Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Malawi and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Malawi: $685 a month against $1,647 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $11,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

33

Cost of Living Index in Malawi
Learn more

Malawi Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
Learn more

Budapest Living Index

Jump to prices

🇲🇼 Malawi

$685

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,647

/mo nomad

🙂 Solo nomad: Malawi is 32.6% cheaper than Budapest without rent, and 58.4% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Malawi is 38.7% cheaper than Budapest without rent, and 50.5% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.14 MWK 8,823

$13.63 Ft 4,407

-62.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$30.53 MWK 52.4K

$60.7 Ft 19.6K

-49.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.61 MWK 11.3K

$10.02 Ft 3,239

-34.03%

Cappuccino

$3.49 MWK 5,990

$3.33 Ft 1,075

4.80%

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

$1.06 MWK 1,820

$2.12 Ft 684

-50.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.43 MWK 730

$1.80 Ft 581

-76.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.72 MWK 2,948

$3.61 Ft 1,166

-52.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.52 MWK 6,038

$3.59 Ft 1,160

-1.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.23 MWK 2,116

$1.12 Ft 361

9.82%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 MWK 2,415

$1.93 Ft 623

-26.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.71 MWK 2,935

$2.49 Ft 804

-31.33%

Eggs

$2.12 MWK 3,645

$3.94 Ft 1,275

-46.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.49 MWK 12.9K

$11.28 Ft 3,646

-33.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.33 MWK 7,428

$6.73 Ft 2,177

-35.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$5.75 MWK 9,867

$14.44 Ft 4,670

-60.18%

Apples (1kg)

$2.38 MWK 4,081

$1.86 Ft 601

27.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.80 MWK 3,091

$2.04 Ft 658

-11.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.29 MWK 3,940

$2.29 Ft 740

Tomato (1kg)

$1.31 MWK 2,253

$3.99 Ft 1,290

-67.17%

Potato (1kg)

$1.38 MWK 2,366

$0.94 Ft 304

46.81%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 MWK 2,519

$1.02 Ft 330

44.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.33 MWK 569

$1.65 Ft 534

-80.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 MWK 2,206

$0.68 Ft 221

88.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.38 MWK 4,082

$7.81 Ft 2,526

-69.53%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.87 MWK 27.2K

$6.02 Ft 1,946

163.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.07 MWK 1,846

$1.29 Ft 418

-17.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 MWK 4,089

$2.02 Ft 655

17.82%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.89 MWK 1,520

$1.50 Ft 484

-40.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$2.22 MWK 3,804

$27.13 Ft 8,769

-91.82%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.61 MWK 1,042

$3.36 Ft 1,085

-81.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.49 MWK 4,272

$1.37 Ft 444

81.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.11 MWK 3,631

$19.96 Ft 6,451

-89.43%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 MWK 2,605

$1.86 Ft 603

-18.28%

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

$35.1K MWK 60.3M

$28.5K Ft 9.2M

23.24%

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

$39.4K MWK 67.6M

$33.4K Ft 10.8M

18.02%

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

$39.58 MWK 68.0K

$178 Ft 57.6K

-77.79%

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

$10.16 MWK 17.4K

$23.58 Ft 7,623

-56.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$71.8 MWK 123.2K

$24.12 Ft 7,797

197.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.65 MWK 62.9K

$69.7 Ft 22.5K

-47.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$14.76 MWK 25.4K

$17.03 Ft 5,505

-13.33%

Cinema Ticket

$10.48 Ft 3,388

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

$376 MWK 645.1K

$625 Ft 202.1K

-39.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$592 MWK 1.0M

$19.6K Ft 6.4M

-96.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$42.87 MWK 73.6K

$102 Ft 33.0K

-57.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.28 MWK 69.2K

$43.41 Ft 14.0K

-7.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$48.84 MWK 83.9K

$110 Ft 35.5K

-55.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$70.0 MWK 120.2K

$121 Ft 39.0K

-41.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$312 MWK 535.2K

$845 Ft 273.3K

-63.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$85.9 MWK 147.5K

$638 Ft 206.4K

-86.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$546 MWK 937.5K

$1,609 Ft 520.1K

-66.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$405 MWK 695.2K

$1,217 Ft 393.5K

-66.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,555 Ft 1.8M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$401 MWK 688.3K

$3,898 Ft 1.3M

-89.72%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$315 MWK 541.6K

$1,724 Ft 557.5K

-81.71%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.34

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

Last update for Malawi: November 3, 2026

Last update for Budapest: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Malawi

$207 30.2%

Budapest

$260 15.8% 25.4% $53

Eating Out

Malawi

$124 18.2%

Budapest

$220 13.4% 76.8% $96

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Malawi

$122 17.7%

Budapest

$226 13.7% 85.9% $104

Clothing & Footwear

Malawi

$91 13.3%

Budapest

$169 10.3% 86.1% $78

Accommodation & Living

Malawi

$86 12.5%

Budapest

$638 38.8% 643% $552

Sport & Entertainment

Malawi

$37 * 5.4%

Budapest

$91 5.5% 147% $54

Getting Around

Malawi

$19 2.7%

Budapest

$43 2.6% 131% $25

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

Good to know

🇲🇼 Malawi

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

03:41 3:41 AM

02:41 2:41 AM

1 h behind Malawi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

18,622,104

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Malawian Kwacha MWK MK

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 MWK = 5.82 USD

10,000 MWK = 5.19 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.76 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to MWK – Malawian Kwacha Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇼 Malawian Kwacha (MK)

Malawian Kwacha exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 1,717 MWK (10,000 MWK = 5.82 USD). 1 EUR = 1,928 MWK (10,000 MWK = 5.19 EUR).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.76 EUR).

USD to MWK in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Malawi Budapest 6,990 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Malawi
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

Malawi vs other spots: cost of living compared

Cost of Living Comparison Between Malawi and Budapest

HUF, USD, EUR to MWK – Malawian Kwacha Converter

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

Malawi

Budapest

Malawi

Budapest

Malawi vs other spots: cost of living compared

Similar countries

🇹🇳 Tunisia

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

🇬🇲 Gambia

🇹🇬 Togo