Budapest taxi – travelling in a cab in Budapest

budapest taxi

Allthough travelling around by taxi seems like a very convenient option, both a Hungarian tour guide and a local once recommended me to not take the taxi in Budapest. According to them the drivers can be quite rude and they try to hook you up with a bigger bill then necessary (they don’t switch on the meter or make a detour).

Nevertheless if you do want to take a taxi in Budapest, then on this page you will find all information you need.

Cost taxi in Budapest

The rates for the official taxis in Budapest are:

 HUFGBPEURUSD
Standard fee700£1.9€2.1$2.4
Distance based fare per km300£0.8€0.9$1
Time based fare75£0.2€0.25$0.25

Tips for travelling by taxi

Above I warned you for taking a taxi. Budapest is a very safe city, but taxi scams unfortunately happen quite often. If you do want to take a taxi, here a are some tips which are useful when you take one:

  • There is no night tariff in Budapest.
  • Always order a taxi instead of taking one in the street.
  • If you do need to take one from the street make sure it’s official. The onoffical ones look very similar to the official taxis. Make sure your taxi has a logo in the middle of the front door and one over the sign on the top of the car.
  • Don’t ask the driver for recommendations on restaurants and bars. They are likely to take you to a place that pays them a commission.
  • The meter should read 700 (HUF) from the start, except if the driver had to wait for you a while.
  • Scroll a bit down to read more about a transfer to or from the airport by taxi

Tipping & payment

It’s common in Hungary to give a tip to the driver when you are satisfied. On average it’s normal to tip an extra 5 – 10%. You can pay the driver in cash and all taxis accept bankcards.

Ordering a taxi in Budapest

Again, it’s best to order an official taxi on forehand then to get in a cab on the street. If so, make sure you are in an official one (you’ll find a description in the tips above). If you order a cab via phone the waiting time mostly is around 15 minutes. You can always ask the reception in your hotel to order a taxi for you, so you are sure you will drive with a reliable company. If you come from the airport you travel reliable with Főtaxi or you can order on forehand.

Order your taxi to or from the airport

If you want to go with a reliable company to or from the airport, then order your taxi online now. This way you don’t need to worry about anything and it’s completely safe and reliable. Plus the costs are always the same independently of the amount of traffic on the roads.

Über in Budapest

Über, the app with which you can order a taxi via your phone, can’t be used in Budapest. In the beginning you could use Über in the Hungarian Capital, but ‘due to legislative changes’ the company was forced to suspend their service in Hungary. Who knows they may come back but for now you have to use the alternative Taxify.

Taxify

Taxify is recommended by locals over a regular taxi. Like Über it’s an app with which you can order a ride. The basic fee of this taxis is 450 HUF ($1.5 /£1.2 /€1.4). Per kilometer you pay 280 HUF ($1 /£0.75 /€0.9). Since the drivers are getting reviews from their clients they will not be rude like some of the normal taxi drivers. The app is very well monitored so if drivers don’t get good reviews they are not allowed any longer to ride a car via taxify.

Taxify is available for Android and for iOS.

Looking for a hotel?
Check out my two personal favourites: TG Design suites Aparthotel & Hotel Rum (which is Buda-side of the city). Other hotels which are popular, have good ratings and are located very well are Roombach Hotel and AnVa House.

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Questions?

If you have a question please let me know in the comments below. I will come back to you as soon as possible. Be aware you will not get an e-mail so you have to come back to this page to check the answer.

6 Comments

  • Reply
    Gillian
    10 September 2022 at 15:04

    Just been ripped off on return to the hotel in Budapest. The taxi sign just said taxi so no idea what company it was. Fare was 5950huf and husband handed over 7000huf and intended leaving a tip. By quick sleight of hand the driver turned the 5000 note into 500 and claimed we hadn’t paid enough. I think we may have been stupid and used and unlicensed cab so this is a warning to others. Put a dent on our day but hey ho! We won’t be making that mistake again!

    • Reply
      maaikerijpstra
      26 September 2022 at 13:24

      I’m so sorry for you! That must have been an awful experience. I hope that you had a nice stay in Budapest, apart from this incident.

  • Reply
    Trevor bailey
    3 July 2022 at 12:04

    We used the Yellow cabs on return from boat trip but were ripped off by a woman and her daughter. We payed 4000 hufs to go to the boat trip which was reasonable but we’re charged 11500 hufs on the return trip yellow cabs. She even covered the meter up with her phone ask for cost of the fare to your destination before you start out big rip off

    • Reply
      maaikerijpstra
      15 August 2022 at 16:27

      I am so sorry to hear that! That must have been a terrible experience.
      Hopefully you did enjoy the rest of your stay!

  • Reply
    Laurie Mann
    15 April 2022 at 15:54

    I stumbled over Fotaxi and their prices seemed reasonable. Been burned by Uber/Lyft so I really don’t trust services like that. However, their phone app had very poor ratings, & someone complained about not being able to set a time for pickup at the airport. I’d be happy to pay between 10,000 & 12,000 HUF for a ride from the airport to the Pest side near the Chain Bridge.

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