Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sintra and Budapest

For one person, living costs are similar in Sintra and in Budapest: $1,592 and $1,619 a month, rent and utilities included.

77

Cost of Living Index in Sintra
Learn more

Sintra Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
Learn more

Budapest Living Index

Jump to prices

Sintra

🇵🇹 Portugal

$1,592

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,592 per month in Sintra vs $1,619 in Budapest, rent included.

Sintra $1,592
Budapest $1,619

A couple spends around $2,317 per month in Sintra vs $2,524 in Budapest, rent included.

Sintra $2,317
Budapest $2,524

A family of three spends $3,041 per month in Sintra vs $3,429 in Budapest, rent included.

Sintra $3,041
Budapest $3,429

Sintra is about 2% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Sintra and Budapest sit above the global median – Sintra by 18%, Budapest by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.05 €11.61

$13.94 Ft 4,503

-6.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.4 €49.24

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

-9.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.84 €7.87

$10.19 Ft 3,291

-13.25%

Cappuccino

$1.28 €1.14

$3.26 Ft 1,055

-60.74%

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

$1.54 €1.37

$2.14 Ft 690

-28.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 €1.07

$1.78 Ft 577

-32.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.25 €2.89

$3.71 Ft 1,198

-12.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.74 €2.44

$3.77 Ft 1,217

-27.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.06 €0.95

$1.15 Ft 371

-7.83%

White Bread (500g)

$1.26 €1.12

$1.79 Ft 578

-29.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.32 €1.17

$2.49 Ft 804

-46.99%

Eggs

$2.60 €2.31

$3.90 Ft 1,261

-33.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.14 €8.13

$11.10 Ft 3,587

-17.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.91 €6.15

$6.62 Ft 2,139

4.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.07 €9.85

$14.69 Ft 4,745

-24.64%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$1.83 Ft 591

Banana (1kg)

$1.22 €1.09

$2.05 Ft 661

-40.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.34 €1.19

$2.37 Ft 765

-43.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.24 €2.00

$3.90 Ft 1,260

-42.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.25 €1.11

$0.99 Ft 320

26.26%

Onion (1kg)

$1.63 €1.45

$1.00 Ft 322

63.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.59 €1.42

$1.58 Ft 511

0.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 €0.56

$0.67 Ft 216

-5.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.25 €5.56

$7.96 Ft 2,572

-21.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.28 €2.92

$6.22 Ft 2,009

-47.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.14

$1.27 Ft 411

0.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.40 €1.24

$2.03 Ft 654

-31.03%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.19 €1.94

$1.52 Ft 490

44.08%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.73 €37.11

$28.02 Ft 9,053

48.93%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.66 €3.26

$3.31 Ft 1,070

10.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.50 €0.44

$1.37 Ft 442

-63.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.24 €14.45

$19.83 Ft 6,406

-18.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.07 €1.84

$1.82 Ft 589

13.74%

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

$34.2K €30.4K

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

14.66%

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

$38.2K €33.9K

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

12.85%

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

$129 €115

$171 Ft 55.3K

-24.72%

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

$21.92 €19.50

$23.51 Ft 7,596

-6.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$45.30 €40.30

$23.29 Ft 7,526

94.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.17 €36.62

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

-39.03%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.52 €13.81

$18.89 Ft 6,104

-17.84%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 €7.91

$9.30 Ft 3,004

-4.41%

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

$604 €538

$533 Ft 172.3K

13.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,207 €5,522

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

-62.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$74.5 €66.3

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

-25.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.04 €40.07

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

3.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 €96.1

$110 Ft 35.7K

-2.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$49.27 €43.82

$119 Ft 38.4K

-58.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$977 €869

$830 Ft 268.3K

17.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$774 €688

$622 Ft 200.9K

24.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,551 €1,379

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

-2.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,173 €1,043

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

0.23%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,033 €2,698

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

-48.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,236 €1,989

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

-42.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,347 €1,198

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

-18.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.54

6.45

-45.12%

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

Last update for Sintra: October 13, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sintra

$774 48.6%

Budapest

$622 38.4% 19.6% $152

Groceries & Markets

Sintra

$204 12.8%

Budapest

$258 15.9% 26.6% $54

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sintra

$196 12.3%

Budapest

$218 13.5% 11.2% $22

Eating Out

Sintra

$179 11.2%

Budapest

$223 13.8% 24.6% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Sintra

$125 7.8%

Budapest

$168 10.4% 34.5% $43

Sport & Entertainment

Sintra

$59 3.7%

Budapest

$86 5.3% 46.1% $27

Getting Around

Sintra

$57 3.6%

Budapest

$44 2.7% 21.9% $12

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $977 in Sintra 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 23% 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 $55.0 in Sintra versus $61.0 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $204 vs $258 – making Sintra the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Sintra

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

11:32 11:32 AM

12:32 12:32 PM

1 h ahead of Sintra

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

385,654

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Sintra Budapest 2,480 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Sintra
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

Sintra vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 2%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,389 per month in Sintra 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 Sintra, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 49% less in Sintra. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $604 per month in Sintra and $533 in Budapest. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Sintra, where all-in costs run around $1,592, than in Budapest at $1,619. In Sintra it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Sintra – 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 Sintra. 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.