Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Male and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Male: $1,524 a month against $1,621 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $1,200 less a year. The total is higher in Budapest despite lower rent and utilities.

74

Cost of Living Index in Male
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Male Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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Male

🇲🇻 Maldives

$1,524

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,621

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,524 per month in Male vs $1,621 in Budapest, rent included.

Male $1,524
Budapest $1,621

A couple spends around $2,454 per month in Male vs $2,555 in Budapest, rent included.

Male $2,454
Budapest $2,555

A family of three spends $3,385 per month in Male vs $3,489 in Budapest, rent included.

Male $3,385
Budapest $3,489

Male is about 6% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Male and Budapest sit above the global median – Male by 14%, Budapest by 21%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.86 MVR 90.3

$13.99 Ft 4,555

-58.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$38.10 MVR 587

$60.3 Ft 19.7K

-36.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.73 MVR 150

$9.96 Ft 3,244

-2.31%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.73 MVR 72.9

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.78 MVR 73.7

Cappuccino

$3.49 MVR 53.8

$3.38 Ft 1,102

3.25%

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

$1.63 MVR 25.14

$2.13 Ft 693

-23.47%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 MVR 4.80

$1.87 Ft 609

-83.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.75 Ft 1,222

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.57 Ft 1,163

Milk (1 liter)

$1.98 MVR 30.50

$1.13 Ft 369

75.22%

White Bread (500g)

$1.60 MVR 24.74

$1.84 Ft 600

-13.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.21 MVR 18.59

$2.39 Ft 777

-49.37%

Eggs

$1.94 MVR 29.89

$3.83 Ft 1,246

-49.35%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.48 MVR 162

$11.33 Ft 3,689

-7.50%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.01 MVR 92.7

$6.74 Ft 2,194

-10.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.67 MVR 149

$14.69 Ft 4,784

-34.17%

Apples (1kg)

$4.05 MVR 62.5

$1.84 Ft 598

120.11%

Banana (1kg)

$3.13 MVR 48.26

$2.01 Ft 654

55.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.98 MVR 61.4

$2.36 Ft 767

68.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.66 MVR 41.00

$3.77 Ft 1,227

-29.44%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MVR 31.10

$0.96 Ft 314

110.42%

Onion (1kg)

$1.88 MVR 28.95

$1.03 Ft 335

82.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.12 MVR 32.75

$1.56 Ft 509

35.90%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.61 MVR 9.47

$0.66 Ft 216

-7.58%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$12.24 MVR 189

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.68 MVR 41.39

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 MVR 29.35

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$15.01 MVR 231

$7.96 Ft 2,594

88.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.01 Ft 1,956

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 Ft 422

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.08 Ft 677

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.63 MVR 9.74

$1.50 Ft 490

-58.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.22 MVR 466

$27.61 Ft 8,991

9.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.98 MVR 30.56

$3.30 Ft 1,075

-40.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.90 MVR 29.35

$1.30 Ft 424

46.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.18 MVR 157

$19.78 Ft 6,442

-48.53%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.99 MVR 15.24

$1.81 Ft 591

-45.30%

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

$32.9K MVR 506.6K

$29.3K Ft 9.6M

12.03%

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

$28.8K MVR 443.6K

$34.1K Ft 11.1M

-15.66%

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

$117 MVR 1,808

$170 Ft 55.3K

-31.01%

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

$30.56 MVR 471

$23.98 Ft 7,809

27.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$71.8 MVR 1,107

$23.42 Ft 7,628

206.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$72.0 MVR 1,110

$66.2 Ft 21.6K

8.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.45 MVR 531

$19.18 Ft 6,245

79.61%

Cinema Ticket

$9.90 MVR 153

$9.52 Ft 3,101

3.99%

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

$185 MVR 2,860

$537 Ft 174.8K

-65.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,048 MVR 47.0K

$16.6K Ft 5.4M

-81.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$39.25 MVR 605

$101 Ft 33.0K

-61.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.98 MVR 771

$42.99 Ft 14.0K

16.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.8 MVR 1,323

$113 Ft 36.7K

-23.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$51.5 MVR 794

$119 Ft 38.7K

-56.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$948 MVR 14.6K

$805 Ft 262.2K

17.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$709 MVR 10.9K

$629 Ft 204.9K

12.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,035 MVR 31.4K

$1,549 Ft 504.6K

31.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,524 MVR 23.5K

$1,167 Ft 380.1K

30.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,282 MVR 35.2K

$5,618 Ft 1.8M

-59.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,391 MVR 21.5K

$3,968 Ft 1.3M

-64.94%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$837 MVR 12.9K

$1,626 Ft 529.5K

-48.54%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.43

117.73%

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

Last update for Male: 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

Male

$709 46.5%

Budapest

$629 38.7% 11.3% $80

Groceries & Markets

Male

$233 15.3%

Budapest

$258 15.8% 10.6% $25

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Male

$220 14.4%

Budapest

$217 13.4% 1% $2.3

Eating Out

Male

$126 8.2%

Budapest

$224 13.8% 78.4% $99

Clothing & Footwear

Male

$102 6.7%

Budapest

$169 10.4% 65.9% $67

Sport & Entertainment

Male

$92 6%

Budapest

$85 5.2% 7.1% $6.5

Getting Around

Male

$44 2.9%

Budapest

$43 2.7% 1.9% $0.8

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $948 in Male 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.

Salaries run about 94% higher in Budapest, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $38.00 in Male versus $60.0 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $233 vs $258 – making Male the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇻 Male

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

12:15 12:15 PM

09:15 9:15 AM

3 h behind Male

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

103,693 Capital

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Maldivian Rufiyaa MVR Rf

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

100 MVR = 6.49 USD

100 MVR = 5.78 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to MVR – Maldivian Rufiyaa Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇻 Maldivian Rufiyaa (Rf)

Maldivian Rufiyaa exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 15.42 MVR (100 MVR = 6.49 USD). 1 EUR = 17.29 MVR (100 MVR = 5.78 EUR).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 326 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD). 1 EUR = 365 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR).

USD to MVR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Male Budapest 7,070 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Male
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

Male vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 6%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,285 per month in Male 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 Male, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 9% less in Male. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $185 per month in Male and $537 in Budapest. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Male, where all-in costs run around $1,524, than in Budapest at $1,621. In Male it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Male – 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 Male. 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.