Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Moldova and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Moldova: $1,135 a month against $1,621 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $5,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

56

Cost of Living Index in Moldova
Learn more

Moldova Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
Learn more

Budapest Living Index

Jump to prices

🇲🇩 Moldova

$1,135

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,621

/mo nomad

🙂 Solo nomad: Moldova is 31.2% cheaper than Budapest without rent, and 30% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Moldova is 31.6% cheaper than Budapest without rent, and 33.4% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.43 MDL 167

$13.99 Ft 4,551

-32.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.09 MDL 604

$60.3 Ft 19.6K

-43.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.59 MDL 152

$9.96 Ft 3,241

-13.76%

Cappuccino

$1.89 MDL 33.46

$3.38 Ft 1,100

-44.08%

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

$1.06 MDL 18.71

$2.13 Ft 692

-50.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.74 MDL 13.08

$1.87 Ft 608

-60.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.83 MDL 32.40

$3.75 Ft 1,221

-51.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.99 MDL 35.35

$3.57 Ft 1,162

-44.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.21 MDL 21.37

$1.13 Ft 368

7.08%

White Bread (500g)

$0.65 MDL 11.59

$1.84 Ft 599

-64.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.40 MDL 24.88

$2.39 Ft 777

-41.42%

Eggs

$2.70 MDL 47.91

$3.83 Ft 1,245

-29.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.46 MDL 168

$11.33 Ft 3,686

-16.50%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.22 MDL 92.4

$6.74 Ft 2,192

-22.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.30 MDL 147

$14.69 Ft 4,780

-43.50%

Apples (1kg)

$1.00 MDL 17.75

$1.84 Ft 597

-45.65%

Banana (1kg)

$1.83 MDL 32.34

$2.01 Ft 653

-8.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.84 MDL 32.67

$2.36 Ft 767

-22.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.11 MDL 37.38

$3.77 Ft 1,226

-44.03%

Potato (1kg)

$0.77 MDL 13.72

$0.96 Ft 313

-19.79%

Onion (1kg)

$0.52 MDL 9.28

$1.03 Ft 334

-49.51%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 MDL 22.60

$1.56 Ft 509

-17.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 MDL 15.55

$0.66 Ft 216

33.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.38 MDL 59.8

$7.96 Ft 2,591

-57.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.34 MDL 76.9

$6.01 Ft 1,954

-27.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 MDL 22.57

$1.30 Ft 421

-2.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.92 MDL 34.01

$2.08 Ft 676

-7.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.40 MDL 7.13

$1.50 Ft 489

-73.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$14.89 MDL 264

$27.61 Ft 8,982

-46.07%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.18 MDL 38.65

$3.30 Ft 1,074

-33.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.35 MDL 6.23

$1.30 Ft 424

-73.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.00 MDL 88.7

$19.78 Ft 6,436

-74.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.67 MDL 29.63

$1.81 Ft 591

-7.73%

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

$30.1K MDL 533.2K

$29.3K Ft 9.5M

2.58%

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

$28.4K MDL 503.9K

$34.1K Ft 11.1M

-16.64%

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

$221 MDL 3,921

$170 Ft 55.3K

30.19%

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

$9.33 MDL 165

$23.98 Ft 7,802

-61.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.79 MDL 191

$23.42 Ft 7,621

-53.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.47 MDL 682

$66.2 Ft 21.6K

-41.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.62 MDL 312

$19.18 Ft 6,239

-8.13%

Cinema Ticket

$8.32 MDL 148

$9.52 Ft 3,098

-12.61%

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

$388 MDL 6,868

$537 Ft 174.6K

-27.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,539 MDL 98.2K

$16.6K Ft 5.4M

-66.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.3 MDL 1,211

$101 Ft 33.0K

-32.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.45 MDL 735

$42.99 Ft 14.0K

-3.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 MDL 1,816

$113 Ft 36.7K

-9.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 MDL 1,920

$119 Ft 38.6K

-8.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$564 MDL 9,997

$805 Ft 262.0K

-29.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$363 MDL 6,425

$629 Ft 204.7K

-42.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,110 MDL 19.7K

$1,549 Ft 504.1K

-28.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$706 MDL 12.5K

$1,167 Ft 379.7K

-39.48%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,465 MDL 43.7K

$5,618 Ft 1.8M

-56.12%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,824 MDL 32.3K

$3,968 Ft 1.3M

-54.04%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$764 MDL 13.5K

$1,626 Ft 529.0K

-53.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.61

6.43

33.90%

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

Last update for Moldova: October 4, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Moldova

$363 31.4%

Budapest

$629 38.7% 73.6% $267

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Moldova

$241 20.9%

Budapest

$217 13.4% 10% $24

Groceries & Markets

Moldova

$186 16.1%

Budapest

$258 15.8% 38.4% $71

Clothing & Footwear

Moldova

$144 12.5%

Budapest

$169 10.4% 17.2% $25

Eating Out

Moldova

$144 12.5%

Budapest

$224 13.8% 55.5% $80

Sport & Entertainment

Moldova

$55 4.8%

Budapest

$85 5.2% 54.7% $30

Getting Around

Moldova

$20 1.8%

Budapest

$43 2.7% 113% $23

Good to know

🇲🇩 Moldova

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

06:58 6:58 AM

05:58 5:58 AM

1 h behind Moldova

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,603,813

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Moldovan Leu MDL L

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

100 MDL = 5.64 USD

100 MDL = 5.03 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to MDL – Moldovan Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇩 Moldovan Leu (L)

Moldovan Leu exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 17.72 MDL (100 MDL = 5.64 USD). 1 EUR = 19.88 MDL (100 MDL = 5.03 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 MDL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Moldova Budapest 740 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Moldova
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

Moldova vs other spots: cost of living compared

Cost of Living Comparison Between Moldova and Budapest

HUF, USD, EUR to MDL – Moldovan Leu Converter

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

Moldova

Budapest

Moldova

Budapest

Moldova vs other spots: cost of living compared

Similar countries

🇷🇴 Romania

🇿🇦 South Africa

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

🇬🇪 Georgia

🇹🇼 Taiwan

🇦🇱 Albania

🇲🇳 Mongolia

🇳🇦 Namibia