Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Koh Tao and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Koh Tao: $1,038 a month against $1,621 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $7,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

50

Cost of Living Index in Koh Tao
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Koh Tao Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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Koh Tao

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,038

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,621

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,038 per month in Koh Tao vs $1,621 in Budapest, rent included.

Koh Tao $1,038
Budapest $1,621

A couple spends around $1,702 per month in Koh Tao vs $2,555 in Budapest, rent included.

Koh Tao $1,702
Budapest $2,555

A family of three spends $2,367 per month in Koh Tao vs $3,489 in Budapest, rent included.

Koh Tao $2,367
Budapest $3,489

Koh Tao is about 36% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Koh Tao sits 23% below the global median, while Budapest is 21% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.75 ฿126

$13.99 Ft 4,551

-73.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$27.47 ฿920

$60.3 Ft 19.6K

-54.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.44 ฿249

$9.96 Ft 3,241

-25.30%

Cappuccino

$2.29 ฿76.7

$3.38 Ft 1,100

-32.25%

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

$0.74 ฿24.85

$2.13 Ft 692

-65.26%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.42 ฿14.14

$1.87 Ft 608

-77.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.11 ฿70.5

$3.75 Ft 1,221

-43.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.16 ฿106

$3.57 Ft 1,162

-11.48%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 ฿52.3

$1.13 Ft 368

38.05%

White Bread (500g)

$1.31 ฿43.93

$1.84 Ft 599

-28.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.43 ฿47.89

$2.39 Ft 777

-40.17%

Eggs

$2.08 ฿69.6

$3.83 Ft 1,245

-45.69%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.59 ฿623

$11.33 Ft 3,686

64.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.11 ฿104

$6.74 Ft 2,192

-53.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.34 ฿346

$14.69 Ft 4,780

-29.61%

Apples (1kg)

$2.70 ฿90.5

$1.84 Ft 597

46.74%

Banana (1kg)

$1.54 ฿51.7

$2.01 Ft 653

-23.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.16 ฿72.5

$2.36 Ft 767

-8.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.95 ฿65.2

$3.77 Ft 1,226

-48.28%

Potato (1kg)

$1.43 ฿48.03

$0.96 Ft 313

48.96%

Onion (1kg)

$1.26 ฿42.12

$1.03 Ft 334

22.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.06 ฿35.35

$1.56 Ft 509

-32.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿17.19

$0.66 Ft 216

-22.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.06 ฿136

$7.96 Ft 2,591

-48.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.40 ฿583

$6.01 Ft 1,954

189.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.67 ฿56.0

$1.30 Ft 421

28.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 ฿88.0

$2.08 Ft 676

26.44%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.97 ฿65.9

$1.50 Ft 489

31.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.61 Ft 8,982

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.62 ฿87.6

$3.30 Ft 1,074

-20.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.91 ฿30.50

$1.30 Ft 424

-30.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.48 ฿117

$19.78 Ft 6,436

-82.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.29 ฿43.27

$1.81 Ft 591

-28.73%

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

$23.8K ฿796.9K

$29.3K Ft 9.5M

-18.83%

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

$24.3K ฿813.9K

$34.1K Ft 11.1M

-28.73%

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

$96.6 ฿3,235

$170 Ft 55.3K

-43.14%

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

$11.14 ฿373

$23.98 Ft 7,802

-53.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿564

$23.42 Ft 7,621

-28.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.6 ฿1,827

$66.2 Ft 21.6K

-17.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.61 ฿389

$19.18 Ft 6,239

-39.47%

Cinema Ticket

$7.88 ฿264

$9.52 Ft 3,098

-17.23%

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

$547 ฿18.3K

$537 Ft 174.6K

1.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K ฿383.3K

$16.6K Ft 5.4M

-31.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.7 ฿2,100

$101 Ft 33.0K

-38.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.43 ฿952

$42.99 Ft 14.0K

-33.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.2 ฿3,220

$113 Ft 36.7K

-14.71%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.2 ฿2,952

$119 Ft 38.6K

-25.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$535 ฿17.9K

$805 Ft 262.0K

-33.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$354 ฿11.9K

$629 Ft 204.7K

-43.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,533 ฿51.3K

$1,549 Ft 504.1K

-1.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$897 ฿30.0K

$1,167 Ft 379.7K

-23.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,660 ฿89.0K

$5,618 Ft 1.8M

-52.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,917 ฿64.2K

$3,968 Ft 1.3M

-51.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,626 Ft 529.0K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

6.43

-13.37%

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

Last update for Koh Tao: October 3, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Koh Tao

$354 34%

Budapest

$629 38.7% 77.8% $275

Groceries & Markets

Koh Tao

$252 24.2%

Budapest

$258 15.8% 2.3% $5.7

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Koh Tao

$125 12%

Budapest

$217 13.4% 74.4% $93

Clothing & Footwear

Koh Tao

$124 11.9%

Budapest

$169 10.4% 36.4% $45

Eating Out

Koh Tao

$101 9.7%

Budapest

$224 13.8% 121% $123

Sport & Entertainment

Koh Tao

$70 6.8%

Budapest

$85 5.2% 21.3% $15

Getting Around

Koh Tao

$15 * 1.5%

Budapest

$43 2.7% 189% $28

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $535 in Koh Tao 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $27.00 in Koh Tao versus $60.0 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $252 vs $258 – making Koh Tao the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Koh Tao

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

14:32 2:32 PM

09:32 9:32 AM

5 h behind Koh Tao

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,382

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 33.48 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.55 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 325 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD). 1 EUR = 365 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Koh Tao Budapest 8,490 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Koh Tao
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

Koh Tao vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 56%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,557 per month in Koh Tao 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 Koh Tao, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $27.00 in Koh Tao and $60.0 in Budapest. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 2% more in Budapest, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Koh Tao, where all-in costs run around $1,038, than in Budapest at $1,621. In Koh Tao it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Koh Tao – 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 Koh Tao. 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.