Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Paramaribo and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Paramaribo: $1,002 a month against $1,619 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $7,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Paramaribo
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Paramaribo Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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Paramaribo

🇸🇷 Suriname

$1,002

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,002 per month in Paramaribo vs $1,619 in Budapest, rent included.

Paramaribo $1,002
Budapest $1,619

A couple spends around $1,659 per month in Paramaribo vs $2,524 in Budapest, rent included.

Paramaribo $1,659
Budapest $2,524

A family of three spends $2,316 per month in Paramaribo vs $3,429 in Budapest, rent included.

Paramaribo $2,316
Budapest $3,429

Paramaribo is about 38% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Paramaribo sits 26% below the global median, while Budapest is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.42 SRD 506

$13.94 Ft 4,503

-3.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.8 SRD 1,989

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

-13.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.82 SRD 408

$10.19 Ft 3,291

6.18%

Cappuccino

$2.86 SRD 108

$3.26 Ft 1,055

-12.27%

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

$1.41 SRD 53.3

$2.14 Ft 690

-34.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.88 SRD 32.98

$1.78 Ft 577

-50.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.66 SRD 100

$3.71 Ft 1,198

-28.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.87 SRD 146

$3.77 Ft 1,217

2.65%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.75 SRD 65.8

$1.15 Ft 371

52.17%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 SRD 53.1

$1.79 Ft 578

-21.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.65 SRD 62.3

$2.49 Ft 804

-33.73%

Eggs

$3.12 SRD 118

$3.90 Ft 1,261

-20.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.77 SRD 444

$11.10 Ft 3,587

6.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.13 SRD 231

$6.62 Ft 2,139

-7.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.24 SRD 386

$14.69 Ft 4,745

-30.29%

Apples (1kg)

$4.78 SRD 180

$1.83 Ft 591

161.20%

Banana (1kg)

$3.01 SRD 113

$2.05 Ft 661

46.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.67 SRD 138

$2.37 Ft 765

54.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.01 SRD 226

$3.90 Ft 1,260

54.10%

Potato (1kg)

$1.32 SRD 49.65

$0.99 Ft 320

33.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 SRD 74.9

$1.00 Ft 322

99.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 SRD 57.7

$1.58 Ft 511

-3.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.44 SRD 54.1

$0.67 Ft 216

114.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.66 SRD 213

$7.96 Ft 2,572

-28.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.07 SRD 304

$6.22 Ft 2,009

29.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.09 SRD 78.8

$1.27 Ft 411

64.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.78 SRD 142

$2.03 Ft 654

86.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.78 SRD 29.23

$1.52 Ft 490

-48.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.02 Ft 9,053

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.15 SRD 81.0

$3.31 Ft 1,070

-35.05%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.54 SRD 58.0

$1.37 Ft 442

12.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.19 SRD 271

$19.83 Ft 6,406

-63.74%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.19 SRD 44.76

$1.82 Ft 589

-34.62%

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

$25.5K SRD 959.6K

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

-14.51%

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

$25.3K SRD 952.9K

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

-25.19%

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

$37.49 SRD 1,412

$171 Ft 55.3K

-78.09%

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

$25.86 SRD 974

$23.51 Ft 7,596

10.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.23 SRD 1,139

$23.29 Ft 7,526

29.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$13.51 SRD 509

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

-79.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.20 SRD 761

$18.89 Ft 6,104

6.93%

Cinema Ticket

$5.15 SRD 194

$9.30 Ft 3,004

-44.62%

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

$63.1 SRD 2,378

$533 Ft 172.3K

-88.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,777 SRD 66.9K

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

-89.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$33.60 SRD 1,266

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

-66.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$20.88 SRD 787

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

-51.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.3 SRD 2,571

$110 Ft 35.7K

-38.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 SRD 3,873

$119 Ft 38.4K

-13.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$480 SRD 18.1K

$830 Ft 268.3K

-42.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$266 SRD 10.0K

$622 Ft 200.9K

-57.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$939 SRD 35.4K

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

-41.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$499 SRD 18.8K

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

-57.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$461 SRD 17.3K

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

-92.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$396 SRD 14.9K

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

-89.82%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$282 SRD 10.6K

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

-82.91%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

148.06%

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

Last update for Paramaribo: October 12, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Paramaribo

$300 29.9%

Budapest

$258 15.9% 13.9% $42

Accommodation & Living

Paramaribo

$266 26.6%

Budapest

$622 38.4% 134% $356

Eating Out

Paramaribo

$204 20.4%

Budapest

$223 13.8% 9.1% $19

Clothing & Footwear

Paramaribo

$102 10.1%

Budapest

$168 10.4% 65.1% $66

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Paramaribo

$94 9.3%

Budapest

$218 13.5% 133% $124

Sport & Entertainment

Paramaribo

$24 2.4%

Budapest

$86 5.3% 262% $62

Getting Around

Paramaribo

$13 * 1.3%

Budapest

$44 2.7% 241% $31

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $480 in Paramaribo 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 485% 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 $53.0 in Paramaribo versus $61.0 in Budapest. Groceries tell a different story – $300 in Paramaribo vs $258 in Budapest – so Budapest wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇸🇷 Paramaribo

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

20:25 8:25 PM

01:25 1:25 AM

5 h ahead of Paramaribo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

242,946 Capital

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Surinamese Dollar SRD $

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

100 SRD = 2.65 USD

100 SRD = 2.36 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to SRD – Surinamese Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇷 Surinamese Dollar ($)

Surinamese Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 37.67 SRD (100 SRD = 2.65 USD). 1 EUR = 42.35 SRD (100 SRD = 2.36 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 SRD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Paramaribo Budapest 8,350 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Paramaribo
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

Paramaribo vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 62%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,503 per month in Paramaribo 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 Paramaribo, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $53.0 in Paramaribo and $61.0 in Budapest. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 16% cheaper in Budapest – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Paramaribo, where all-in costs run around $1,002, than in Budapest at $1,619. In Paramaribo it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Paramaribo – 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 Paramaribo. 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.