Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Johannesburg and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Johannesburg: $1,406 a month against $1,647 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $2,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

67

Cost of Living Index in Johannesburg
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Johannesburg Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
Learn more

Budapest Living Index

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Johannesburg

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,406

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,647

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,406 per month in Johannesburg vs $1,647 in Budapest, rent included.

Johannesburg $1,406
Budapest $1,647

A couple spends around $2,195 per month in Johannesburg vs $2,567 in Budapest, rent included.

Johannesburg $2,195
Budapest $2,567

A family of three spends $2,983 per month in Johannesburg vs $3,488 in Budapest, rent included.

Johannesburg $2,983
Budapest $3,488

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

Both Johannesburg and Budapest sit above the global median – Johannesburg by 4%, Budapest by 22%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.88 R 196

$13.63 Ft 4,443

-12.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.83 R 741

$60.7 Ft 19.8K

-26.08%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.40 R 122

$10.02 Ft 3,266

-26.15%

Cappuccino

$2.45 R 40.45

$3.33 Ft 1,084

-26.43%

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

$1.23 R 20.28

$2.12 Ft 690

-41.98%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.92 R 15.26

$1.80 Ft 586

-48.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.45 R 40.53

$3.61 Ft 1,176

-32.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.74 R 45.28

$3.59 Ft 1,170

-23.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 R 21.69

$1.12 Ft 364

16.96%

White Bread (500g)

$1.26 R 20.80

$1.93 Ft 628

-34.72%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 R 28.45

$2.49 Ft 811

-30.92%

Eggs

$2.63 R 43.51

$3.94 Ft 1,286

-33.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.87 R 147

$11.28 Ft 3,677

-21.37%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.68 R 93.8

$6.73 Ft 2,195

-15.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.04 R 149

$14.44 Ft 4,708

-37.40%

Apples (1kg)

$2.07 R 34.29

$1.86 Ft 606

11.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.91 R 31.51

$2.04 Ft 664

-6.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.83 R 30.17

$2.29 Ft 746

-20.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 R 33.88

$3.99 Ft 1,301

-48.62%

Potato (1kg)

$1.70 R 28.14

$0.94 Ft 307

80.85%

Onion (1kg)

$1.81 R 29.84

$1.02 Ft 333

77.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.51 R 24.91

$1.65 Ft 539

-8.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 R 20.76

$0.68 Ft 222

85.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.50 R 57.9

$7.81 Ft 2,547

-55.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.07 R 100

$6.02 Ft 1,963

0.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.80 R 29.79

$1.29 Ft 421

39.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.31 R 38.13

$2.02 Ft 660

14.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.62 R 26.82

$1.50 Ft 488

8.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$90.7 R 1,499

$27.13 Ft 8,842

234.28%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.82 R 13.60

$3.36 Ft 1,094

-75.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 R 15.15

$1.37 Ft 448

-32.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$14.30 R 236

$19.96 Ft 6,505

-28.36%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 R 25.07

$1.86 Ft 608

-18.28%

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

$35.4K R 585.2K

$28.5K Ft 9.3M

24.15%

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

$34.7K R 574.2K

$33.4K Ft 10.9M

4.07%

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

$228 R 3,766

$178 Ft 58.1K

27.86%

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

$38.51 R 637

$23.58 Ft 7,686

63.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$38.02 R 628

$24.12 Ft 7,861

57.63%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.33 R 584

$69.7 Ft 22.7K

-49.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.47 R 272

$17.03 Ft 5,551

-3.29%

Cinema Ticket

$8.47 R 140

$10.48 Ft 3,416

-19.18%

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

$247 R 4,082

$625 Ft 203.8K

-60.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,727 R 127.7K

$19.6K Ft 6.4M

-60.66%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.1 R 961

$102 Ft 33.3K

-43.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.29 R 732

$43.41 Ft 14.2K

2.03%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 R 1,862

$110 Ft 35.8K

2.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$111 R 1,835

$121 Ft 39.3K

-7.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$526 R 8,689

$845 Ft 275.5K

-37.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$407 R 6,732

$638 Ft 208.1K

-36.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,091 R 18.0K

$1,609 Ft 524.4K

-32.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$900 R 14.9K

$1,217 Ft 396.7K

-26.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,029 R 17.0K

$5,555 Ft 1.8M

-81.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$748 R 12.4K

$3,898 Ft 1.3M

-80.82%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,750 R 28.9K

$1,724 Ft 562.1K

1.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.91

6.34

72.08%

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

Last update for Johannesburg: October 31, 2026

Last update for Budapest: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Johannesburg

$407 29%

Budapest

$638 38.8% 56.7% $231

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Johannesburg

$304 21.6%

Budapest

$226 13.7% 25.8% $78

Groceries & Markets

Johannesburg

$220 15.7%

Budapest

$260 15.8% 18% $40

Eating Out

Johannesburg

$173 12.3%

Budapest

$220 13.4% 27.1% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Johannesburg

$147 10.4%

Budapest

$169 10.3% 15.3% $22

Getting Around

Johannesburg

$103 7.3%

Budapest

$43 2.6% 57.8% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Johannesburg

$52 3.7%

Budapest

$91 5.5% 73.4% $38

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $526 in Johannesburg versus $845 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 $45 in Johannesburg versus $61 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $220 vs $260 – making Johannesburg the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Johannesburg

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

19:56 7:56 PM

18:56 6:56 PM

1 h behind Johannesburg

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,434,827

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.05 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.73 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.53 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.05 USD). 1 EUR = 18.56 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 326 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD). 1 EUR = 366 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.73 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

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Between locations

Johannesburg Budapest 8,240 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Johannesburg
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

Johannesburg 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 $2,110 per month in Johannesburg and $2,471 in Budapest. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Johannesburg, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $526 there versus $845 in Budapest.

Public transport costs about 70% less in Budapest. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $247 per month in Johannesburg and $625 in Budapest. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,406 in Johannesburg and $1,647 in Budapest. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward Johannesburg – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.