Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ioannina and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Ioannina: $1,378 a month against $1,619 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $2,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Budapest outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

67

Cost of Living Index in Ioannina
Learn more

Ioannina Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
Learn more

Budapest Living Index

Jump to prices

Ioannina

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,378

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,378 per month in Ioannina vs $1,619 in Budapest, rent included.

Ioannina $1,378
Budapest $1,619

A couple spends around $2,102 per month in Ioannina vs $2,524 in Budapest, rent included.

Ioannina $2,102
Budapest $2,524

A family of three spends $2,827 per month in Ioannina vs $3,429 in Budapest, rent included.

Ioannina $2,827
Budapest $3,429

Ioannina is about 15% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Ioannina and Budapest sit above the global median – Ioannina by 2%, Budapest by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.71 €14.90

$13.94 Ft 4,517

19.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$33.81 €30.14

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

-44.77%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.10 €9.89

$10.19 Ft 3,302

8.93%

Cappuccino

$4.06 €3.62

$3.26 Ft 1,058

24.54%

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

$2.87 €2.56

$2.14 Ft 693

34.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.58 €0.52

$1.78 Ft 578

-67.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.50 €4.02

$3.71 Ft 1,202

21.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.65 €5.04

$3.77 Ft 1,221

49.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.68 €1.50

$1.15 Ft 372

46.09%

White Bread (500g)

$1.13 €1.01

$1.79 Ft 579

-36.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.70 €3.30

$2.49 Ft 806

48.59%

Eggs

$3.56 €3.17

$3.90 Ft 1,265

-8.72%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.92 €9.74

$11.10 Ft 3,599

-1.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.02 €8.04

$6.62 Ft 2,146

36.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.08 €10.77

$14.69 Ft 4,761

-17.77%

Apples (1kg)

$2.49 €2.22

$1.83 Ft 593

36.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 €1.76

$2.05 Ft 663

-3.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.20 €1.07

$2.37 Ft 768

-49.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.63 €2.34

$3.90 Ft 1,264

-32.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.16 €1.04

$0.99 Ft 321

17.17%

Onion (1kg)

$1.02 €0.91

$1.00 Ft 323

2.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.01 €0.90

$1.58 Ft 513

-36.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.85 €0.75

$0.67 Ft 217

26.87%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.42 €4.84

$7.96 Ft 2,580

-31.91%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.49 €5.79

$6.22 Ft 2,015

4.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.00 €1.79

$1.27 Ft 412

57.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.28 €2.92

$2.03 Ft 657

61.58%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.52 Ft 492

-13.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.58 €37.07

$28.02 Ft 9,082

48.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.27 €3.81

$3.31 Ft 1,073

29.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.13 €1.01

$1.37 Ft 444

-17.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.86 €6.12

$19.83 Ft 6,427

-65.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.05 €1.83

$1.82 Ft 590

12.64%

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

$27.9K €24.8K

$29.8K Ft 9.7M

-6.49%

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

$24.8K €22.1K

$33.8K Ft 11.0M

-26.56%

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

$213 €190

$171 Ft 55.5K

24.58%

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

$22.85 €20.37

$23.51 Ft 7,620

-2.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.89 €25.76

$23.29 Ft 7,550

24.04%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.24 €40.33

$67.5 Ft 21.9K

-33.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$44.82 €39.96

$18.89 Ft 6,124

137.27%

Cinema Ticket

$8.76 €7.81

$9.30 Ft 3,013

-5.81%

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

$339 €303

$533 Ft 172.9K

-36.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,804 €7,850

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

-47.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$67.3 €60.0

$99.6 Ft 32.3K

-32.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.06 €41.07

$43.49 Ft 14.1K

5.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.2 €68.0

$110 Ft 35.8K

-30.94%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 €119

$119 Ft 38.6K

12.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$457 €407

$830 Ft 269.2K

-45.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$322 €287

$622 Ft 201.6K

-48.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$699 €623

$1,594 Ft 516.5K

-56.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$617 €550

$1,170 Ft 379.3K

-47.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,927 €2,610

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

-49.81%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,433 €2,170

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

-37.42%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,056 €941

$1,651 Ft 535.2K

-36.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.73

6.45

-26.67%

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

Last update for Ioannina: October 12, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ioannina

$322 23.4%

Budapest

$622 38.4% 92.9% $300

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ioannina

$265 19.2%

Budapest

$218 13.5% 17.7% $47

Eating Out

Ioannina

$263 19.1%

Budapest

$223 13.8% 15.3% $40

Groceries & Markets

Ioannina

$263 19.1%

Budapest

$258 15.9% 1.8% $4.9

Clothing & Footwear

Ioannina

$145 10.6%

Budapest

$168 10.4% 15.3% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Ioannina

$63 4.6%

Budapest

$86 5.3% 37.2% $23

Getting Around

Ioannina

$57 4.1%

Budapest

$44 2.7% 22% $13

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $457 in Ioannina 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.

Salaries run about 56% 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 $34.00 in Ioannina versus $61.0 in Budapest. Groceries tell a different story – $263 in Ioannina vs $258 in Budapest – so Budapest wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Ioannina

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

12:33 12:33 PM

11:33 11:33 AM

1 h behind Ioannina

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

89,061

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 324 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD). 1 EUR = 364 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ioannina Budapest 880 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Ioannina
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

Ioannina vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 17%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,067 per month in Ioannina 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 Ioannina, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 48% less in Ioannina. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $339 per month in Ioannina and $533 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 Ioannina, where all-in costs run around $1,378, than in Budapest at $1,619. In Ioannina it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Ioannina – 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 Ioannina. 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.