Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Oxford and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Budapest: $1,621 a month against $3,140 in Oxford, rent and utilities included – about $18,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

154

Cost of Living Index in Oxford
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Oxford Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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Oxford

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,140

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,621

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,140 per month in Oxford vs $1,621 in Budapest, rent included.

Oxford $3,140
Budapest $1,621

A couple spends around $4,486 per month in Oxford vs $2,555 in Budapest, rent included.

Oxford $4,486
Budapest $2,555

A family of three spends $5,831 per month in Oxford vs $3,489 in Budapest, rent included.

Oxford $5,831
Budapest $3,489

Oxford costs about 94% more than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Oxford and Budapest sit above the global median – Oxford by 134%, Budapest by 21%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.41 £18.44

$13.99 Ft 4,551

74.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$105 £79.5

$60.3 Ft 19.6K

74.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.78 £8.15

$9.96 Ft 3,241

8.23%

Cappuccino

$5.00 £3.78

$3.38 Ft 1,100

47.93%

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

$4.41 £3.33

$2.13 Ft 692

107.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.29 £1.73

$1.87 Ft 608

22.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.99 £6.79

$3.75 Ft 1,221

139.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.39 £6.34

$3.57 Ft 1,162

135.01%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 £1.26

$1.13 Ft 368

47.79%

White Bread (500g)

$1.61 £1.22

$1.84 Ft 599

-12.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.92 £1.45

$2.39 Ft 777

-19.67%

Eggs

$4.27 £3.23

$3.83 Ft 1,245

11.49%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.46 £10.93

$11.33 Ft 3,686

27.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.20 £6.20

$6.74 Ft 2,192

21.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.87 £11.24

$14.69 Ft 4,780

1.23%

Apples (1kg)

$3.44 £2.60

$1.84 Ft 597

86.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 £1.22

$2.01 Ft 653

-19.40%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.03 £2.29

$2.36 Ft 767

28.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.50 £2.64

$3.77 Ft 1,226

-7.16%

Potato (1kg)

$1.74 £1.31

$0.96 Ft 313

81.25%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 £1.31

$1.03 Ft 334

67.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 £0.88

$1.56 Ft 509

-25.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.65 £1.25

$0.66 Ft 216

150.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.08 £17.44

$7.96 Ft 2,591

189.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.15 £8.43

$6.01 Ft 1,954

85.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.44 £2.60

$1.30 Ft 421

164.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.57 £2.70

$2.08 Ft 676

71.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.04 £3.05

$1.50 Ft 489

169.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$107 £80.7

$27.61 Ft 8,982

286.82%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.95 £3.74

$3.30 Ft 1,074

50.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.14 £2.37

$1.30 Ft 424

141.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$41.40 £31.28

$19.78 Ft 6,436

109.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.09 £1.58

$1.81 Ft 591

15.47%

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

$38.9K £29.4K

$29.3K Ft 9.5M

32.57%

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

$40.1K £30.3K

$34.1K Ft 11.1M

17.66%

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

$355 £268

$170 Ft 55.3K

108.68%

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

$17.88 £13.51

$23.98 Ft 7,802

-25.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.92 £32.44

$23.42 Ft 7,621

83.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.70 £33.78

$66.2 Ft 21.6K

-32.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.33 £8.56

$19.18 Ft 6,239

-40.93%

Cinema Ticket

$14.51 £10.97

$9.52 Ft 3,098

52.42%

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

$2,266 £1,713

$537 Ft 174.6K

322.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.4K £11.6K

$16.6K Ft 5.4M

-7.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$95.3 £72.0

$101 Ft 33.0K

-5.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.69 £34.53

$42.99 Ft 14.0K

6.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 £76.4

$113 Ft 36.7K

-10.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 £77.1

$119 Ft 38.6K

-14.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,279 £1,722

$805 Ft 262.0K

183.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,656 £1,252

$629 Ft 204.7K

163.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,222 £2,435

$1,549 Ft 504.1K

107.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,582 £1,951

$1,167 Ft 379.7K

121.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,976 £6,028

$5,618 Ft 1.8M

41.97%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,813 £5,148

$3,968 Ft 1.3M

71.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,924 £2,966

$1,626 Ft 529.0K

141.39%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.79

6.43

-25.51%

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

Last update for Oxford: 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

Oxford

$1.7K 52.7%

Budapest

$629 38.7% 62% $1K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Oxford

$415 13.2%

Budapest

$217 13.4% 47.7% $198

Eating Out

Oxford

$376 12%

Budapest

$224 13.8% 40.4% $152

Groceries & Markets

Oxford

$323 10.3%

Budapest

$258 15.8% 20.2% $65

Clothing & Footwear

Oxford

$155 4.9%

Budapest

$169 10.4% 9.2% $14

Getting Around

Oxford

$144 4.6%

Budapest

$43 2.7% 69.8% $100

Sport & Entertainment

Oxford

$74 2.4%

Budapest

$85 5.2% 15.7% $12

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,279 in Oxford 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 141% higher in Oxford, 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 $105 in Oxford versus $60.0 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $323 vs $258 – making Budapest the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Oxford

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

05:59 5:59 AM

06:59 6:59 AM

1 h ahead of Oxford

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

165,000

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 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 GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Oxford Budapest 1,530 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Oxford
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

Oxford vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Oxford is pricier by about 94%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,711 per month in Oxford 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 Budapest, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 287% less in Budapest. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $2,266 per month in Oxford and $537 in Budapest. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Budapest, where all-in costs run around $1,621, than in Oxford at $3,140. In Budapest it covers expenses comfortably, while in Oxford it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Budapest – 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 Budapest. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Oxford makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.