Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Wigan and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Budapest: $1,619 a month against $1,964 in Wigan, rent and utilities included – about $4,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

96

Cost of Living Index in Wigan
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Wigan Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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Wigan

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$1,964

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,619

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,964 per month in Wigan vs $1,619 in Budapest, rent included.

Wigan $1,964
Budapest $1,619

A couple spends around $2,893 per month in Wigan vs $2,524 in Budapest, rent included.

Wigan $2,893
Budapest $2,524

A family of three spends $3,823 per month in Wigan vs $3,429 in Budapest, rent included.

Wigan $3,823
Budapest $3,429

Wigan costs about 21% more than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Wigan and Budapest sit above the global median – Wigan by 45%, Budapest by 20%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.72 £14.80

$13.94 Ft 4,503

41.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.3 £51.2

$61.2 Ft 19.8K

11.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.87 £7.40

$10.19 Ft 3,291

-3.14%

Cappuccino

$3.39 £2.54

$3.26 Ft 1,055

3.99%

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

$2.37 £1.77

$2.14 Ft 690

10.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.53 £1.15

$1.78 Ft 577

-14.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.54 £3.40

$3.71 Ft 1,198

22.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.21 £3.16

$3.77 Ft 1,217

11.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.27 £0.95

$1.15 Ft 371

10.43%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 £1.02

$1.79 Ft 578

-24.02%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.29 £0.97

$2.49 Ft 804

-48.19%

Eggs

$3.54 £2.66

$3.90 Ft 1,261

-9.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.43 £4.08

$11.10 Ft 3,587

-51.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.56 £4.17

$6.62 Ft 2,139

-16.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.80 £5.85

$14.69 Ft 4,745

-46.90%

Apples (1kg)

$1.51 £1.13

$1.83 Ft 591

-17.49%

Banana (1kg)

$1.67 £1.25

$2.05 Ft 661

-18.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.53 £2.65

$2.37 Ft 765

48.95%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.82 £2.87

$3.90 Ft 1,260

-2.05%

Potato (1kg)

$1.79 £1.34

$0.99 Ft 320

80.81%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 £1.29

$1.00 Ft 322

71.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.20 £0.90

$1.58 Ft 511

-24.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.91 £1.43

$0.67 Ft 216

185.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.51 £16.89

$7.96 Ft 2,572

182.79%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.98 £6.74

$6.22 Ft 2,009

44.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.39 £3.30

$1.27 Ft 411

245.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.26 £2.45

$2.03 Ft 654

60.59%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.70 £2.02

$1.52 Ft 490

77.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.02 Ft 9,053

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.33 £3.25

$3.31 Ft 1,070

30.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.37 Ft 442

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.05 £24.79

$19.83 Ft 6,406

66.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.91 £1.44

$1.82 Ft 589

4.95%

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

$38.1K £28.6K

$29.8K Ft 9.6M

27.97%

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

$40.5K £30.4K

$33.8K Ft 10.9M

19.89%

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

$343 £258

$171 Ft 55.3K

100.68%

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

$16.01 £12.01

$23.51 Ft 7,596

-31.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$38.96 £29.23

$23.29 Ft 7,526

67.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$59.0 £44.26

$67.5 Ft 21.8K

-12.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.89 Ft 6,104

Cinema Ticket

$17.13 £12.85

$9.30 Ft 3,004

84.19%

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

$797 £598

$533 Ft 172.3K

49.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$110 £82.4

$99.6 Ft 32.2K

10.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.9 £41.97

$43.49 Ft 14.0K

28.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 £82.8

$110 Ft 35.7K

0.04%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$114 £85.3

$119 Ft 38.4K

-4.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$975 £732

$830 Ft 268.3K

17.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$760 £570

$622 Ft 200.9K

22.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,593 £1,195

$1,594 Ft 514.9K

-0.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,343 £1,008

$1,170 Ft 378.1K

14.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,832 Ft 1.9M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,889 Ft 1.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,670 £2,003

$1,651 Ft 533.4K

61.71%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.4

6.45

-0.78%

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

Last update for Wigan: 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

Wigan

$760 38.7%

Budapest

$622 38.4% 18.2% $138

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Wigan

$398 20.3%

Budapest

$218 13.5% 45.3% $180

Eating Out

Wigan

$275 14%

Budapest

$223 13.8% 18.8% $52

Groceries & Markets

Wigan

$247 12.6%

Budapest

$258 15.9% 4.5% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Wigan

$175 8.9%

Budapest

$168 10.4% 4.5% $7.9

Sport & Entertainment

Wigan

$93 4.8%

Budapest

$86 5.3% 7.7% $7.1

Getting Around

Wigan

$15 * 0.8%

Budapest

$44 2.7% 193% $29

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $975 in Wigan 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 62% higher in Wigan, 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 $68.0 in Wigan versus $61.0 in Budapest. Groceries tell a different story – $247 in Wigan vs $258 in Budapest – so Wigan wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Wigan

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

02:34 2:34 AM

03:34 3:34 AM

1 h ahead of Wigan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

81,203

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 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 GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Wigan Budapest 1,660 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Wigan
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

Wigan vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Wigan is pricier by about 21%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,946 per month in Wigan 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $68.0 in Wigan and $61.0 in Budapest. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 4% cheaper in Wigan – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Budapest, where all-in costs run around $1,619, than in Wigan at $1,964. In Budapest it covers expenses comfortably, while in Wigan 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, Wigan makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.