Living in Hungary: the costs as a student
2022-08-18
Living in Hungary: the costs as a student
Are you planning to move to Hungary for the purpose of studies? Here’s everything you need to know about living in Hungary – starting from traveling to Hungary, getting your permits, finding and accommodation up until calculating your costs of living!
Travel to Hungary
Hungary has a perfect location in the heart of Europe, with great connections to all European capitals and surrounding nations, as well as to countries from other continents.
When traveling to Budapest, you can chose from numerous different modes of convenient and cheap transportation, including trains, flights, buses or even via water transportation. You can easily book flights to Hungary, even from other continents - you can even find direct flights to Budapest from China!
The cheap tickets of low-cost airlines and coaches are highly favored by international students during their studies in Hungary as well, as they provide amazing opportunities to explore the rest of Europe on a budget during their university years. If you are lucky, you can book flights to other major European cities for only €5-10, and you can even find bus tickets for as cheap as €1!
Infos about the Hungarian residence permit and student visa
If you are a citizen of an EU, Switzerland or an EEA country (Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein), you do not need a residence permit or a student visa to live and study in Hungary.
However, applying for a residence permit and visa is necessary for all who are not EU, EEA or Swiss citizens.
In order to start your university studies for Europe and in Hungary, you will need to apply for the residence permit together with the student visa application before arriving to Hungary. You will also need to secure a health insurance prior to this. Propsective students of Budapest Metropolitan University can easily take care this by applying to the university’s health insurance package.
Do you want to find out more about the visa and residence permit process? Click here for our detailed guideline!
Hungarian prices: living costs in Budapest
Hungary and its international, vibrant capital city, Budapest is an amazing place for university students not only in terms of activities, programs and entertainment, but also in terms of prices. In Budapest, you can enjoy all the benefits and perks of the European lifestyle, but on much more affordable prices.
As an international student in Budapest on a budget, you can get by with a monthly living cost of €500-700 , including accommodation, local transportation, food, groceries, hygiene items, bills and other necessary expenses.
Here are some average prices of basic items and services for students in Hungary:
- 1 loaf of bread: €0.6-1.7
- 1 liter of milk: €0.6-1.2
- 1 bottle of beer: € 0.6-2
- 1 bottle of wine: €2-10
- Eating out: €6-15
- Monthly public transportation pass for students: €9
- Monthly fitness pass (for students): €20-30
- Utilities for an apartment: €90-150
Student living costs in different accommodations
Accommodation make up the significant percentage of your monthly budget as a student living in Hungary.
You will need an amount of approximately €200-500 to cover your monthly accommodation costs. The price will vary depending on the type of accommodation you choose, the location, and how many people you share your flat or room with.
If you choose to live in a dormitory, a shared or private room will cost you about € 230-350. This is similar to the prices you will pay for renting a room, while renting a private apartment, the most expensive option, can cost about € 400-500.
