ft 679

-46.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.75 ¥118

$1.83 Ft 604

-59.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.61 ¥412

$3.60 Ft 1,187

-27.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.11 ¥491

$3.66 Ft 1,207

-15.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.08 ¥170

$1.19 Ft 392

-9.24%

White Bread (500g)

$1.70 ¥268

$1.87 Ft 616

-9.09%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.67 ¥579

$2.37 Ft 779

54.85%

Eggs

$1.68 ¥266

$3.96 Ft 1,304

-57.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.25 ¥1,619

$11.16 Ft 3,677

-8.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.17 ¥974

$6.76 Ft 2,226

-8.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.24 ¥2,249

$14.35 Ft 4,727

-0.77%

Apples (1kg)

$5.80 ¥917

$1.81 Ft 595

220.44%

Banana (1kg)

$2.84 ¥448

$2.11 Ft 695

34.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.95 ¥466

$2.33 Ft 769

26.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.30 ¥680

$3.80 Ft 1,253

13.16%

Potato (1kg)

$2.61 ¥413

$0.99 Ft 327

163.64%

Onion (1kg)

$2.59 ¥408

$0.98 Ft 324

164.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.29 ¥205

$1.55 Ft 511

-16.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 ¥104

$0.70 Ft 229

-5.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.89 ¥614

$7.79 Ft 2,567

-50.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.39 ¥1,009

$6.05 Ft 1,993

5.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ¥288

$1.28 Ft 421

42.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.10 ¥332

$2.04 Ft 671

2.94%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.55 Ft 511

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.1 ¥7,920

$27.28 Ft 8,987

83.76%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.11 ¥491

$3.30 Ft 1,086

-5.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.63 ¥415

$1.31 Ft 433

100.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.62 ¥3,258

$20.26 Ft 6,673

1.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 ¥168

$1.82 Ft 599

-41.76%

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

$21.6K ¥3.4M

$28.7K Ft 9.5M

-24.81%

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

$15.8K ¥2.5M

$33.1K Ft 10.9M

-52.14%

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

$130 ¥20.6K

$172 Ft 56.7K

-24.25%

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

$8.59 ¥1,357

$23.95 Ft 7,890

-64.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.78 ¥5,179

$23.31 Ft 7,679

40.63%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.6 Ft 22.6K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.40 ¥2,749

$18.91 Ft 6,229

-7.99%

Cinema Ticket

$13.08 ¥2,066

$10.18 Ft 3,353

28.49%

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

$819 ¥129.4K

$600 Ft 197.8K

36.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ¥2.3M

$16.8K Ft 5.5M

-11.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.6 ¥10.1K

$99.0 Ft 32.6K

-35.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.10 ¥5,861

$43.25 Ft 14.2K

-14.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$61.3 ¥9,683

$113 Ft 37.2K

-45.69%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 ¥16.3K

$117 Ft 38.6K

-11.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$836 Ft 275.4K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$640 Ft 210.7K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,598 Ft 526.5K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,205 Ft 396.9K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,787 ¥1.2M

$5,625 Ft 1.9M

38.43%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,298 ¥837.0K

$3,802 Ft 1.3M

39.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,602 ¥253.2K

$1,671 Ft 550.6K

-4.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.64

6.45

-59.07%

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

Last update for Hamamatsu: October 24, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Hamamatsu

$285 36.4%

Budapest

$258 15.8% 9.3% $27

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hamamatsu

$172 21.9%

Budapest

$219 13.4% 27.7% $48

Clothing & Footwear

Hamamatsu

$119 15.2%

Budapest

$168 10.2% 40.4% $48

Eating Out

Hamamatsu

$114 14.6%

Budapest

$221 13.5% 92.8% $106

Getting Around

Hamamatsu

$66 * 8.5%

Budapest

$43 2.7% 34.7% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Hamamatsu

$26 * 3.3%

Budapest

$89 5.4% 240% $63

Accommodation & Living

Hamamatsu

- * 0%

Budapest

$640 39.1%

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

Cost Breakdown

Salaries run about 4% higher in Budapest, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $42 in Hamamatsu versus $61 in Budapest. Groceries tell a different story – $285 in Hamamatsu vs $258 in Budapest – so Budapest wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Hamamatsu

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

03:47 3:47 AM

19:47 7:47 PM

8 h behind Hamamatsu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

797,033

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.04 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.73 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 329 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.04 USD). 1 EUR = 367 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.73 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Hamamatsu Budapest 9,030 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Hamamatsu
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

Hamamatsu vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 109%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,175 per month in Hamamatsu and $2,457 in Budapest. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Public transport costs about 46% less in Budapest. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $819 per month in Hamamatsu and $600 in Budapest. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Hamamatsu, where all-in costs run around $783, than in Budapest at $1,638. In Hamamatsu it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Hamamatsu costs $783 versus $1,638 in Budapest. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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 Hamamatsu. 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.