How Prague and Budapest compare on cost, visas, working hours, weather, internet and safety. Every figure comes from our city guides and tools, checked and dated there.
The short answer
Prague Doesn't win on any measure here. See who it suits, below.
Budapest Pick it for faster internet.
Everyday costsEven
What we have checked of rent, a coworking desk, weekday lunches and getting around comes to $1,190 to $1,300 (£891 to £975) a month in Prague, against $1,030 to $1,250 (£770 to £940) in Budapest. We can't call it: Prague has no checked figure for a desk, so that total leaves it out.
The visaEven
About the same income bar. Prague: Digital Nomad Program (long-term visa), about $3,400 a month (CZK 885,870 a year). Budapest: White Card, about $3,370 a month (EUR 3,000 a month).
A London 9 to 5Even
Normal hours in both: 10:00 to 18:00 in Prague, 10:00 to 18:00 in Budapest.
A New York 9 to 5Even
A late finish in both: 15:00 to 23:00 in Prague, 15:00 to 23:00 in Budapest.
WeatherEven
Comfortable months on our best-time rule: 5 in Prague, 5 in Budapest. Both are comfortable in May, June, July, August and September.
InternetBudapest
Budapest is faster. Typical download speed: 83 Mbps in Prague, 252 Mbps in Budapest, from each guide.
SafetyEven
The US State Department puts both countries at level 1. Watch for pickpockets, fake police and drink spiking in Prague; inflated bar bills and taxis in Budapest.
Side by side
Measure
Prague
Budapest
Country
Czech Republic
Hungary
Language
Czech
Hungarian
Currency
Czech koruna (CZK)
Hungarian forint (HUF)
Plugs
—
Type C and F, 230V
Time zone
UTC+2 today
UTC+2 today
A month's basics
$1,190 to $1,300 (£891 to £975), with a desk missing
$1,030 to $1,250 (£770 to £940)
Remote work visa
Digital Nomad Program (long-term visa)
White Card
Income needed
About $3,400 a month (CZK 885,870 a year)
About $3,370 a month (EUR 3,000 a month)
Without a visa
British and American passports: 90 days in any 180 across Schengen expected, not checked
British and American passports: 90 days in any 180 across Schengen
Tax residency
183 days or more in a calendar year, or a permanent home there, makes you tax resident
183 days in a calendar year, or sooner if your only home or your centre of vital interests is in Hungary. Then a flat 15 per cent
Download speed
83 Mbps
252 Mbps
Comfortable months
May, June, July, August and September
May, June, July, August and September
US travel advice
Level 1: normal precautions
Level 1: normal precautions
Meetups
1 regular group still running
3 regular groups still running
Dollars and pounds at today's exchange rate. Download speeds are the typical figure from each guide, which says where it comes from: some are for the city, some for the whole country, so treat a small gap as no gap.
What a month costs
Rent, a coworking desk, a cheap lunch on each of 22 working days, and getting around: the same four costs our budget calculator uses. The rent figures aren't always the same kind of figure (some are furnished one-beds, some are averages across every size of flat), so read the note under each.
Prague
$1,190 to $1,300£891 to £975 a month
Rent
$935 to $1,050A 45 square metre flat at the asking rate: CZK 451 a square metre in Praha 10 to CZK 505 in Praha 1 (Deloitte, first quarter of 2026, furnished or not unstated). CZK 20,295 to 22,725
A desk
No checked figureNo checked monthly coworking price: only day passes, from a listing site
Weekday lunches
$226Poledni menu, the Prague average in December 2025, CZK 223 each, 22 working days
Getting around
$25Prague 30-day adult pass, ages 18 to 60. CZK 550
About $3,400 a month (CZK 885,870 a year); in pounds, about £2,560 a month
How long
Annual visas, by a 2023 account, then a move to a long-term residence permit. Renewal terms not checked
What it leads to
Permanent residence after five years' residence; a 2026 reform has been reported but not checked. Citizenship not checked
Without a visa
British and American passports: 90 days in any 180 across Schengen expected, not checked
The catch. It is not open to all remote workers. You need a listed passport and an IT job, and annual quotas can close the programme mid-year. You also need a degree of at least 3 years in IT, marketing or advertising, or at least 3 years' proven experience in those fields (Brno Expat Centre, January 2025, semi-official). Official pages disagree on the list: all include the UK, the US, Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea and Taiwan. There is no legal entitlement to a place.
Budapest
White Card
Income needed
About $3,370 a month (EUR 3,000 a month); in pounds, about £2,530 a month
How long
One year, renewable once: two years at most
What it leads to
Nowhere: holders may not be granted a national residence card
Without a visa
British and American passports: 90 days in any 180 across Schengen
The catch. Nobody can join you on it, and owning even a share in a Hungarian company gets it withdrawn.
The average high in °C each month, coloured by the rule on our best-time page: green is a high of 20 to 32°C with under 150mm of rain; red is a high of 38°C or more or under 12°C, 250mm of rain or more, or 33°C or more with 150mm of rain or more. Hover over a month for its rain.
The US level is for the whole country, as the State Department sets it, and some countries have stricter advice for particular regions.
Who each one suits
From each city guide, word for word.
Prague
It suits
British, American and other listed-passport holders who work in IT, as a foreign company's employee or as a freelancer willing to take out a Czech trade licence, and who earn well above the Czech average wage. It suits someone who can apply before the year's quota is used up, can wait up to 45 days for a decision, and is happy to live by tram and metro on a CZK 550 monthly pass.
It doesn't suit
Remote workers outside IT: the nomad programme is not open to you, and marketing is only listed by CzechInvest. Anyone whose passport is not on the list, and three official pages give three different lists. Anyone who needs certainty: there is no legal entitlement to a place, and the quota can shut applications mid-year. Anyone hoping for cheap rent: a 45 square metre flat at central asking rates comes to about CZK 20,300 to 22,700 a month.
Employees of a foreign company, or owners of a profitable one, earning EUR 3,000 a month net or more, who want one or two good years in a central European capital. It suits people who like real seasons, cheap and complete public transport and a deep cafe culture, and who are happy renting in Pest's central districts or across the river in Buda.
It doesn't suit
Anyone hoping to settle, because the White Card stops at two years and cannot turn into residence. Couples and families, because your partner cannot join you on it. Freelancers without a company, who have no clear route at all. Anyone who might take a single Hungarian client or buy into a local business, since either gets the card withdrawn. And anyone who hates winter: from November to February the city is grey, with highs of 3 to 9 degrees.
