Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Shillong and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Shillong: $408 a month against $1,647 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $14,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

20

Cost of Living Index in Shillong
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Shillong Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
Learn more

Budapest Living Index

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Shillong

🇮🇳 India

$408

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,647

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $408 per month in Shillong vs $1,647 in Budapest, rent included.

Shillong $408
Budapest $1,647

A couple spends around $642 per month in Shillong vs $2,567 in Budapest, rent included.

Shillong $642
Budapest $2,567

A family of three spends $876 per month in Shillong vs $3,488 in Budapest, rent included.

Shillong $876
Budapest $3,488

Shillong is about 75% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Shillong sits 70% below the global median, while Budapest is 22% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.52 ₹333

$13.63 Ft 4,407

-74.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$11.40 ₹1,077

$60.7 Ft 19.6K

-81.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.67 ₹441

$10.02 Ft 3,239

-53.39%

Cappuccino

$1.62 ₹153

$3.33 Ft 1,075

-51.35%

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

$0.40 ₹37.98

$2.12 Ft 684

-81.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.14 ₹13.58

$1.80 Ft 581

-92.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.25 ₹118

$3.61 Ft 1,166

-65.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.38 ₹319

$3.59 Ft 1,160

-5.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.68 ₹64.3

$1.12 Ft 361

-39.29%

White Bread (500g)

$0.34 ₹32.54

$1.93 Ft 623

-82.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.56 ₹53.2

$2.49 Ft 804

-77.51%

Eggs

$0.99 ₹93.5

$3.94 Ft 1,275

-74.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.89 ₹367

$11.28 Ft 3,646

-65.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.51 ₹237

$6.73 Ft 2,177

-62.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.44 Ft 4,670

Apples (1kg)

$2.19 ₹207

$1.86 Ft 601

17.74%

Banana (1kg)

$0.73 ₹68.5

$2.04 Ft 658

-64.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.96 ₹90.5

$2.29 Ft 740

-58.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.56 ₹52.8

$3.99 Ft 1,290

-85.96%

Potato (1kg)

$0.33 ₹31.48

$0.94 Ft 304

-64.89%

Onion (1kg)

$0.38 ₹35.60

$1.02 Ft 330

-62.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.22 ₹20.79

$1.65 Ft 534

-86.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.27 ₹25.52

$0.68 Ft 221

-60.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.99 ₹471

$7.81 Ft 2,526

-36.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.77 ₹450

$6.02 Ft 1,946

-20.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 ₹121

$1.29 Ft 418

-0.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.92 ₹181

$2.02 Ft 655

-4.95%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$5.00 ₹473

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.50 Ft 484

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.13 Ft 8,769

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.68 ₹64.6

$3.36 Ft 1,085

-79.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.28 ₹26.45

$1.37 Ft 444

-79.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.35 ₹127

$19.96 Ft 6,451

-93.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 ₹99.7

$1.86 Ft 603

-43.01%

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

$11.1K ₹1.1M

$28.5K Ft 9.2M

-60.91%

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

$16.9K ₹1.6M

$33.4K Ft 10.8M

-49.49%

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

$34.66 ₹3,275

$178 Ft 57.6K

-80.55%

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

$3.19 ₹302

$23.58 Ft 7,623

-86.47%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$6.19 ₹585

$24.12 Ft 7,797

-74.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$10.40 ₹982

$69.7 Ft 22.5K

-85.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.40 ₹510

$17.03 Ft 5,505

-68.29%

Cinema Ticket

$3.14 ₹297

$10.48 Ft 3,388

-70.04%

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

$27.75 ₹2,622

$625 Ft 202.1K

-95.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,166 ₹110.1K

$19.6K Ft 6.4M

-94.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$16.07 ₹1,518

$102 Ft 33.0K

-84.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$21.77 ₹2,057

$43.41 Ft 14.0K

-49.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$36.91 ₹3,487

$110 Ft 35.5K

-66.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$26.95 ₹2,546

$121 Ft 39.0K

-77.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$212 ₹20.0K

$845 Ft 273.3K

-74.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$134 ₹12.7K

$638 Ft 206.4K

-79.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$733 ₹69.3K

$1,609 Ft 520.1K

-54.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$278 ₹26.3K

$1,217 Ft 393.5K

-77.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,555 Ft 1.8M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,898 Ft 1.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$452 ₹42.7K

$1,724 Ft 557.5K

-73.80%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.26

6.34

14.51%

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

Last update for Shillong: November 2, 2026

Last update for Budapest: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Shillong

$134 32.9%

Budapest

$638 38.8% 376% $504

Groceries & Markets

Shillong

$88 21.7%

Budapest

$260 15.8% 194% $172

Eating Out

Shillong

$77 18.8%

Budapest

$220 13.4% 186% $143

Clothing & Footwear

Shillong

$46 11.2%

Budapest

$169 10.3% 270% $123

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Shillong

$44 10.8%

Budapest

$226 13.7% 413% $182

Sport & Entertainment

Shillong

$17 4.1%

Budapest

$91 5.5% 443% $74

Getting Around

Shillong

$2.1 * 0.5%

Budapest

$43 2.6% 1984% $41

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $212 in Shillong versus $845 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 in Budapest are about 3.8 times higher, 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 $11 in Shillong versus $61 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $88 vs $260 – making Shillong the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇳 Shillong

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

08:35 8:35 AM

04:05 4:05 AM

4 h 30 min behind Shillong

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

143,000

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Indian Rupee INR ₹

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 INR = 10.59 USD

1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.76 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to INR – Indian Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇳 Indian Rupee (₹)

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 94.47 INR (100 INR = 1.06 USD). 1 EUR = 106 INR (1,000 INR = 9.43 EUR).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.09 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.76 EUR).

USD to INR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Shillong Budapest 6,690 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Shillong
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

Shillong vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 304%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $612 per month in Shillong and $2,471 in Budapest. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Shillong, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $212 there versus $845 in Budapest.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $11 in Shillong and $61 in Budapest. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 194% more in Budapest, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $800 monthly budget goes further in Shillong, where all-in costs run around $408, than in Budapest at $1,647. In Shillong it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Shillong – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Shillong. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Budapest makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.