Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between New Taipei City and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in New Taipei City: $1,211 a month against $1,619 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $4,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in New Taipei City
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New Taipei City Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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New Taipei City

🇹🇼 Taiwan

$1,211

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,211 per month in New Taipei City vs $1,619 in Budapest, rent included.

New Taipei City $1,211
Budapest $1,619

A couple spends around $2,026 per month in New Taipei City vs $2,524 in Budapest, rent included.

New Taipei City $2,026
Budapest $2,524

A family of three spends $2,841 per month in New Taipei City vs $3,429 in Budapest, rent included.

New Taipei City $2,841
Budapest $3,429

New Taipei City is about 25% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

New Taipei City sits 10% below the global median, while Budapest is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.77 NT$155

$13.94 Ft 4,503

-65.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.06 NT$1,007

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

-49.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.02 NT$163

$10.19 Ft 3,291

-50.74%

Cappuccino

$2.27 NT$73.5

$3.26 Ft 1,055

-30.37%

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

$0.88 NT$28.40

$2.14 Ft 690

-58.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 NT$18.22

$1.78 Ft 577

-68.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.58 NT$51.3

$3.71 Ft 1,198

-57.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.57 NT$83.4

$3.77 Ft 1,217

-31.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.13 NT$102

$1.15 Ft 371

172.17%

White Bread (500g)

$1.81 NT$58.6

$1.79 Ft 578

1.12%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.17 NT$70.5

$2.49 Ft 804

-12.85%

Eggs

$2.20 NT$71.3

$3.90 Ft 1,261

-43.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$24.39 NT$791

$11.10 Ft 3,587

119.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.58 NT$343

$6.62 Ft 2,139

59.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.26 NT$625

$14.69 Ft 4,745

31.11%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 NT$129

$1.83 Ft 591

118.03%

Banana (1kg)

$2.54 NT$82.4

$2.05 Ft 661

23.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.68 NT$86.8

$2.37 Ft 765

13.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.98 NT$129

$3.90 Ft 1,260

2.05%

Potato (1kg)

$4.06 NT$132

$0.99 Ft 320

310.10%

Onion (1kg)

$2.06 NT$66.7

$1.00 Ft 322

106.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.61 NT$52.4

$1.58 Ft 511

1.90%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 NT$35.18

$0.67 Ft 216

61.19%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.33 NT$140

$7.96 Ft 2,572

-45.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.14 NT$296

$6.22 Ft 2,009

46.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 NT$45.09

$1.27 Ft 411

9.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.42 NT$78.4

$2.03 Ft 654

19.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.82 NT$26.53

$1.52 Ft 490

-46.05%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$36.86 NT$1,195

$28.02 Ft 9,053

31.55%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.82 NT$91.4

$3.31 Ft 1,070

-14.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 NT$29.96

$1.37 Ft 442

-32.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.46 NT$307

$19.83 Ft 6,406

-52.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.00 NT$32.44

$1.82 Ft 589

-45.05%

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

$33.3K NT$1.1M

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

11.60%

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

$24.5K NT$793.2K

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

-27.66%

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

$114 NT$3,682

$171 Ft 55.3K

-33.65%

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

$16.72 NT$542

$23.51 Ft 7,596

-28.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.01 NT$746

$23.29 Ft 7,526

-1.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.40 NT$1,245

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

-43.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.04 NT$261

$18.89 Ft 6,104

-57.44%

Cinema Ticket

$12.49 NT$405

$9.30 Ft 3,004

34.30%

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

$639 NT$20.7K

$533 Ft 172.3K

19.77%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.5K NT$696.7K

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

28.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$35.61 NT$1,155

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

-64.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.90 NT$1,002

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

-28.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.5 NT$3,000

$110 Ft 35.7K

-16.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$100 NT$3,247

$119 Ft 38.4K

-15.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$641 NT$20.8K

$830 Ft 268.3K

-22.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$348 NT$11.3K

$622 Ft 200.9K

-44.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,406 NT$45.6K

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

-11.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$927 NT$30.0K

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

-20.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$12.4K NT$402.0K

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

112.56%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,282 NT$236.1K

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

87.26%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,418 NT$46.0K

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

-14.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.81

6.45

-56.43%

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

Last update for New Taipei City: October 13, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

New Taipei City

$382 31.6%

Budapest

$258 15.9% 32.5% $124

Accommodation & Living

New Taipei City

$348 28.8%

Budapest

$622 38.4% 78.6% $274

Monthly Utilities & Internet

New Taipei City

$153 12.7%

Budapest

$218 13.5% 42.2% $65

Clothing & Footwear

New Taipei City

$117 9.6%

Budapest

$168 10.4% 43.7% $51

Eating Out

New Taipei City

$99 8.2%

Budapest

$223 13.8% 125% $124

Sport & Entertainment

New Taipei City

$63 5.2%

Budapest

$86 5.3% 35.9% $23

Getting Around

New Taipei City

$48 3.9%

Budapest

$44 2.7% 7% $3.3

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $641 in New Taipei City 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.

Salaries run about 16% 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 $31.00 in New Taipei City versus $61.0 in Budapest. Groceries tell a different story – $382 in New Taipei City vs $258 in Budapest – so Budapest wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇹🇼 New Taipei City

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

06:54 6:54 AM

00:54 12:54 AM

6 h behind New Taipei City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,004,367

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

New Taiwan Dollar TWD NT$

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

100 TWD = 3.08 USD

100 TWD = 2.74 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to TWD – New Taiwan Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇼 New Taiwan Dollar (NT$)

New Taiwan Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 32.43 TWD (100 TWD = 3.08 USD). 1 EUR = 36.46 TWD (100 TWD = 2.74 EUR).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

USD to TWD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

New Taipei City Budapest 8,850 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

New Taipei City
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

New Taipei City vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 34%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,816 per month in New Taipei City 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 New Taipei City, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 32% less in New Taipei City. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $639 per month in New Taipei City and $533 in Budapest. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in New Taipei City, where all-in costs run around $1,211, than in Budapest at $1,619. In New Taipei City it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward New Taipei City – 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 New Taipei City. 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.