Is Hungary really as expensive as we think?
While people often complain about Hungary’s high prices, they are nowhere near as high as those of Western European countries.
Both April and May saw an explosion of prices; consumer prices increased by 2.2 per cent in May 2020 as compared to the same time last year. However, taking a look at the prices in the European Union, Hungary is still below average, reports Pénzcentrum.
Some products may cost twice as much as this time last year, and the prices keep increasing, but Hungary is still considered to be on the cheaper side of the European Union, based on new Eurostat data.
Ten groups of products were compared in the analysis: alcohol and tobacco, clothing and footwear, means of communication, food, furniture, housing, public transport, means of transportation (own), recreation and culture, and restaurant and accommodation costs.
Hungary does not reach the average EU prices in any of the ten categories, but the wages and salaries are much lower as well.
Food costs 15.3 per cent less than the average. The cheapest to shop is in Romania, at 65.1 per cent of the average price, followed by Poland (68.8 per cent), Bulgaria (76.5 per cent) and Lithuania (80.1 per cent).
- These are the wealthiest regions in Hungary.
- Is the Hungarian middle-class income enough to make ends meet?
Food costs the most in Switzerland, with 166.3 per cent of the EU average, followed by Norway with 155.2 per cent and Iceland with 141.3 per cent.
As for the other groups, clothing only costs less in Romania and Bulgaria than in Hungary. The case is the same for costs of restaurants and accommodations, with Romania, Bulgaria and Hungary being the cheapest, while the prices for the same services are highest in Iceland.
Alcohol costs 75 per cent of the EU average in Hungary, while it costs 236 per cent of the average in Norway. The bus is also the most expensive in Norway; however, Hungary also ranks higher when it comes to public transport, with prices that are 70 per cent of the EU average.
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