Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Otsu and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Otsu: $1,300 a month against $1,619 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $3,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

63

Cost of Living Index in Otsu
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Otsu Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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Otsu

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,300

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,300 per month in Otsu vs $1,619 in Budapest, rent included.

Otsu $1,300
Budapest $1,619

A couple spends around $1,886 per month in Otsu vs $2,524 in Budapest, rent included.

Otsu $1,886
Budapest $2,524

A family of three spends $2,472 per month in Otsu vs $3,429 in Budapest, rent included.

Otsu $2,472
Budapest $3,429

Otsu is about 20% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Otsu sits 4% below the global median, while Budapest is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.63 ¥1,364

$13.94 Ft 4,503

-38.09%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.03 ¥5,061

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

-47.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.00 ¥790

$10.19 Ft 3,291

-50.93%

Cappuccino

$3.24 ¥511

$3.26 Ft 1,055

-0.61%

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

$1.23 ¥195

$2.14 Ft 690

-42.52%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.88 ¥139

$1.78 Ft 577

-50.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.17 ¥501

$3.71 Ft 1,198

-14.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.29 ¥678

$3.77 Ft 1,217

13.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 ¥239

$1.15 Ft 371

31.30%

White Bread (500g)

$1.54 ¥243

$1.79 Ft 578

-13.97%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.52 ¥714

$2.49 Ft 804

81.53%

Eggs

$2.12 ¥334

$3.90 Ft 1,261

-45.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.86 ¥2,506

$11.10 Ft 3,587

42.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 ¥1,089

$6.62 Ft 2,139

4.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.02 ¥2,689

$14.69 Ft 4,745

15.86%

Apples (1kg)

$4.90 ¥775

$1.83 Ft 591

167.76%

Banana (1kg)

$2.47 ¥390

$2.05 Ft 661

20.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.88 ¥771

$2.37 Ft 765

105.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.36 ¥689

$3.90 Ft 1,260

11.79%

Potato (1kg)

$2.18 ¥344

$0.99 Ft 320

120.20%

Onion (1kg)

$1.92 ¥303

$1.00 Ft 322

92.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 ¥181

$1.58 Ft 511

-27.85%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 ¥149

$0.67 Ft 216

40.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.89 ¥614

$7.96 Ft 2,572

-51.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.69 ¥1,530

$6.22 Ft 2,009

55.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 ¥310

$1.27 Ft 411

54.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ¥343

$2.03 Ft 654

6.90%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.49 ¥235

$1.52 Ft 490

-1.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$52.6 ¥8,303

$28.02 Ft 9,053

87.54%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.13 ¥494

$3.31 Ft 1,070

-5.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.80 ¥442

$1.37 Ft 442

104.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.90 ¥4,566

$19.83 Ft 6,406

45.74%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.07 ¥169

$1.82 Ft 589

-41.21%

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

$21.6K ¥3.4M

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

-27.57%

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

$15.2K ¥2.4M

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

-54.96%

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

$115 ¥18.2K

$171 Ft 55.3K

-32.69%

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

$23.03 ¥3,639

$23.51 Ft 7,596

-2.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.88 ¥4,878

$23.29 Ft 7,526

32.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.2 ¥8,082

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

-24.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.67 ¥1,528

$18.89 Ft 6,104

-48.81%

Cinema Ticket

$12.33 ¥1,948

$9.30 Ft 3,004

32.58%

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

$569 ¥89.9K

$533 Ft 172.3K

6.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.4K ¥2.0M

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

-26.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.7 ¥8,955

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

-43.10%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.70 ¥5,639

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

-17.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.3 ¥10.9K

$110 Ft 35.7K

-37.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.8 ¥15.6K

$119 Ft 38.4K

-16.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$450 ¥71.1K

$830 Ft 268.3K

-45.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$376 ¥59.4K

$622 Ft 200.9K

-39.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$625 ¥98.7K

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

-60.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$461 ¥72.8K

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

-60.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,259 ¥672.9K

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

-26.97%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,749 ¥276.3K

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

-55.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,814 ¥286.6K

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

9.86%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.1

6.45

-67.44%

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

Last update for Otsu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Otsu

$376 28.9%

Budapest

$622 38.4% 65.5% $246

Groceries & Markets

Otsu

$331 25.4%

Budapest

$258 15.9% 22% $73

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Otsu

$169 13%

Budapest

$218 13.5% 28.9% $49

Eating Out

Otsu

$156 12%

Budapest

$223 13.8% 43.2% $67

Clothing & Footwear

Otsu

$117 9%

Budapest

$168 10.4% 43% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Otsu

$76 5.8%

Budapest

$86 5.3% 13.6% $10

Getting Around

Otsu

$76 5.8%

Budapest

$44 2.7% 41.5% $31

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $450 in Otsu 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 10% higher in Otsu, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $32.00 in Otsu versus $61.0 in Budapest. Groceries tell a different story – $331 in Otsu vs $258 in Budapest – so Budapest wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Otsu

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

16:37 4:37 PM

09:37 9:37 AM

7 h behind Otsu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

341,314

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

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Between locations

Otsu Budapest 8,900 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Otsu
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

Otsu vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 25%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,950 per month in Otsu 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 Otsu, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 88% less in Otsu. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $569 per month in Otsu and $533 in Budapest. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Otsu, where all-in costs run around $1,300, than in Budapest at $1,619. In Otsu it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Otsu – 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 Otsu. 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.