What Budapest costs
Hungary is not in the eurozone, so every price here is given in forint and converted to euro at the official rate — no currency exchange required along the way.
- From the airport
- Bus 100E €6.90 (2,500 HUF)
- Street food
- Lángos €9.63 (3,490 HUF, lángos)
- Restaurant, main course
- €11.56–18.46 (4,190–6,690 HUF)
Hungary is not in the eurozone: the forint (HUF) is the only currency actually accepted, and the euro here is for comparison only, converted at the ECB reference rate of 21 September 2026 (1 EUR = 362.40 HUF). What follows are confirmed prices for transport, food and the airport journey, per person.
Prices line by line
All prices are per person, in euro converted from forint at the ECB rate of 21 September 2026.
From the airport
Bus 100E runs direct from the airport to the centre (40 min), for €6.90 (2,500 HUF). The ticket is bought at a machine or in the app before boarding, not from the driver, and covers 80 minutes with no change — it's cheaper, and in traffic often faster than a taxi.
Getting around the city
The metro, trams and buses run on the same ticket: €1.38 (500 HUF) for one ride, €7.59 (2,750 HUF) for 24 hours, €15.87 (5,750 HUF, 72 h) for 72 hours. For three days with several rides a day, the multi-day ticket pays off quickly; for a day with less moving around, two or three single tickets stay cheaper.
Food, by the meal
Street food — lángos with soured cream and cheese — is €9.63 (3,490 HUF, lángos), while a restaurant main course with no drinks starts at €11.56–18.46 (4,190–6,690 HUF). The gap between two street meals a day and two restaurant meals, over three days, easily runs to more than fifty euro on the total.
Accommodation
A hostel dorm bed starts at €11.22–15.00 a night, a three-star hotel double at €28–70 per person — both ranges move with the district and the date, and sit closer to the top in season and in District V.
What this list leaves out
- Sightseeing tickets. Parliament, Széchenyi Baths and the Great Synagogue have their own price on the day-by-day plan, outside the daily budget here.
- A set lunch menu. Depends on the venue and the day of the week — it's posted on a board outside the restaurant.
The same comparison for 143 places: hostel, hotel, getting into town and a day pass. Travel costs →
Before you go
Short answers to what people ask most before setting out.
Does Budapest use euro or forint?
Forint (HUF) — it's the only currency actually accepted. The euro on this page is for comparison with other cities only.
How much does transport from the airport cost?
Bus 100E is €6.90 (2,500 HUF) per person, direct to the centre, 40 min.
Is a multi-day transport ticket cheaper?
For three days with several rides a day, yes — €15.87 (5,750 HUF, 72 h) for 72 hours pays off quickly against single tickets at €1.38 (500 HUF).
Ready for Budapest?
Where to next
Underground and out of town: four sights beyond the six main ones
→A museum in a former secret-police building, a hospital carved into rock, a park full of removed statues and…
Szentendre · 19 km
→A Danube town reached from Budapest by suburban train, no car needed: the square, museums and riverfront fit into half a day, while the open-air museum takes a whole one.
How well does Budapest suit you?
→Six questions: a score for this place and others like it.
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