Striking disparities can be seen in Hungarian wages, according to the latest district- and region-level statistics published by the Central Statistical Office (KSH). The Buda districts continue to dominate the earnings rankings, while in the country’s poorest areas the average gross salary is less than half of that.

Huge gaps: How gross wages vary by region

The highest salaries were recorded in District II of Budapest, where the average gross wage reached HUF 1.16 million in the first three quarters of this year, HVG reports. Close behind is District XII with HUF 1.13 million, followed by District V, where the figure stands at HUF 1.04 million. District I also crossed the one-million mark. In these central areas, seven-figure salaries have clearly become the norm.

At the other end of the scale, the picture is entirely different. In the Cigánd district, the average gross wage between January and September was only HUF 420,000, which is barely a third of the levels seen in Buda. Slightly higher averages were recorded in the Gönc district (HUF 444,000) and the Fehérgyarmat district (HUF 450,000), yet the gap between the best- and worst-paid areas still exceeds a factor of two and a half.

Hungarian forint inflation
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Rural wages (and even their rate of increase) fall short of Budapest levels

Significant differences appear not only in wage levels but also in wage dynamics. Nationally, salaries rose by 6.9% compared with last year’s average, but local data show considerable variation. In the ten best-performing districts, growth ranged between 7.3% and 8.5%. Leading the list is the Paks district with an 8.49% rise, followed by the Balmazújváros district with 8.25%, and the Hajdúböszörmény district with 7.74%.

By contrast, in the weakest-performing districts, wage growth was measured at only 3.4% to 4.4%, well below the national average. Among the laggards are the Kazincbarcika district (3.79%), the Komárom district (3.76%), and, surprisingly, Budapest’s District V. Although this district ranks among the top in terms of salary levels, its wage growth rate is one of the slowest in the country, at just 3.44%.