Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hitchin and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Budapest: $1,619 a month against $2,537 in Hitchin, rent and utilities included – about $11,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

123

Cost of Living Index in Hitchin
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Hitchin Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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Hitchin

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,537

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,537 per month in Hitchin vs $1,619 in Budapest, rent included.

Hitchin $2,537
Budapest $1,619

A couple spends around $3,631 per month in Hitchin vs $2,524 in Budapest, rent included.

Hitchin $3,631
Budapest $2,524

A family of three spends $4,726 per month in Hitchin vs $3,429 in Budapest, rent included.

Hitchin $4,726
Budapest $3,429

Hitchin costs about 57% more than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Hitchin and Budapest sit above the global median – Hitchin by 88%, Budapest by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.20 £19.65

$13.94 Ft 4,503

87.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.9 £60.0

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

30.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.10 £6.08

$10.19 Ft 3,291

-20.51%

Cappuccino

$4.51 £3.38

$3.26 Ft 1,055

38.34%

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

$1.30 £0.98

$2.14 Ft 690

-39.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.33 £1.00

$1.78 Ft 577

-25.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.54 £4.15

$3.71 Ft 1,198

49.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.51 £4.13

$3.77 Ft 1,217

46.15%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 £1.13

$1.15 Ft 371

30.43%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 £1.39

$1.79 Ft 578

3.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.54 £1.91

$2.49 Ft 804

2.01%

Eggs

$3.19 £2.39

$3.90 Ft 1,261

-18.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.45 £7.09

$11.10 Ft 3,587

-14.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.92 £5.94

$6.62 Ft 2,139

19.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.40 £12.30

$14.69 Ft 4,745

11.64%

Apples (1kg)

$3.39 £2.54

$1.83 Ft 591

85.25%

Banana (1kg)

$1.29 £0.97

$2.05 Ft 661

-37.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 £1.75

$2.37 Ft 765

-1.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.40 £2.55

$3.90 Ft 1,260

-12.82%

Potato (1kg)

$1.14 £0.86

$0.99 Ft 320

15.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.30 £0.98

$1.00 Ft 322

30.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 £0.93

$1.58 Ft 511

-20.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 £0.94

$0.67 Ft 216

86.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$19.62 £14.72

$7.96 Ft 2,572

146.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.85 £7.39

$6.22 Ft 2,009

58.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.47 £1.85

$1.27 Ft 411

94.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.92 £2.19

$2.03 Ft 654

43.84%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.49 £2.62

$1.52 Ft 490

129.61%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$94.5 £70.9

$28.02 Ft 9,053

237.08%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.16 £3.12

$3.31 Ft 1,070

25.68%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.78 £2.83

$1.37 Ft 442

175.91%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.36 £24.28

$19.83 Ft 6,406

63.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.95 £1.47

$1.82 Ft 589

7.14%

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

$38.0K £28.5K

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

27.48%

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

$39.9K £29.9K

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

17.97%

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

$360 £270

$171 Ft 55.3K

110.50%

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

$17.54 £13.16

$23.51 Ft 7,596

-25.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.34 £32.51

$23.29 Ft 7,526

86.09%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.66 £34.25

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

-32.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.68 £11.01

$18.89 Ft 6,104

-22.29%

Cinema Ticket

$12.98 £9.74

$9.30 Ft 3,004

39.57%

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

$1,556 £1,167

$533 Ft 172.3K

191.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.1K £16.6K

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

32.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.8 £65.1

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

-12.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.50 £29.64

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

-9.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.1 £54.9

$110 Ft 35.7K

-33.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.2 £45.13

$119 Ft 38.4K

-49.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,225 £919

$830 Ft 268.3K

47.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,170 £878

$622 Ft 200.9K

88.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,065 £1,549

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

29.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,833 £1,375

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

56.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,970 £3,728

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

-14.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,828 £2,872

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

-1.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.21

6.45

-19.22%

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

Last update for Hitchin: October 13, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Hitchin

$1.2K 46.1%

Budapest

$622 38.4% 46.9% $549

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hitchin

$421 16.6%

Budapest

$218 13.5% 48.2% $203

Eating Out

Hitchin

$337 13.3%

Budapest

$223 13.8% 33.9% $114

Groceries & Markets

Hitchin

$289 11.4%

Budapest

$258 15.9% 10.6% $31

Getting Around

Hitchin

$131 5.2%

Budapest

$44 2.7% 66.3% $87

Clothing & Footwear

Hitchin

$117 4.6%

Budapest

$168 10.4% 43.5% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Hitchin

$72 2.8%

Budapest

$86 5.3% 20.3% $15

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,225 in Hitchin 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 $80.0 in Hitchin versus $61.0 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $289 vs $258 – making Budapest the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Hitchin

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

02:35 2:35 AM

03:35 3:35 AM

1 h ahead of Hitchin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

34,266

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 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 GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Hitchin Budapest 1,470 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Hitchin
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

Hitchin vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Hitchin is pricier by about 57%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,806 per month in Hitchin 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 Budapest, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 237% less in Budapest. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $1,556 per month in Hitchin and $533 in Budapest. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Budapest, where all-in costs run around $1,619, than in Hitchin at $2,537. In Budapest it covers expenses comfortably, while in Hitchin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Budapest – 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 Budapest. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Hitchin makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.