Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between South Yarra and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Budapest: $1,619 a month against $2,436 in South Yarra, rent and utilities included – about $9,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

119

Cost of Living Index in South Yarra
Learn more

South Yarra Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
Learn more

Budapest Living Index

Jump to prices

South Yarra

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,436

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,436 per month in South Yarra vs $1,619 in Budapest, rent included.

South Yarra $2,436
Budapest $1,619

A couple spends around $3,527 per month in South Yarra vs $2,524 in Budapest, rent included.

South Yarra $3,527
Budapest $2,524

A family of three spends $4,618 per month in South Yarra vs $3,429 in Budapest, rent included.

South Yarra $4,618
Budapest $3,429

South Yarra costs about 50% more than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both South Yarra and Budapest sit above the global median – South Yarra by 80%, Budapest by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.64 A$25.39

$13.94 Ft 4,503

26.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.5 A$122

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

38.08%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.25 A$11.87

$10.19 Ft 3,291

-19.04%

Cappuccino

$3.53 A$5.08

$3.26 Ft 1,055

8.28%

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

$2.07 A$2.98

$2.14 Ft 690

-3.27%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.71 A$2.46

$1.78 Ft 577

-3.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.78 A$14.08

$3.71 Ft 1,198

163.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.24 A$11.85

$3.77 Ft 1,217

118.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.54 A$2.22

$1.15 Ft 371

33.91%

White Bread (500g)

$2.74 A$3.95

$1.79 Ft 578

53.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.41 A$2.03

$2.49 Ft 804

-43.37%

Eggs

$4.24 A$6.10

$3.90 Ft 1,261

8.72%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.35 A$14.89

$11.10 Ft 3,587

-6.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.94 A$9.99

$6.62 Ft 2,139

4.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.17 A$21.83

$14.69 Ft 4,745

3.27%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 A$4.10

$1.83 Ft 591

55.74%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 A$2.92

$2.05 Ft 661

-0.98%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.36 A$1.95

$2.37 Ft 765

-42.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 A$4.03

$3.90 Ft 1,260

-28.21%

Potato (1kg)

$1.41 A$2.03

$0.99 Ft 320

42.42%

Onion (1kg)

$2.12 A$3.04

$1.00 Ft 322

112.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.41 A$3.47

$1.58 Ft 511

52.53%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.64 A$2.35

$0.67 Ft 216

144.78%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$31.82 A$45.79

$7.96 Ft 2,572

299.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.30 A$17.69

$6.22 Ft 2,009

97.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.70 A$8.20

$1.27 Ft 411

348.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.26 A$7.56

$2.03 Ft 654

159.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.92 A$4.20

$1.52 Ft 490

92.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$81.7 A$118

$28.02 Ft 9,053

191.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.47 A$6.43

$3.31 Ft 1,070

35.05%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.42 A$2.05

$1.37 Ft 442

3.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.47 A$43.85

$19.83 Ft 6,406

53.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 A$1.88

$1.82 Ft 589

-28.02%

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

$28.4K A$40.9K

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

-4.56%

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

$26.6K A$38.2K

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

-21.44%

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

$232 A$334

$171 Ft 55.3K

35.55%

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

$27.31 A$39.30

$23.51 Ft 7,596

16.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.68 A$60.0

$23.29 Ft 7,526

78.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.2 A$79.4

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

-18.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.96 A$24.40

$18.89 Ft 6,104

-10.22%

Cinema Ticket

$13.70 A$19.71

$9.30 Ft 3,004

47.31%

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

$2,417 A$3,478

$533 Ft 172.3K

353.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.4K A$43.7K

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

81.41%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$81.4 A$117

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

-18.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.8 A$73.1

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

16.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$117 A$168

$110 Ft 35.7K

5.94%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$132 A$190

$119 Ft 38.4K

11.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,367 A$1,967

$830 Ft 268.3K

64.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,163 A$1,674

$622 Ft 200.9K

87.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,109 A$3,035

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

32.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,788 A$2,573

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

52.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,707 A$8,212

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

-2.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,659 A$8,143

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

45.51%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

6.45

-8.53%

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

Last update for South Yarra: October 11, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

South Yarra

$1.2K 47.8%

Budapest

$622 38.4% 46.5% $541

Groceries & Markets

South Yarra

$324 13.3%

Budapest

$258 15.9% 20.4% $66

Monthly Utilities & Internet

South Yarra

$301 12.4%

Budapest

$218 13.5% 27.6% $83

Eating Out

South Yarra

$289 11.9%

Budapest

$223 13.8% 22.8% $66

Clothing & Footwear

South Yarra

$172 7%

Budapest

$168 10.4% 2.3% $4

Getting Around

South Yarra

$105 4.3%

Budapest

$44 2.7% 57.9% $61

Sport & Entertainment

South Yarra

$83 3.4%

Budapest

$86 5.3% 4.3% $3.6

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,367 in South Yarra 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $85.0 in South Yarra versus $61.0 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $324 vs $258 – making Budapest the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 South Yarra

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

08:09 8:09 AM

23:09 11:09 PM

9 h behind South Yarra

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

25,147

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

South Yarra Budapest 15,560 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

South Yarra
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

South Yarra vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – South Yarra is pricier by about 50%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,654 per month in South Yarra 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 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 192% less in Budapest. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $2,417 per month in South Yarra and $533 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 $1,619, than in South Yarra at $2,436. In Budapest it covers expenses comfortably, while in South Yarra 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, South Yarra makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.