Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hanoi and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Hanoi: $805 a month against $1,621 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $9,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

38

Cost of Living Index in Hanoi
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Hanoi Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
Learn more

Budapest Living Index

Jump to prices

Hanoi

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$805

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,621

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $805 per month in Hanoi vs $1,621 in Budapest, rent included.

Hanoi $805
Budapest $1,621

A couple spends around $1,254 per month in Hanoi vs $2,555 in Budapest, rent included.

Hanoi $1,254
Budapest $2,555

A family of three spends $1,704 per month in Hanoi vs $3,489 in Budapest, rent included.

Hanoi $1,704
Budapest $3,489

Hanoi is about 50% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Hanoi sits 40% below the global median, while Budapest is 21% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.09 ₫54.0K

$13.99 Ft 4,555

-85.06%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.19 ₫600.5K

$60.3 Ft 19.7K

-61.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.49 ₫116.3K

$9.96 Ft 3,244

-54.92%

Cappuccino

$1.87 ₫48.3K

$3.38 Ft 1,102

-44.67%

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

$0.47 ₫12.3K

$2.13 Ft 693

-77.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 ₫7,658

$1.87 Ft 609

-83.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.10 ₫28.4K

$3.75 Ft 1,222

-70.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 ₫50.3K

$3.57 Ft 1,163

-45.66%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 ₫38.3K

$1.13 Ft 369

30.97%

White Bread (500g)

$1.10 ₫28.4K

$1.84 Ft 600

-40.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.75 ₫19.4K

$2.39 Ft 777

-68.62%

Eggs

$1.50 ₫38.9K

$3.83 Ft 1,246

-60.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.36 ₫268.1K

$11.33 Ft 3,689

-8.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.79 ₫98.2K

$6.74 Ft 2,194

-43.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.91 ₫256.4K

$14.69 Ft 4,784

-32.54%

Apples (1kg)

$3.37 ₫87.2K

$1.84 Ft 598

83.15%

Banana (1kg)

$1.03 ₫26.8K

$2.01 Ft 654

-48.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.31 ₫33.9K

$2.36 Ft 767

-44.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.14 ₫29.5K

$3.77 Ft 1,227

-69.76%

Potato (1kg)

$0.99 ₫25.5K

$0.96 Ft 314

3.13%

Onion (1kg)

$1.08 ₫28.1K

$1.03 Ft 335

4.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.57 ₫14.8K

$1.56 Ft 509

-63.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ₫14.1K

$0.66 Ft 216

-16.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.44 ₫37.2K

$7.96 Ft 2,594

-81.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.74 ₫329.9K

$6.01 Ft 1,956

111.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 ₫23.1K

$1.30 Ft 422

-31.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.72 ₫44.6K

$2.08 Ft 677

-17.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.39 ₫10.2K

$1.50 Ft 490

-74.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$9.43 ₫244.2K

$27.61 Ft 8,991

-65.85%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.74 ₫19.2K

$3.30 Ft 1,075

-77.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.61 ₫15.7K

$1.30 Ft 424

-53.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.29 ₫59.3K

$19.78 Ft 6,442

-88.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.90 ₫23.3K

$1.81 Ft 591

-50.28%

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

$31.2K ₫808.2M

$29.3K Ft 9.6M

6.45%

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

$29.9K ₫772.9M

$34.1K Ft 11.1M

-12.48%

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

$86.3 ₫2.2M

$170 Ft 55.3K

-49.22%

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

$5.30 ₫137.3K

$23.98 Ft 7,809

-77.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.95 ₫231.7K

$23.42 Ft 7,628

-61.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$24.82 ₫642.6K

$66.2 Ft 21.6K

-62.53%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.62 ₫249.1K

$19.18 Ft 6,245

-49.84%

Cinema Ticket

$4.28 ₫110.7K

$9.52 Ft 3,101

-55.04%

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

$755 ₫19.6M

$537 Ft 174.8K

40.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$27.7K ₫716.4M

$16.6K Ft 5.4M

66.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.39 ₫1.3M

$101 Ft 33.0K

-52.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$26.60 ₫688.6K

$42.99 Ft 14.0K

-38.13%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.3 ₫2.2M

$113 Ft 36.7K

-25.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$77.3 ₫2.0M

$119 Ft 38.7K

-34.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$414 ₫10.7M

$805 Ft 262.2K

-48.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$278 ₫7.2M

$629 Ft 204.9K

-55.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$873 ₫22.6M

$1,549 Ft 504.6K

-43.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$536 ₫13.9M

$1,167 Ft 380.1K

-54.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,285 ₫136.8M

$5,618 Ft 1.8M

-5.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,798 ₫72.4M

$3,968 Ft 1.3M

-29.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$518 ₫13.4M

$1,626 Ft 529.5K

-68.16%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.28

6.43

28.77%

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

Last update for Hanoi: 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

Hanoi

$278 35%

Budapest

$629 38.7% 127% $351

Groceries & Markets

Hanoi

$196 24.7%

Budapest

$258 15.8% 31.5% $62

Clothing & Footwear

Hanoi

$106 13.4%

Budapest

$169 10.4% 58.9% $63

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hanoi

$101 12.7%

Budapest

$217 13.4% 116% $117

Eating Out

Hanoi

$65 8.2%

Budapest

$224 13.8% 245% $159

Sport & Entertainment

Hanoi

$33 4.2%

Budapest

$85 5.2% 156% $52

Getting Around

Hanoi

$15 1.9%

Budapest

$43 2.7% 194% $29

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $414 in Hanoi 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 214% 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 $23.00 in Hanoi versus $60.0 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $196 vs $258 – making Hanoi the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Hanoi

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

07:28 7:28 AM

02:28 2:28 AM

5 h behind Hanoi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,587,100 Capital

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to VND – Vietnamese Dong Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇻🇳 Vietnamese Dong (₫)

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 25,889 VND (100,000 VND = 3.86 USD). 1 EUR = 29,037 VND (100,000 VND = 3.44 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 VND in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Hanoi Budapest 8,070 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Hanoi
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

Hanoi vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 101%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,207 per month in Hanoi 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 Hanoi, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 193% less in Hanoi. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $755 per month in Hanoi and $537 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 Hanoi, where all-in costs run around $805, than in Budapest at $1,621. In Hanoi it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Hanoi – 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 Hanoi. 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.