Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kyoto and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Kyoto: $1,229 a month against $1,619 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $4,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

60

Cost of Living Index in Kyoto
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Kyoto Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

Jump to prices

Kyoto

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,229

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,229 per month in Kyoto vs $1,619 in Budapest, rent included.

Kyoto $1,229
Budapest $1,619

A couple spends around $1,987 per month in Kyoto vs $2,524 in Budapest, rent included.

Kyoto $1,987
Budapest $2,524

A family of three spends $2,745 per month in Kyoto vs $3,429 in Budapest, rent included.

Kyoto $2,745
Budapest $3,429

Kyoto is about 24% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Kyoto sits 9% below the global median, while Budapest is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.52 ¥1,504

$13.94 Ft 4,503

-31.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.84 ¥5,031

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

-47.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.00 ¥791

$10.19 Ft 3,291

-50.93%

Cappuccino

$3.35 ¥529

$3.26 Ft 1,055

2.76%

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

$0.83 ¥132

$2.14 Ft 690

-61.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.73 ¥115

$1.78 Ft 577

-58.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 ¥503

$3.71 Ft 1,198

-14.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.51 ¥870

$3.77 Ft 1,217

46.15%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.55 ¥244

$1.15 Ft 371

34.78%

White Bread (500g)

$1.63 ¥258

$1.79 Ft 578

-8.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$5.74 ¥907

$2.49 Ft 804

130.52%

Eggs

$2.12 ¥335

$3.90 Ft 1,261

-45.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.57 ¥1,353

$11.10 Ft 3,587

-22.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.58 ¥1,197

$6.62 Ft 2,139

14.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.70 ¥1,690

$14.69 Ft 4,745

-27.16%

Apples (1kg)

$5.16 ¥815

$1.83 Ft 591

181.97%

Banana (1kg)

$2.27 ¥359

$2.05 Ft 661

10.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.94 ¥781

$2.37 Ft 765

108.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.51 ¥555

$3.90 Ft 1,260

-10.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 ¥307

$0.99 Ft 320

95.96%

Onion (1kg)

$1.66 ¥262

$1.00 Ft 322

66.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 ¥187

$1.58 Ft 511

-25.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 ¥156

$0.67 Ft 216

47.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.86 ¥610

$7.96 Ft 2,572

-51.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.52 ¥1,189

$6.22 Ft 2,009

20.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.56 ¥247

$1.27 Ft 411

22.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.27 ¥517

$2.03 Ft 654

61.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.48 ¥234

$1.52 Ft 490

-2.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$63.5 ¥10.0K

$28.02 Ft 9,053

126.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.25 ¥513

$3.31 Ft 1,070

-1.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.77 ¥596

$1.37 Ft 442

175.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.62 ¥4,521

$19.83 Ft 6,406

44.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 ¥167

$1.82 Ft 589

-41.76%

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

$21.8K ¥3.4M

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

-26.90%

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

$15.1K ¥2.4M

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

-55.28%

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

$102 ¥16.1K

$171 Ft 55.3K

-40.59%

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

$23.50 ¥3,712

$23.51 Ft 7,596

-0.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.15 ¥4,921

$23.29 Ft 7,526

33.75%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.3 ¥8,265

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

-22.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.00 ¥3,001

$18.89 Ft 6,104

0.58%

Cinema Ticket

$12.06 ¥1,905

$9.30 Ft 3,004

29.68%

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

$642 ¥101.5K

$533 Ft 172.3K

20.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,412 ¥1.0M

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

-61.74%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.8 ¥8,980

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

-42.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.66 ¥7,214

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

4.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.4 ¥11.0K

$110 Ft 35.7K

-37.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 ¥16.5K

$119 Ft 38.4K

-12.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$552 ¥87.1K

$830 Ft 268.3K

-33.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$325 ¥51.4K

$622 Ft 200.9K

-47.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,743 ¥275.4K

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

9.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$766 ¥121.0K

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

-34.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,241 ¥354.0K

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

-61.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,270 ¥200.7K

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

-67.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,889 ¥298.5K

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

14.43%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.23

6.45

-65.43%

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

Last update for Kyoto: 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

Kyoto

$325 26.5%

Budapest

$622 38.4% 91.2% $297

Groceries & Markets

Kyoto

$291 23.7%

Budapest

$258 15.9% 11.3% $33

Eating Out

Kyoto

$165 13.4%

Budapest

$223 13.8% 35.5% $58

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kyoto

$156 12.7%

Budapest

$218 13.5% 39.4% $62

Clothing & Footwear

Kyoto

$124 10.1%

Budapest

$168 10.4% 34.7% $43

Getting Around

Kyoto

$91 7.4%

Budapest

$44 2.7% 51.6% $47

Sport & Entertainment

Kyoto

$76 6.2%

Budapest

$86 5.3% 12.7% $9.7

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $552 in Kyoto 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 14% higher in Kyoto, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32.00 in Kyoto versus $61.0 in Budapest. Groceries tell a different story – $291 in Kyoto vs $258 in Budapest – so Budapest wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Kyoto

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

14:47 2:47 PM

07:47 7:47 AM

7 h behind Kyoto

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,475,183

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 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 JPY in detail →

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Kyoto Budapest 8,890 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Kyoto
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Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

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Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Kyoto vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 32%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,844 per month in Kyoto 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 Kyoto, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 126% less in Kyoto. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $642 per month in Kyoto 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 Kyoto, where all-in costs run around $1,229, than in Budapest at $1,619. In Kyoto it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Kyoto – 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 Kyoto. 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.