Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Jelgava and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Jelgava: $1,083 a month against $1,619 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $6,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

52

Cost of Living Index in Jelgava
Learn more

Jelgava Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
Learn more

Budapest Living Index

Jump to prices

Jelgava

🇱🇻 Latvia

$1,083

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,083 per month in Jelgava vs $1,619 in Budapest, rent included.

Jelgava $1,083
Budapest $1,619

A couple spends around $1,645 per month in Jelgava vs $2,524 in Budapest, rent included.

Jelgava $1,645
Budapest $2,524

A family of three spends $2,208 per month in Jelgava vs $3,429 in Budapest, rent included.

Jelgava $2,208
Budapest $3,429

Jelgava is about 33% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.90 €7.03

$13.94 Ft 4,503

-43.33%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.54 €39.62

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

-27.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.65 €5.91

$10.19 Ft 3,291

-34.74%

Cappuccino

$3.23 €2.88

$3.26 Ft 1,055

-0.92%

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

$1.59 €1.42

$2.14 Ft 690

-25.70%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.18 €1.05

$1.78 Ft 577

-33.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.40 €3.92

$3.71 Ft 1,198

18.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.99 €3.55

$3.77 Ft 1,217

5.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.18 €1.05

$1.15 Ft 371

2.61%

White Bread (500g)

$0.93 €0.82

$1.79 Ft 578

-48.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.49 €1.33

$2.49 Ft 804

-40.16%

Eggs

$3.16 €2.81

$3.90 Ft 1,261

-18.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.50 €9.34

$11.10 Ft 3,587

-5.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.54 €4.93

$6.62 Ft 2,139

-16.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.09 €8.08

$14.69 Ft 4,745

-38.12%

Apples (1kg)

$1.66 €1.48

$1.83 Ft 591

-9.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.81 €1.61

$2.05 Ft 661

-11.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.48 €2.21

$2.37 Ft 765

4.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.22 €2.86

$3.90 Ft 1,260

-17.44%

Potato (1kg)

$0.81 €0.72

$0.99 Ft 320

-18.18%

Onion (1kg)

$0.93 €0.83

$1.00 Ft 322

-7.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.72 €1.53

$1.58 Ft 511

8.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 €0.85

$0.67 Ft 216

43.28%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.85 €6.10

$7.96 Ft 2,572

-13.94%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.84 €6.97

$6.22 Ft 2,009

26.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.00 €1.78

$1.27 Ft 411

57.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.02 €1.80

$2.03 Ft 654

-0.49%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.99 €0.88

$1.52 Ft 490

-34.87%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.37 €24.34

$28.02 Ft 9,053

-2.32%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.29 €2.93

$3.31 Ft 1,070

-0.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.98 €0.87

$1.37 Ft 442

-28.47%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.88 €15.91

$19.83 Ft 6,406

-9.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.88 €1.68

$1.82 Ft 589

3.30%

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

$22.4K €19.9K

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

-24.93%

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

$30.9K €27.5K

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

-8.56%

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

$185 €165

$171 Ft 55.3K

8.23%

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

$18.97 €16.87

$23.51 Ft 7,596

-19.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.16 €13.48

$23.29 Ft 7,526

-34.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.48 €40.46

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

-32.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$32.98 €29.34

$18.89 Ft 6,104

74.59%

Cinema Ticket

$11.18 €9.94

$9.30 Ft 3,004

20.22%

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

$222 €198

$533 Ft 172.3K

-58.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.5K €12.9K

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

-13.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.37 €43.91

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

-50.44%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.11 €19.67

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

-49.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$55.3 €49.18

$110 Ft 35.7K

-49.89%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 €101

$119 Ft 38.4K

-4.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$325 €289

$830 Ft 268.3K

-60.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$261 €232

$622 Ft 200.9K

-57.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$579 €515

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

-63.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$422 €375

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

-63.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$997 €887

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

-82.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$906 €806

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

-76.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,599 €1,422

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

-3.17%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

-37.98%

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

Last update for Jelgava: October 10, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Jelgava

$261 24.1%

Budapest

$622 38.4% 138% $361

Groceries & Markets

Jelgava

$224 20.7%

Budapest

$258 15.9% 15.3% $34

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Jelgava

$219 20.3%

Budapest

$218 13.5% 0.6% $1.4

Eating Out

Jelgava

$163 15.1%

Budapest

$223 13.8% 36.7% $60

Clothing & Footwear

Jelgava

$108 10%

Budapest

$168 10.4% 55.3% $60

Sport & Entertainment

Jelgava

$68 6.3%

Budapest

$86 5.3% 26.9% $18

Getting Around

Jelgava

$40 3.7%

Budapest

$44 2.7% 11.9% $4.7

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $325 in Jelgava 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 3% 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 $45.00 in Jelgava versus $61.0 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $224 vs $258 – making Jelgava the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇱🇻 Jelgava

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

16:59 4:59 PM

15:59 3:59 PM

1 h behind Jelgava

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

63,534

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 HUF = 3.1 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 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

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 EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Jelgava Budapest 1,070 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Jelgava
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

Jelgava vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 49%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,624 per month in Jelgava 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 Jelgava, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 2% less in Jelgava. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $222 per month in Jelgava and $533 in Budapest. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Jelgava, where all-in costs run around $1,083, than in Budapest at $1,619. In Jelgava it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Jelgava – 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 Jelgava. 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.