Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ndola and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Ndola: $700 a month against $1,647 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $11,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

34

Cost of Living Index in Ndola
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Ndola Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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Ndola

🇿🇲 Zambia

$700

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,647

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $700 per month in Ndola vs $1,647 in Budapest, rent included.

Ndola $700
Budapest $1,647

A couple spends around $1,694 per month in Ndola vs $2,567 in Budapest, rent included.

Ndola $1,694
Budapest $2,567

A family of three spends $2,689 per month in Ndola vs $3,488 in Budapest, rent included.

Ndola $2,689
Budapest $3,488

Ndola is about 58% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Ndola sits 48% below the global median, while Budapest is 22% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.51 ZMW 112

$13.63 Ft 4,407

-59.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.25 ZMW 593

$60.7 Ft 19.6K

-51.77%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.90 ZMW 99.3

$10.02 Ft 3,239

-51.10%

Cappuccino

$2.68 ZMW 54.4

$3.33 Ft 1,075

-19.52%

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

$0.50 ZMW 10.16

$2.12 Ft 684

-76.42%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.24 ZMW 4.84

$1.80 Ft 581

-86.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.21 ZMW 24.46

$3.61 Ft 1,166

-66.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.16 ZMW 43.71

$3.59 Ft 1,160

-39.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 ZMW 31.94

$1.12 Ft 361

41.07%

White Bread (500g)

$1.17 ZMW 23.66

$1.93 Ft 623

-39.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.10 ZMW 42.50

$2.49 Ft 804

-15.66%

Eggs

$1.61 ZMW 32.58

$3.94 Ft 1,275

-59.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.96 ZMW 202

$11.28 Ft 3,646

-11.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.21 ZMW 126

$6.73 Ft 2,177

-7.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.44 ZMW 131

$14.44 Ft 4,670

-55.40%

Apples (1kg)

$1.44 ZMW 29.29

$1.86 Ft 601

-22.58%

Banana (1kg)

$2.34 ZMW 47.50

$2.04 Ft 658

14.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.19 ZMW 64.7

$2.29 Ft 740

39.30%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.55 ZMW 31.51

$3.99 Ft 1,290

-61.15%

Potato (1kg)

$2.49 ZMW 50.5

$0.94 Ft 304

164.89%

Onion (1kg)

$1.83 ZMW 37.11

$1.02 Ft 330

79.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 ZMW 23.31

$1.65 Ft 534

-30.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.56 ZMW 11.44

$0.68 Ft 221

-17.65%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.88 ZMW 58.4

$7.81 Ft 2,526

-63.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.94 ZMW 201

$6.02 Ft 1,946

65.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 ZMW 28.88

$1.29 Ft 418

10.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 ZMW 45.25

$2.02 Ft 655

10.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.77 ZMW 15.51

$1.50 Ft 484

-48.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.13 Ft 8,769

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.42 ZMW 48.96

$3.36 Ft 1,085

-27.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 ZMW 30.35

$1.37 Ft 444

9.49%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.04 ZMW 102

$19.96 Ft 6,451

-74.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.32 ZMW 26.83

$1.86 Ft 603

-29.03%

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

$7,474 ZMW 151.5K

$28.5K Ft 9.2M

-73.79%

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

$24.8K ZMW 501.8K

$33.4K Ft 10.8M

-25.83%

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

$69.8 ZMW 1,416

$178 Ft 57.6K

-60.80%

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

$10.63 ZMW 216

$23.58 Ft 7,623

-54.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.8 ZMW 1,090

$24.12 Ft 7,797

122.97%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$69.7 Ft 22.5K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.03 Ft 5,505

Cinema Ticket

$6.04 ZMW 122

$10.48 Ft 3,388

-42.37%

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

$147 ZMW 2,986

$625 Ft 202.1K

-76.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$20.3K ZMW 411.2K

$19.6K Ft 6.4M

3.27%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$24.47 ZMW 496

$102 Ft 33.0K

-76.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$17.37 ZMW 352

$43.41 Ft 14.0K

-59.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$45.04 ZMW 913

$110 Ft 35.5K

-59.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$65.7 ZMW 1,332

$121 Ft 39.0K

-45.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$176 ZMW 3,563

$845 Ft 273.3K

-79.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$149 ZMW 3,025

$638 Ft 206.4K

-76.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$371 ZMW 7,525

$1,609 Ft 520.1K

-76.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,483 ZMW 30.1K

$1,217 Ft 393.5K

21.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,555 Ft 1.8M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,898 Ft 1.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$602 ZMW 12.2K

$1,724 Ft 557.5K

-65.08%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.34

357.41%

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

Last update for Ndola: 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

Ndola

$218 31.2%

Budapest

$260 15.8% 19% $42

Accommodation & Living

Ndola

$149 21.3%

Budapest

$638 38.8% 328% $489

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ndola

$134 19.2%

Budapest

$226 13.7% 68.2% $92

Eating Out

Ndola

$104 14.9%

Budapest

$220 13.4% 111% $116

Clothing & Footwear

Ndola

$69 9.8%

Budapest

$169 10.3% 146% $100

Getting Around

Ndola

$13 * 1.9%

Budapest

$43 2.6% 234% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Ndola

$12 * 1.7%

Budapest

$91 5.5% 650% $79

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $176 in Ndola versus $845 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 in Budapest are about 2.9 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $29 in Ndola versus $61 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $218 vs $260 – making Ndola the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇲 Ndola

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

03:25 3:25 AM

02:25 2:25 AM

1 h behind Ndola

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

455,194

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Zambian Kwacha ZMW ZK

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZMW = 4.93 USD

100 ZMW = 4.39 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.76 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to ZMW – Zambian Kwacha Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇲 Zambian Kwacha (ZK)

Zambian Kwacha exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 20.27 ZMW (100 ZMW = 4.93 USD). 1 EUR = 22.75 ZMW (100 ZMW = 4.39 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 ZMW in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Ndola Budapest 6,790 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Ndola
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

Ndola vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 135%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,050 per month in Ndola and $2,471 in Budapest. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Ndola, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $176 there versus $845 in Budapest.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $29 in Ndola and $61 in Budapest. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 19% more in Budapest, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Ndola, where all-in costs run around $700, than in Budapest at $1,647. In Ndola it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Ndola – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Ndola. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Budapest makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.