Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Maha Sarakham and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Maha Sarakham: $919 a month against $1,619 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Maha Sarakham
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Maha Sarakham Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
Learn more

Budapest Living Index

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Maha Sarakham

🇹🇭 Thailand

$919

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $919 per month in Maha Sarakham vs $1,619 in Budapest, rent included.

Maha Sarakham $919
Budapest $1,619

A couple spends around $1,507 per month in Maha Sarakham vs $2,524 in Budapest, rent included.

Maha Sarakham $1,507
Budapest $2,524

A family of three spends $2,094 per month in Maha Sarakham vs $3,429 in Budapest, rent included.

Maha Sarakham $2,094
Budapest $3,429

Maha Sarakham is about 43% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Maha Sarakham sits 32% below the global median, while Budapest is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.05 ฿102

$13.94 Ft 4,503

-78.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$22.47 ฿751

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

-63.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.08 ฿237

$10.19 Ft 3,291

-30.52%

Cappuccino

$2.12 ฿71.0

$3.26 Ft 1,055

-34.97%

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

$0.73 ฿24.23

$2.14 Ft 690

-65.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.33 ฿11.15

$1.78 Ft 577

-81.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.02 ฿67.6

$3.71 Ft 1,198

-45.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.04 ฿102

$3.77 Ft 1,217

-19.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.2

$1.15 Ft 371

51.30%

White Bread (500g)

$1.39 ฿46.53

$1.79 Ft 578

-22.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.35 ฿45.20

$2.49 Ft 804

-45.78%

Eggs

$2.07 ฿69.1

$3.90 Ft 1,261

-46.92%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.39 ฿548

$11.10 Ft 3,587

47.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.75 ฿92.0

$6.62 Ft 2,139

-58.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.23 ฿342

$14.69 Ft 4,745

-30.36%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 ฿101

$1.83 Ft 591

65.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.08 ฿36.10

$2.05 Ft 661

-47.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.16 ฿72.3

$2.37 Ft 765

-8.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.90 ฿63.4

$3.90 Ft 1,260

-51.28%

Potato (1kg)

$1.49 ฿49.65

$0.99 Ft 320

50.51%

Onion (1kg)

$1.11 ฿37.11

$1.00 Ft 322

11.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ฿37.41

$1.58 Ft 511

-29.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.48 ฿16.12

$0.67 Ft 216

-28.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.44 ฿149

$7.96 Ft 2,572

-44.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.25 ฿577

$6.22 Ft 2,009

177.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 ฿56.9

$1.27 Ft 411

33.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 ฿92.8

$2.03 Ft 654

36.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.90 ฿30.10

$1.52 Ft 490

-40.79%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.02 Ft 9,053

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.26 ฿42.02

$3.31 Ft 1,070

-61.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.12 ฿37.42

$1.37 Ft 442

-18.25%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.93 ฿165

$19.83 Ft 6,406

-75.14%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 ฿44.74

$1.82 Ft 589

-26.37%

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

$26.0K ฿869.7K

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

-12.66%

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

$26.4K ฿881.4K

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

-22.00%

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

$82.5 ฿2,755

$171 Ft 55.3K

-51.82%

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

$11.45 ฿383

$23.51 Ft 7,596

-51.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.19 ฿641

$23.29 Ft 7,526

-17.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$47.10 ฿1,574

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

-30.25%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.97 ฿467

$18.89 Ft 6,104

-26.05%

Cinema Ticket

$6.63 ฿222

$9.30 Ft 3,004

-28.71%

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

$563 ฿18.8K

$533 Ft 172.3K

5.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.7K ฿357.3K

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

-36.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.3 ฿1,715

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

-48.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.17 ฿975

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

-32.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.1 ฿2,610

$110 Ft 35.7K

-29.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$76.8 ฿2,565

$119 Ft 38.4K

-35.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$441 ฿14.7K

$830 Ft 268.3K

-46.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$293 ฿9,807

$622 Ft 200.9K

-52.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,382 ฿46.2K

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

-13.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$740 ฿24.7K

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

-36.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,901 ฿63.5K

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

-67.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,610 ฿53.8K

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

-58.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

6.45

-13.64%

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

Last update for Maha Sarakham: 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

Maha Sarakham

$293 31.9%

Budapest

$622 38.4% 112% $328

Groceries & Markets

Maha Sarakham

$244 26.6%

Budapest

$258 15.9% 5.8% $14

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Maha Sarakham

$113 12.3%

Budapest

$218 13.5% 92.7% $105

Clothing & Footwear

Maha Sarakham

$106 11.5%

Budapest

$168 10.4% 58.3% $62

Eating Out

Maha Sarakham

$92 10%

Budapest

$223 13.8% 144% $131

Sport & Entertainment

Maha Sarakham

$60 6.6%

Budapest

$86 5.3% 42.7% $26

Getting Around

Maha Sarakham

$10 * 1.1%

Budapest

$44 2.7% 323% $34

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $441 in Maha Sarakham 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $22.00 in Maha Sarakham versus $61.0 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $244 vs $258 – making Maha Sarakham the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Maha Sarakham

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

20:58 8:58 PM

15:58 3:58 PM

5 h behind Maha Sarakham

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

46,523

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 = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 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 17, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Maha Sarakham Budapest 8,260 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Maha Sarakham
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

Maha Sarakham vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 76%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,378 per month in Maha Sarakham 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 Maha Sarakham, 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 $22.00 in Maha Sarakham and $61.0 in Budapest. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 6% 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 $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Maha Sarakham, where all-in costs run around $919, than in Budapest at $1,619. In Maha Sarakham it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Maha Sarakham – 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 Maha Sarakham. 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.