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Where to park in Budapest, How much should be paid
Paid and Free Parking in Cities
In many
Hungarian cities — especially in Budapest — on-street parking is paid.
Public parking spaces are regulated by local municipalities, which divide areas
into different parking zones with varying fees and time limits.
For example,
in the capital there are four parking zones (A, B, C, D) with different
pricing categories depending on the area and time of day. In inner zones, there
is often a maximum parking duration (e.g. 3 hours), meaning you cannot
park all day simply by paying once.
Paid parking periods are usually limited to
daytime hours, such as 08:00–18:00 or
08:00–22:00, and typically apply on working days.
In some places, parking may be free on
Saturdays or Sundays, but this varies by city and zone. In Budapest, weekend parking is often free, except when a
Saturday is officially designated as a working day.
Parking fees can be paid in several ways:
·
At parking meters (with coins or bank cards)
·
Via mobile phone applications such as Nemzeti Mobilfizetés, OTP Simple, or Parkl,
where you enter your license plate number and parking duration
Mobile payment is convenient because you don’t
need coins, and apps often send reminders before your parking time expires.
If you do not pay the parking fee or park in a
prohibited area (for example on sidewalks or green areas), you may receive a parking fine or on-the-spot penalty.
According to the Hungarian Highway Code
(KRESZ), parking is prohibited in places where you block traffic or access to
properties. Parking on green areas can
result in especially high fines.
In Budapest and other large cities, paid
parking garages are common — for example in underpasses, shopping centers, or
underground garages. These facilities are often open 24 hours a day. You usually receive a ticket upon entry
and pay before exiting.
Unlike street parking, surface parking
restrictions do not apply here, but fees
can increase quickly on an hourly basis.