Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sao Jose dos Campos and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Sao Jose dos Campos: $1,050 a month against $1,621 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $6,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

50

Cost of Living Index in Sao Jose dos Campos
Learn more

Sao Jose dos Campos Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
Learn more

Budapest Living Index

Jump to prices

Sao Jose dos Campos

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,050

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,621

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,050 per month in Sao Jose dos Campos vs $1,621 in Budapest, rent included.

Sao Jose dos Campos $1,050
Budapest $1,621

A couple spends around $1,660 per month in Sao Jose dos Campos vs $2,555 in Budapest, rent included.

Sao Jose dos Campos $1,660
Budapest $2,555

A family of three spends $2,270 per month in Sao Jose dos Campos vs $3,489 in Budapest, rent included.

Sao Jose dos Campos $2,270
Budapest $3,489

Sao Jose dos Campos is about 35% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sao Jose dos Campos sits 22% below the global median, while Budapest is 21% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.08 R$35.33

$13.99 Ft 4,551

-49.39%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.82 R$199

$60.3 Ft 19.6K

-34.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.10 R$45.41

$9.96 Ft 3,241

-8.63%

Cappuccino

$2.30 R$11.46

$3.38 Ft 1,100

-31.95%

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

$1.70 R$8.47

$2.13 Ft 692

-20.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.17 R$5.82

$1.87 Ft 608

-37.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.87 R$14.35

$3.75 Ft 1,221

-23.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.35 R$21.71

$3.57 Ft 1,162

21.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.20 R$5.99

$1.13 Ft 368

6.19%

White Bread (500g)

$2.08 R$10.36

$1.84 Ft 599

13.04%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.19 R$5.96

$2.39 Ft 777

-50.21%

Eggs

$2.70 R$13.48

$3.83 Ft 1,245

-29.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.14 R$45.61

$11.33 Ft 3,686

-19.33%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.45 R$22.21

$6.74 Ft 2,192

-33.98%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.75 R$53.7

$14.69 Ft 4,780

-26.82%

Apples (1kg)

$2.84 R$14.17

$1.84 Ft 597

54.35%

Banana (1kg)

$1.87 R$9.34

$2.01 Ft 653

-6.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.84 R$9.21

$2.36 Ft 767

-22.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.88 R$9.38

$3.77 Ft 1,226

-50.13%

Potato (1kg)

$1.43 R$7.13

$0.96 Ft 313

48.96%

Onion (1kg)

$1.37 R$6.82

$1.03 Ft 334

33.01%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.95 R$4.72

$1.56 Ft 509

-39.10%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.80 R$3.99

$0.66 Ft 216

21.21%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.82 R$14.08

$7.96 Ft 2,591

-64.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.00 R$44.91

$6.01 Ft 1,954

49.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.73 R$8.66

$1.30 Ft 421

33.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 R$22.00

$2.08 Ft 676

112.02%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.18 R$5.91

$1.50 Ft 489

-21.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$38.37 R$192

$27.61 Ft 8,982

38.97%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.35 R$6.72

$3.30 Ft 1,074

-59.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.42 R$7.08

$1.30 Ft 424

9.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.39 R$46.89

$19.78 Ft 6,436

-52.53%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.27 R$6.36

$1.81 Ft 591

-29.83%

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

$23.9K R$119.1K

$29.3K Ft 9.5M

-18.64%

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

$33.8K R$168.9K

$34.1K Ft 11.1M

-0.79%

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

$43.80 R$219

$170 Ft 55.3K

-74.23%

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

$14.25 R$71.1

$23.98 Ft 7,802

-40.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.34 R$91.5

$23.42 Ft 7,621

-21.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.98 R$150

$66.2 Ft 21.6K

-54.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.77 R$174

$19.18 Ft 6,239

81.28%

Cinema Ticket

$7.92 R$39.53

$9.52 Ft 3,098

-16.81%

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

$433 R$2,161

$537 Ft 174.6K

-19.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,714 R$38.5K

$16.6K Ft 5.4M

-53.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.6 R$283

$101 Ft 33.0K

-44.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.8 R$298

$42.99 Ft 14.0K

38.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.3 R$480

$113 Ft 36.7K

-14.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.5 R$422

$119 Ft 38.6K

-28.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$485 R$2,421

$805 Ft 262.0K

-39.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$361 R$1,802

$629 Ft 204.7K

-42.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$974 R$4,864

$1,549 Ft 504.1K

-37.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$664 R$3,317

$1,167 Ft 379.7K

-43.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,085 R$10.4K

$5,618 Ft 1.8M

-62.89%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,498 R$7,477

$3,968 Ft 1.3M

-62.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$813 R$4,059

$1,626 Ft 529.0K

-49.98%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.12

6.43

72.94%

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

Last update for Sao Jose dos Campos: 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

Sao Jose dos Campos

$361 34.6%

Budapest

$629 38.7% 74.3% $268

Groceries & Markets

Sao Jose dos Campos

$228 21.9%

Budapest

$258 15.8% 12.8% $29

Eating Out

Sao Jose dos Campos

$146 14%

Budapest

$224 13.8% 53.6% $78

Clothing & Footwear

Sao Jose dos Campos

$134 12.8%

Budapest

$169 10.4% 26.5% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sao Jose dos Campos

$76 7.3%

Budapest

$217 13.4% 185% $141

Getting Around

Sao Jose dos Campos

$52 4.9%

Budapest

$43 2.7% 15.8% $8.1

Sport & Entertainment

Sao Jose dos Campos

$46 4.4%

Budapest

$85 5.2% 86.2% $39

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $485 in Sao Jose dos Campos 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 100% 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 $40.00 in Sao Jose dos Campos versus $60.0 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $228 vs $258 – making Sao Jose dos Campos the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Sao Jose dos Campos

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

03:46 3:46 AM

08:46 8:46 AM

5 h ahead of Sao Jose dos Campos

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

697,054

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.2 USD

1 BRL = 0.179 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.07 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.74 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.99 BRL (1 BRL = 0.2 USD). 1 EUR = 5.6 BRL (1 BRL = 0.179 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 BRL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Sao Jose dos Campos Budapest 10,180 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Sao Jose dos Campos
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

Sao Jose dos Campos vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 54%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,575 per month in Sao Jose dos Campos 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 Sao Jose dos Campos, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 39% less in Sao Jose dos Campos. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $433 per month in Sao Jose dos Campos and $537 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 Sao Jose dos Campos, where all-in costs run around $1,050, than in Budapest at $1,621. In Sao Jose dos Campos it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Sao Jose dos Campos – 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 Sao Jose dos Campos. 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.