Budapest ranked low on regional living standards list

There are six capitals in the Central Eastern European region where the standard of living is higher than in Budapest, including Prague, Bratislava, Moscow, Warsaw, Ljubljana and Tallinn, a recent study by UBS revealed.

Of the 12 cities examined in the region, the price levels are higher in Moscow, Warsaw, Tallinn - and, disregarding rent, Ljubljana - but based on net income, Prague and Bratislava are ahead of Budapest as well, writes index.hu.

The study was based on 2006 data collected on prices of 122 products and services and wages in 14 occupations. This data was corrected according to inflation rate and fluctuations in the currency exchange rate.

The ranking shows that Budapest has gotten much closer to Western Europe and the US in terms of prices than in regard to wages. Prices in Budapest are 78% of those in New York, and rent is 62%, while wages - both gross and net - are only one-fourth of those in the American city.

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