Shocking: price differences between Hungarian and German Lidl are huge
We have reported before that food prices in Hungary are well above those of other countries in the region. Now, our country has lost another “race”: many foodstuffs are more expensive in the Hungarian Lidl than in Germany. Read more below.
Lidl in Hungary is more expensive than in Germany
Pénzcentrum has found out that it is cheaper to buy these three products far to the west of us than here. Of course, we should not forget that people there earn on average 3 times as much as here, so it is much easier for them to buy these foodstuffs. In fact, the site calculated that some products are 40 percent cheaper abroad than in the Hungarian shop.
The latest data for August show that nowhere else in the region have food prices risen at the same rate as in Hungary in one year. This time, Pénzcentrum found a video on TikTok that shows how much one product costs in a Hungarian Lidl and a German Lidl within a few days. The three products concerned are: chopped pork, bananas and Pick salami.
The products and the differences in prices
The video shows that the Dulano brand meat (340g), which costs EUR 2.49 in Germany, costs HUF 1 199 in Hungary. If we calculate with 425 forints for one euro, the German mean costs 1 058 forints, 141 forints cheaper than in the Hungarian Lidl.
The second product tested was bananas. One kilogram cost EUR 1.09 at the German Lidl, which would come to HUF 463 if we calculate with 425 forints/euro. In comparison, the price in the Hungarian shop was 649 forints per kilo, 186 forints more expensive than in Germany.
The third product concerned was Pick salami. The price comparison of this is trickier: it is available in 250-gram packs in the German unit, whereas in the Hungarian shop it is 380 grams. But never mind, we can calculate where the product is more expensive by using the price labels and the unit price per kilo. In the German Lild, the price per kilo of the Pick salami is EUR 15.96, which is HUF 6 783 converted into euros. This compares with a unit price of HUF 9 734 for the meat product in Hungarian shops. That is more than 2 951 forints more expensive.
Conclusion
As we can see, the price differences are staggering in the same discount store in the two countries. This is despite the fact that the average net salary in Germany is basically three times higher than in Hungary. It also seems completely incomprehensible, for example, how a Hungarian Pick salami produced in Hungary can cost one and a half times the price of one in Germany.
Source: Pénzcentrum, DNH