How Berlin 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
Berlin Doesn't win on any measure here. See who it suits, below.
Budapest Pick it for lower everyday costs, faster internet and a lower US travel advisory level.
Everyday costsBudapest
Budapest is cheaper: Berlin costs more even before lunch. What we have checked of rent, a coworking desk, weekday lunches and getting around comes to $1,430 to $2,230 (£1,080 to £1,670) a month in Berlin, against $1,030 to $1,250 (£770 to £940) in Budapest.
The visaEven
Germany sets no income floor, but its route is for freelancers only: employees of a foreign company have no way in. Berlin: Residence permit for freelance work (section 21(5)), no income floor. 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 Berlin, 10:00 to 18:00 in Budapest.
A New York 9 to 5Even
A late finish in both: 15:00 to 23:00 in Berlin, 15:00 to 23:00 in Budapest.
WeatherEven
Comfortable months on our best-time rule: 5 in Berlin, 5 in Budapest. Both are comfortable in May, June, July, August and September.
InternetBudapest
Budapest is faster. Typical download speed: 104 Mbps in Berlin, 252 Mbps in Budapest, from each guide.
SafetyBudapest
Budapest. The US State Department puts Germany at level 2 and Hungary at level 1.
Side by side
Measure
Berlin
Budapest
Country
Germany
Hungary
Language
German
Hungarian
Currency
Euro (EUR)
Hungarian forint (HUF)
Plugs
Type F and C, 230V
Type C and F, 230V
Time zone
UTC+2 today
UTC+2 today
A month's basics
$1,430 to $2,230 (£1,080 to £1,670), with lunch missing
$1,030 to $1,250 (£770 to £940)
Remote work visa
Residence permit for freelance work (section 21(5))
White Card
Income needed
No income floor
About $3,370 a month (EUR 3,000 a month)
Without a visa
British and American passports: 90 days in any 180 across Schengen
British and American passports: 90 days in any 180 across Schengen
Tax residency
A continuous stay of more than six months, or from day one if you have a home there
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
104 Mbps
252 Mbps
Comfortable months
May, June, July, August and September
May, June, July, August and September
US travel advice
Level 2: increased caution
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.
Berlin
$1,430 to $2,230£1,080 to £1,670 a month
Rent
$1,230 to $1,850Furnished one-bed, asking: most of 30 Wunderflats listings, October 2026. An operator snapshot, not a statistic. EUR 1,100 to 1,650
A desk
$129 to $308Coworking at betahaus Kreuzberg, CLUB (business hours) to PRO (24/7), excluding VAT. EUR 115 to 275
Weekday lunches
No checked figureNo checked price for a cheap weekday lunch (Mittagstisch): only Numbeo-based blogs had figures
Getting around
$71Deutschlandticket, all local transport in Germany. EUR 66.80 from 1 January 2027. EUR 63
Residence permit for freelance work (section 21(5))
Income needed
No income floor; in pounds, No income floor
How long
Up to three years, extendable if the business supports you
What it leads to
Permanent residence after five years, citizenship after five; the three-year citizenship route was abolished on 30 October 2025
Without a visa
British and American passports: 90 days in any 180 across Schengen
The catch. There is no digital nomad visa, so this is a freelance permit, not a remote-work one. Over 45, you must also show a pension of EUR 1,612.53 a month from 67 or assets of EUR 232,204. You apply from inside Germany, not on a Schengen tourist visa, with German health insurance and a Berlin lease.
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.
No areas advised against. The UK says terrorists are very likely to try to carry out attacks in Germany. In July 2026 one person was killed and 29 injured when a vehicle drove into crowds at Christopher Street Day, Berlin's Pride.
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.
Berlin
It suits
Freelancers with real, documentable clients, such as designers, developers, writers and consultants, who are ready to make Berlin their main home, register an address and buy German health insurance. In return you get a legal, renewable permit with a five-year path to settlement and to citizenship. It also suits anyone who wants a big English-friendly creative and tech scene, EUR 63 a month for local transport across all of Germany, and a city that rewards long stays over short ones.
It doesn't suit
Anyone who wants a nomad visa: there isn't one. Salaried employees of a foreign company: there is no route for you, and 90 days in 180 across Schengen is all you get. Anyone who hates paperwork in German, or wants to land and rent something cheap next week. If you are over 45 without a solid pension or about EUR 232,000 in assets, the freelance permit will likely be refused. And winters are dark, grey and near freezing for four months. If you came for sun, cheap rent and easy admin, go somewhere else.
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.
