Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Vulcanesti and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Vulcanesti: $766 a month against $1,619 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $10,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

37

Cost of Living Index in Vulcanesti
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Vulcanesti Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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Vulcanesti

🇲🇩 Moldova

$766

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $766 per month in Vulcanesti vs $1,619 in Budapest, rent included.

Vulcanesti $766
Budapest $1,619

A couple spends around $1,130 per month in Vulcanesti vs $2,524 in Budapest, rent included.

Vulcanesti $1,130
Budapest $2,524

A family of three spends $1,494 per month in Vulcanesti vs $3,429 in Budapest, rent included.

Vulcanesti $1,494
Budapest $3,429

Vulcanesti is about 53% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Vulcanesti sits 43% below the global median, while Budapest is 20% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.61 MDL 117

$13.94 Ft 4,503

-52.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.79 MDL 529

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

-51.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.38 MDL 184

$10.19 Ft 3,291

1.86%

Cappuccino

$1.14 MDL 20.21

$3.26 Ft 1,055

-65.03%

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

$0.81 MDL 14.46

$2.14 Ft 690

-62.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.37 MDL 6.61

$1.78 Ft 577

-79.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.10 MDL 19.61

$3.71 Ft 1,198

-70.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 MDL 25.27

$3.77 Ft 1,217

-62.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.93 MDL 16.59

$1.15 Ft 371

-19.13%

White Bread (500g)

$0.46 MDL 8.19

$1.79 Ft 578

-74.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.65 MDL 29.22

$2.49 Ft 804

-33.73%

Eggs

$2.24 MDL 39.72

$3.90 Ft 1,261

-42.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.68 MDL 119

$11.10 Ft 3,587

-39.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.70 MDL 83.5

$6.62 Ft 2,139

-29.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.24 MDL 146

$14.69 Ft 4,745

-43.91%

Apples (1kg)

$1.24 MDL 22.09

$1.83 Ft 591

-32.24%

Banana (1kg)

$1.71 MDL 30.34

$2.05 Ft 661

-16.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.75 MDL 31.01

$2.37 Ft 765

-26.16%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.84 MDL 32.63

$3.90 Ft 1,260

-52.82%

Potato (1kg)

$0.64 MDL 11.42

$0.99 Ft 320

-35.35%

Onion (1kg)

$0.33 MDL 5.79

$1.00 Ft 322

-67.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.13 MDL 37.75

$1.58 Ft 511

34.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.41 MDL 7.22

$0.67 Ft 216

-38.81%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.39 MDL 60.2

$7.96 Ft 2,572

-57.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$2.42 MDL 42.91

$6.22 Ft 2,009

-61.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 MDL 15.65

$1.27 Ft 411

-30.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.25 MDL 22.20

$2.03 Ft 654

-38.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.33 MDL 5.83

$1.52 Ft 490

-78.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.02 Ft 9,053

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.11 MDL 19.66

$3.31 Ft 1,070

-66.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.19 MDL 3.34

$1.37 Ft 442

-86.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.29 MDL 58.4

$19.83 Ft 6,406

-83.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.24 MDL 21.95

$1.82 Ft 589

-31.87%

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

$23.2K MDL 412.2K

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

-22.11%

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

$20.7K MDL 366.8K

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

-38.91%

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

$104 MDL 1,855

$171 Ft 55.3K

-38.96%

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

$5.15 MDL 91.6

$23.51 Ft 7,596

-78.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$5.53 MDL 98.3

$23.29 Ft 7,526

-76.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$16.80 MDL 298

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

-75.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.89 Ft 6,104

Cinema Ticket

$7.70 MDL 137

$9.30 Ft 3,004

-17.20%

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

$113 MDL 2,003

$533 Ft 172.3K

-78.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,159 MDL 91.6K

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

-69.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$30.51 MDL 542

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

-69.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.59 MDL 455

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

-41.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.3 MDL 1,461

$110 Ft 35.7K

-25.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$138 MDL 2,443

$119 Ft 38.4K

15.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$277 MDL 4,913

$830 Ft 268.3K

-66.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$222 MDL 3,946

$622 Ft 200.9K

-64.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$285 MDL 5,053

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

-75.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$868 MDL 15.4K

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

-85.12%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$852 MDL 15.1K

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

-78.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$705 MDL 12.5K

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

-57.28%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.5

6.45

16.28%

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

Last update for Vulcanesti: October 12, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Vulcanesti

$222 29%

Budapest

$622 38.4% 180% $400

Groceries & Markets

Vulcanesti

$158 20.6%

Budapest

$258 15.9% 63.2% $100

Clothing & Footwear

Vulcanesti

$124 16.2%

Budapest

$168 10.4% 35% $43

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Vulcanesti

$115 15%

Budapest

$218 13.5% 89.2% $103

Eating Out

Vulcanesti

$111 14.5%

Budapest

$223 13.8% 101% $112

Sport & Entertainment

Vulcanesti

$32 4.2%

Budapest

$86 5.3% 168% $54

Getting Around

Vulcanesti

$3.4 * 0.4%

Budapest

$44 2.7% 1217% $41

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $277 in Vulcanesti 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 134% 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 $30.00 in Vulcanesti versus $61.0 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $158 vs $258 – making Vulcanesti the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇩 Vulcanesti

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

04:24 4:24 AM

03:24 3:24 AM

1 h behind Vulcanesti

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

22,000

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Moldovan Leu MDL L

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

100 MDL = 5.63 USD

100 MDL = 5.01 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to MDL – Moldovan Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇩 Moldovan Leu (L)

Moldovan Leu exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 17.76 MDL (100 MDL = 5.63 USD). 1 EUR = 19.97 MDL (100 MDL = 5.01 EUR).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

USD to MDL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Vulcanesti Budapest 740 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Vulcanesti
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

Vulcanesti vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 111%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,149 per month in Vulcanesti 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 Vulcanesti, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $30.00 in Vulcanesti and $61.0 in Budapest. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 63% more in Budapest, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Vulcanesti, where all-in costs run around $766, than in Budapest at $1,619. In Vulcanesti it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Vulcanesti – 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 Vulcanesti. 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.