Cost of living comparison

compared to

Hungary vs. South Africa Cost of Living Summary

Hungary is 29.5% more expensive than South Africa overall.

Restaurants: pay 35.9% more in Hungary
Groceries: pay 24.2% more in Hungary
Transportation: pay 12.8% more in Hungary
Housing: pay 0.5% more in Hungary
Childcare: pay 80.8% more in Hungary
Entertainment and Sports: pay 42.3% more in Hungary
Clothing: pay 10.0% more in Hungary

The cost of childcare, entertainment and sports, restaurants, groceries, transportation, and clothing in Hungary are more expensive than in South Africa. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Hungary.

Hungary vs. South Africa Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Hungary instead of South Africa, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 35.9% more for restaurants

	South Africa	Hungary
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$9.33 ZAR159.73	$10.15 HUF3,341.34	+8.8%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$5.11 ZAR87.49	$8.05 HUF2,647.46	+57.4%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.03 ZAR17.65	$1.44 HUF472.54	+39.2%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$0.80 ZAR13.74	$1.11 HUF365.22	+38.2%
Average			+35.9%

South Africa vs. Hungary - Cost of restaurants

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pay 24.2% more for groceries

	South Africa	Hungary
Bread 1 loaf	$1.00 ZAR17.16	$1.54 HUF507.66	+53.8%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$3.88 ZAR66.47	$4.49 HUF1,477.71	+15.6%
Milk (1 gallon)	$4.37 ZAR74.79	$4.17 HUF1,373.36	-4.5%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.33 ZAR39.93	$2.86 HUF940.35	+22.5%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$2.13 ZAR36.52	$2.70 HUF887.52	+26.4%
Apples (1 lb)	$0.73 ZAR12.46	$0.79 HUF258.98	+8.1%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.65 ZAR11.16	$0.88 HUF290.08	+35.2%
Oranges (1 lb)	$0.68 ZAR11.70	$0.91 HUF299.51	+33.2%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$0.71 ZAR12.14	$1.40 HUF459.55	+96.9%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$0.59 ZAR10.02	$0.51 HUF168.04	-12.8%
Onions (1 lb)	$0.60 ZAR10.27	$0.55 HUF180.21	-8.7%
Average			+24.2%

South Africa vs. Hungary - Cost of groceries

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pay 12.8% more for transportation

	South Africa	Hungary
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$4.92 ZAR84.25	$6.76 HUF2,224.99	+37.3%
Monthly public transit pass	$56.18 ZAR961.29	$25.12 HUF8,264.56	-55.3%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$21,394.82 ZAR366,106.47	$26,788.81 HUF8,814,856.36	+25.2%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$9.34 ZAR159.79	$13.43 HUF4,417.51	+43.8%
Average			+12.8%

South Africa vs. Hungary - Cost of transportation

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pay 0.5% more for housing

	South Africa	Hungary
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$39.36 ZAR673.48	$20.66 HUF6,798.42	-47.5%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$404.16 ZAR6,915.94	$481.37 HUF158,395.75	+19.1%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$361.59 ZAR6,187.51	$376.75 HUF123,970.92	+4.2%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$88.13 ZAR1,508.04	$111.14 HUF36,569.55	+26.1%
Average			+0.5%

South Africa vs. Hungary - Cost of housing

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pay 80.8% more for childcare

	South Africa	Hungary
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$173.48 ZAR2,968.50	$310.81 HUF102,271.62	+79.2%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$3,962.11 ZAR67,799.29	$7,229.50 HUF2,378,865.90	+82.5%
Average			+80.8%

South Africa vs. Hungary - Cost of childcare

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pay 42.3% more for entertainment and sports

	South Africa	Hungary
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$2.18 ZAR37.27	$2.09 HUF688.31	-4.0%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$2.05 ZAR35.06	$2.21 HUF728.15	+8.0%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$2.96 ZAR50.72	$6.97 HUF2,292.36	+135.1%
Monthly membership at local gym	$30.26 ZAR517.83	$49.15 HUF16,173.40	+62.4%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$6.85 ZAR117.19	$7.52 HUF2,474.83	+9.8%
Average			+42.3%

South Africa vs. Hungary - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 10.0% more for clothing

	South Africa	Hungary
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$50.74 ZAR868.31	$76.50 HUF25,173.70	+50.8%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$32.75 ZAR560.46	$30.66 HUF10,087.92	-6.4%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$94.19 ZAR1,611.79	$79.51 HUF26,164.05	-15.6%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$81.80 ZAR1,399.67	$91.04 HUF29,955.89	+11.3%
Average			+10.0%

South Africa vs. Hungary - Cost of clothing

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The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025

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