Mobile internet in Budapest: a visitor’s guide

Roaming in Budapest, and across the border

• Plans from the EU and the EEA: roam like at home applies, up to your operator’s fair use limit.
• UK plans: since Brexit it depends on your operator, and many charge a daily fee for Hungary.
• Plans from outside Europe: usually international roaming prices or a daily pass.

The detail is in the Hungary data guide. Budapest is a little over two hours from Vienna and about three from Bratislava, and all three are inside the European roaming rule, so a European phone plan behaves the same in the three of them. A prepaid pack for one country does not: it stops giving data the moment you cross, which is what a Europe eSIM is for.

From the airport into the city

The airport sits east of the city and there is no metro line to the door: you get in by bus to a metro terminus, or by a booked transfer or taxi. That is a decision made on the phone while you walk through arrivals — which bus, which metro line after it, how long the whole thing takes, and whether it is worth the transfer instead. The message to your accommodation about your arrival time goes the same way.

Airport Wi-Fi usually wants a registration or gives you a short free slot, so landing with data already on is worth more than it sounds. An eSIM is installed at home over Wi-Fi and only starts counting when the phone first connects in Hungary.

Underground, and on the two sides of the river

In the metro tunnels coverage depends on the line and on the station: some stretches and platforms have it and others do not, and the deep line is a long way down, so plan for a live route to stall between stops and catch up at the surface. Anything you truly need down there — the ticket, the address, the next connection — is better loaded before you go down the stairs.

Above ground the trouble is the position rather than the signal. On the Buda side the streets climb, turn and narrow between high walls, and the courtyards on the Pest side do the same on the flat: GPS bounces off the buildings and the dot on the map drifts a street or two before it settles. Walking a few metres into the open fixes it faster than reopening the app, and an offline map of the city downloaded beforehand keeps the streets and the search working either way.

Forints, tickets and the rest of the phone

• The money: Hungary uses the forint, not the euro. Buying the eSIM online before you travel, at the price you see on the site, means it is not one more thing to sort out at a counter in a currency you do not use day to day.
• Timed tickets: baths, museums and viewpoints put you in a slot and the ticket is shown from the phone at the door. Save it offline too, in case the queue has a bad signal.
• Maps and public transport: constant, and the reason to download the offline map before the trip.
• The usual background: messages, photos going up and the odd video call home.

How much data for a few days in Budapest

• 3 GB: a long weekend of maps, tickets and messages.
• 5 GB: a week at the same pace, with photos and social media.
• 10 GB: two weeks, or a work trip with video calls.
• 20 GB: a month, or sharing the connection with a laptop.

Estimates for ordinary use; video moves them fast. How much data do I need breaks it down by activity.

Prices for Hungary

Hungary data eSIMs: 3 GB for 4,49 €, 5 GB for 6,79 €, 10 GB for 11,29 € and 20 GB for 16,99 €. Local networks (Telenor Hungary (5G), Vodafone (5G)), hotspot allowed, no speed cap from us, and topping up does not mean reinstalling. It is data only, so your own line keeps your number.