Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Retford and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Budapest: $1,641 a month against $2,255 in Retford, rent and utilities included – about $7,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

113

Cost of Living Index in Retford
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Retford Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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Retford

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,255

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,641

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,255 per month in Retford vs $1,641 in Budapest, rent included.

Retford $2,255
Budapest $1,641

A couple spends around $3,343 per month in Retford vs $2,562 in Budapest, rent included.

Retford $3,343
Budapest $2,562

A family of three spends $4,432 per month in Retford vs $3,483 in Budapest, rent included.

Retford $4,432
Budapest $3,483

Retford costs about 37% more than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Retford and Budapest sit above the global median – Retford by 66%, Budapest by 21%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.72 £11.04

$14.04 Ft 4,536

4.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.5 £49.87

$60.9 Ft 19.7K

9.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.14 £5.36

$10.37 Ft 3,351

-31.15%

Cappuccino

$3.88 £2.91

$3.46 Ft 1,117

12.14%

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

$1.75 £1.31

$2.07 Ft 669

-15.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.78 £1.33

$1.77 Ft 572

0.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.30 £3.22

$3.69 Ft 1,191

16.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.34 £3.26

$3.80 Ft 1,229

14.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 £1.29

$1.16 Ft 374

48.28%

White Bread (500g)

$1.83 £1.38

$1.85 Ft 598

-1.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.64 £1.23

$2.40 Ft 776

-31.67%

Eggs

$4.66 £3.50

$3.99 Ft 1,289

16.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.18 £8.39

$11.40 Ft 3,683

-1.93%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.16 £7.62

$6.87 Ft 2,221

47.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.50 £9.38

$14.49 Ft 4,682

-13.73%

Apples (1kg)

$2.09 £1.56

$1.88 Ft 607

11.17%

Banana (1kg)

$1.80 £1.35

$2.14 Ft 693

-15.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.76 £1.32

$2.30 Ft 744

-23.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.74 £1.31

$4.04 Ft 1,304

-56.93%

Potato (1kg)

$1.48 £1.11

$1.02 Ft 329

45.10%

Onion (1kg)

$1.58 £1.19

$0.99 Ft 320

59.60%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.42 £0.31

$1.58 Ft 510

-73.42%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.56 £1.17

$0.70 Ft 225

122.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.33 £17.50

$8.03 Ft 2,594

190.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.77 £5.83

$6.18 Ft 1,997

25.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 £1.27

$1.24 Ft 401

37.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 £1.53

$2.06 Ft 666

-0.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.65 £2.74

$1.59 Ft 513

129.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$108 £80.7

$27.52 Ft 8,893

290.92%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.93 £3.70

$3.43 Ft 1,110

43.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.91 £2.93

$1.33 Ft 431

193.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.85 £21.64

$20.45 Ft 6,607

41.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.09 £1.57

$1.93 Ft 624

8.29%

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

$40.1K £30.1K

$29.1K Ft 9.4M

37.76%

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

$44.2K £33.2K

$34.7K Ft 11.2M

27.29%

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

$342 £257

$175 Ft 56.4K

95.86%

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

$27.87 £20.91

$23.62 Ft 7,631

17.99%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$46.53 £34.91

$23.60 Ft 7,625

97.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.7 £39.53

$68.8 Ft 22.2K

-23.46%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.26 Ft 6,224

Cinema Ticket

$11.50 £8.62

$10.31 Ft 3,333

11.54%

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

$1,926 £1,445

$535 Ft 172.9K

259.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.9K £17.9K

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

41.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$85.1 £63.9

$99.9 Ft 32.3K

-14.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$60.8 £45.59

$43.27 Ft 14.0K

40.47%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 £81.4

$112 Ft 36.1K

-2.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$161 £121

$119 Ft 38.4K

35.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,398 £1,049

$832 Ft 268.8K

68.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$924 £693

$629 Ft 203.3K

46.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,099 £1,575

$1,586 Ft 512.4K

32.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,675 £1,257

$1,197 Ft 386.6K

39.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,059 £3,796

$5,718 Ft 1.8M

-11.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,851 £2,889

$3,947 Ft 1.3M

-2.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,711 £1,283

$1,712 Ft 553.1K

-0.09%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.3

6.45

-17.83%

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

Last update for Retford: October 18, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Retford

$924 41%

Budapest

$629 38.4% 31.9% $295

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Retford

$416 18.5%

Budapest

$222 13.5% 46.7% $195

Groceries & Markets

Retford

$276 12.2%

Budapest

$262 16% 5.1% $14

Eating Out

Retford

$230 10.2%

Budapest

$226 13.8% 1.6% $3.7

Clothing & Footwear

Retford

$187 8.3%

Budapest

$168 10.3% 10% $19

Getting Around

Retford

$147 6.5%

Budapest

$44 2.7% 70% $103

Sport & Entertainment

Retford

$76 3.4%

Budapest

$89 5.5% 18.2% $14

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,398 in Retford versus $832 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 0% higher in Budapest, 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 $66.0 in Retford versus $61.0 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $276 vs $262 – making Budapest the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Retford

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

16:13 4:13 PM

17:13 5:13 PM

1 h ahead of Retford

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

22,023

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Retford Budapest 1,550 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Retford
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

Retford vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Retford is pricier by about 37%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,383 per month in Retford and $2,461 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 291% less in Budapest. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $1,926 per month in Retford and $535 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 $1,641, than in Retford at $2,255. In Budapest it covers expenses comfortably, while in Retford 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, Retford makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.