Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Yala and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Yala: $895 a month against $1,641 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $9,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

44

Cost of Living Index in Yala
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Yala Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
Learn more

Budapest Living Index

Jump to prices

Yala

🇹🇭 Thailand

$895

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,641

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $895 per month in Yala vs $1,641 in Budapest, rent included.

Yala $895
Budapest $1,641

A couple spends around $1,487 per month in Yala vs $2,562 in Budapest, rent included.

Yala $1,487
Budapest $2,562

A family of three spends $2,079 per month in Yala vs $3,483 in Budapest, rent included.

Yala $2,079
Budapest $3,483

Yala is about 45% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Yala sits 34% below the global median, while Budapest is 21% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.51 ฿50.3

$14.04 Ft 4,536

-89.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.70 ฿825

$60.9 Ft 19.7K

-59.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.73 ฿225

$10.37 Ft 3,351

-35.10%

Cappuccino

$1.92 ฿64.0

$3.46 Ft 1,117

-44.51%

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

$0.56 ฿18.76

$2.07 Ft 669

-72.95%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 ฿5.42

$1.77 Ft 572

-90.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.90 ฿63.4

$3.69 Ft 1,191

-48.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.30 ฿110

$3.80 Ft 1,229

-13.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.54 ฿51.3

$1.16 Ft 374

32.76%

White Bread (500g)

$1.22 ฿40.90

$1.85 Ft 598

-34.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.33 ฿44.51

$2.40 Ft 776

-44.58%

Eggs

$1.79 ฿59.7

$3.99 Ft 1,289

-55.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.29 ฿611

$11.40 Ft 3,683

60.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.96 ฿98.8

$6.87 Ft 2,221

-56.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 ฿309

$14.49 Ft 4,682

-36.09%

Apples (1kg)

$3.02 ฿101

$1.88 Ft 607

60.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.14 ฿37.97

$2.14 Ft 693

-46.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.09 ฿69.7

$2.30 Ft 744

-9.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.95 ฿65.3

$4.04 Ft 1,304

-51.73%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 ฿52.3

$1.02 Ft 329

53.92%

Onion (1kg)

$0.97 ฿32.44

$0.99 Ft 320

-2.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 ฿39.17

$1.58 Ft 510

-25.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 ฿17.62

$0.70 Ft 225

-24.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.87 ฿163

$8.03 Ft 2,594

-39.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.33 ฿546

$6.18 Ft 1,997

164.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.64 ฿54.8

$1.24 Ft 401

32.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.58 ฿86.2

$2.06 Ft 666

25.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.61 ฿20.44

$1.59 Ft 513

-61.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.52 Ft 8,893

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.12 ฿37.42

$3.43 Ft 1,110

-67.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.31 ฿43.70

$1.33 Ft 431

-1.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.43 ฿215

$20.45 Ft 6,607

-68.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.42 ฿47.43

$1.93 Ft 624

-26.42%

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

$26.5K ฿887.0K

$29.1K Ft 9.4M

-8.91%

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

$26.5K ฿887.1K

$34.7K Ft 11.2M

-23.57%

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

$85.4 ฿2,853

$175 Ft 56.4K

-51.10%

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

$11.99 ฿401

$23.62 Ft 7,631

-49.24%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.46 ฿650

$23.60 Ft 7,625

-17.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.07 ฿1,473

$68.8 Ft 22.2K

-35.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.69 ฿458

$19.26 Ft 6,224

-28.92%

Cinema Ticket

$6.63 ฿222

$10.31 Ft 3,333

-35.69%

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

$589 ฿19.7K

$535 Ft 172.9K

10.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿376.2K

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

-33.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$45.88 ฿1,533

$99.9 Ft 32.3K

-54.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.27 ฿1,079

$43.27 Ft 14.0K

-25.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.6 ฿2,592

$112 Ft 36.1K

-30.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$80.9 ฿2,704

$119 Ft 38.4K

-32.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$475 ฿15.9K

$832 Ft 268.8K

-42.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$289 ฿9,662

$629 Ft 203.3K

-54.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,169 ฿39.1K

$1,586 Ft 512.4K

-26.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$759 ฿25.4K

$1,197 Ft 386.6K

-36.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,762 ฿58.9K

$5,718 Ft 1.8M

-69.19%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,405 ฿46.9K

$3,947 Ft 1.3M

-64.41%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,712 Ft 553.1K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

6.45

-13.64%

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

Last update for Yala: October 18, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Yala

$289 32.3%

Budapest

$629 38.4% 118% $340

Groceries & Markets

Yala

$241 26.9%

Budapest

$262 16% 8.5% $21

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Yala

$117 13.1%

Budapest

$222 13.5% 89.9% $105

Clothing & Footwear

Yala

$106 11.9%

Budapest

$168 10.3% 58% $62

Eating Out

Yala

$74 8.3%

Budapest

$226 13.8% 205% $152

Sport & Entertainment

Yala

$57 6.4%

Budapest

$89 5.5% 56.1% $32

Getting Around

Yala

$10 * 1.1%

Budapest

$44 2.7% 335% $34

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $475 in Yala versus $832 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 $25.00 in Yala versus $61.0 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $241 vs $262 – making Yala the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Yala

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

20:15 8:15 PM

15:15 3:15 PM

5 h behind Yala

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

60,617

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Yala Budapest 8,890 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Yala
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

Yala vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 83%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,343 per month in Yala and $2,461 in Budapest. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Yala, 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 $25.00 in Yala 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 9% 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 $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Yala, where all-in costs run around $895, than in Budapest at $1,641. In Yala it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Yala – 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 Yala. 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.