Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Plovdiv and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Plovdiv: $1,212 a month against $1,621 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $4,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Plovdiv
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Plovdiv Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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Plovdiv

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,212

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,621

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,212 per month in Plovdiv vs $1,621 in Budapest, rent included.

Plovdiv $1,212
Budapest $1,621

A couple spends around $1,850 per month in Plovdiv vs $2,555 in Budapest, rent included.

Plovdiv $1,850
Budapest $2,555

A family of three spends $2,489 per month in Plovdiv vs $3,489 in Budapest, rent included.

Plovdiv $2,489
Budapest $3,489

Plovdiv is about 25% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Plovdiv sits 10% below the global median, while Budapest is 21% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.12 BGN 15.96

$13.99 Ft 4,551

-34.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.93 BGN 78.6

$60.3 Ft 19.6K

-25.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.39 BGN 16.43

$9.96 Ft 3,241

-5.72%

Cappuccino

$2.78 BGN 4.86

$3.38 Ft 1,100

-17.75%

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

$1.77 BGN 3.09

$2.13 Ft 692

-16.90%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.58 BGN 2.76

$1.87 Ft 608

-15.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.53 BGN 4.43

$3.75 Ft 1,221

-32.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.14 BGN 7.25

$3.57 Ft 1,162

15.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.76 BGN 3.07

$1.13 Ft 368

55.75%

White Bread (500g)

$1.16 BGN 2.03

$1.84 Ft 599

-36.96%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.24 BGN 3.93

$2.39 Ft 777

-6.28%

Eggs

$3.64 BGN 6.37

$3.83 Ft 1,245

-4.96%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.42 BGN 19.98

$11.33 Ft 3,686

0.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.46 BGN 14.81

$6.74 Ft 2,192

25.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.11 BGN 24.70

$14.69 Ft 4,780

-3.95%

Apples (1kg)

$1.67 BGN 2.92

$1.84 Ft 597

-9.24%

Banana (1kg)

$1.82 BGN 3.18

$2.01 Ft 653

-9.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.90 BGN 3.33

$2.36 Ft 767

-19.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.58 BGN 4.51

$3.77 Ft 1,226

-31.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.04 BGN 1.83

$0.96 Ft 313

8.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.06 BGN 1.85

$1.03 Ft 334

2.91%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.16 BGN 2.04

$1.56 Ft 509

-25.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.73 BGN 1.27

$0.66 Ft 216

10.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.06 BGN 7.11

$7.96 Ft 2,591

-48.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.17 BGN 10.79

$6.01 Ft 1,954

2.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.12 BGN 1.96

$1.30 Ft 421

-13.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 BGN 3.56

$2.08 Ft 676

-2.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.55 BGN 0.96

$1.50 Ft 489

-63.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.99 BGN 50.7

$27.61 Ft 8,982

5.00%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.29 BGN 2.27

$3.30 Ft 1,074

-60.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.61 BGN 1.06

$1.30 Ft 424

-53.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.13 BGN 17.73

$19.78 Ft 6,436

-48.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.70 BGN 2.98

$1.81 Ft 591

-6.08%

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

$30.0K BGN 52.4K

$29.3K Ft 9.5M

2.16%

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

$25.1K BGN 43.8K

$34.1K Ft 11.1M

-26.55%

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

$114 BGN 200

$170 Ft 55.3K

-32.71%

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

$18.53 BGN 32.43

$23.98 Ft 7,802

-22.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.25 BGN 26.69

$23.42 Ft 7,621

-34.88%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.23 BGN 70.4

$66.2 Ft 21.6K

-39.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.30 BGN 35.52

$19.18 Ft 6,239

5.84%

Cinema Ticket

$9.01 BGN 15.76

$9.52 Ft 3,098

-5.36%

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

$515 BGN 901

$537 Ft 174.6K

-4.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,450 BGN 9,537

$16.6K Ft 5.4M

-67.18%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$67.3 BGN 118

$101 Ft 33.0K

-33.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.10 BGN 73.7

$42.99 Ft 14.0K

-2.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.0 BGN 168

$113 Ft 36.7K

-14.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 BGN 181

$119 Ft 38.6K

-12.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$530 BGN 928

$805 Ft 262.0K

-34.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$388 BGN 679

$629 Ft 204.7K

-38.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$878 BGN 1,536

$1,549 Ft 504.1K

-43.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$670 BGN 1,173

$1,167 Ft 379.7K

-42.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,226 BGN 3,896

$5,618 Ft 1.8M

-60.37%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,572 BGN 2,751

$3,968 Ft 1.3M

-60.39%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,161 BGN 2,032

$1,626 Ft 529.0K

-28.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.1

6.43

-51.79%

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

Last update for Plovdiv: October 6, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Plovdiv

$388 32.6%

Budapest

$629 38.7% 62.2% $241

Groceries & Markets

Plovdiv

$252 21.2%

Budapest

$258 15.8% 2.3% $5.7

Eating Out

Plovdiv

$169 14.2%

Budapest

$224 13.8% 32.8% $55

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Plovdiv

$148 12.5%

Budapest

$217 13.4% 46.7% $69

Clothing & Footwear

Plovdiv

$139 11.7%

Budapest

$169 10.4% 21.7% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Plovdiv

$58 4.9%

Budapest

$85 5.2% 46.4% $27

Getting Around

Plovdiv

$36 3%

Budapest

$43 2.7% 22.2% $7.9

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $530 in Plovdiv 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 40% 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 $45.00 in Plovdiv versus $60.0 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $252 vs $258 – making Plovdiv the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Plovdiv

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

11:14 11:14 AM

10:14 10:14 AM

1 h behind Plovdiv

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

368,983

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.571 USD

1 BGN = 0.509 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to BGN – Bulgarian Lev Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇬 Bulgarian Lev (лв.)

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.75 BGN (1 BGN = 0.571 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.509 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 BGN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Plovdiv Budapest 750 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Plovdiv
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

Plovdiv 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 eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,817 per month in Plovdiv 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 Plovdiv, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 5% less in Plovdiv. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $515 per month in Plovdiv and $537 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 Plovdiv, where all-in costs run around $1,212, than in Budapest at $1,621. In Plovdiv it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Plovdiv – 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 Plovdiv. 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.