Arts and culture industry in Hungary - facts & figures

Hungary has an abundant cultural and historical heritage, defined by rich folk customs, characteristic cuisine, and religious practices. Despite decreasing revenues in the industry, the number of enterprises in the Hungarian cultural sector has followed a positive trend over the past years.

Who should be responsible for financing culture?

Budgetary expenditure on culture had increased year-over-year in the country until 2020, when it peaked at over 670 million forints, followed by a drop in the subsequent year. However, when it comes to household expenditure on recreational and cultural services, 2020 recorded a decrease compared to the preceding year, and 2021 saw the highest spending of the past decade. The Hungarian government has played a vital role in financing cultural activities, spending approximately one percent of the country’s GDP on this industry. However, the Ministry of Culture and Innovation is committed to reforming the cultural financing model by placing more emphasis on patronage and increasing ticket sales revenues. These reforms would take some of the burden off the government’s shoulders; however, the Hungarian population would be responsible for compensating the cost of cultural activities.

Is the time of traditional cultural consumption over?

Increasing digital content use raises questions about whether traditional cultural consumption has come to an end in Hungary or if the stagnation is just temporary. In 2021, approximately 5.8 thousand public cultural institutes operated in the country, following a decreasing trend since the peak year of 2019. Similarly, cultural event attendance figures have not recovered to levels recorded before the COVID-19 outbreak. Namely, the number of museum attendances peaked in 2019, while theaters recorded the highest figures in 2018. With 10 million museum visits and over six million theater visits in 2022, scenes of high culture still attract a considerable number of Hungarian consumers. However, it remains to be seen whether cultural consumption figures will reach pre-pandemic levels again. The possible reasons behind the industry’s slow recovery are increasing consumer prices as well as changing cultural consumption habits.
This text provides general information. Statista assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct. Due to varying update cycles, statistics can display more up-to-date data than referenced in the text.
Published by Flora Medve, Dec 21, 2023

Key insights

Number of public cultural institutes in Hungary
5.9k
Number of enterprises in Hungary's cultural sector
35k
Revenue of enterprises in Hungary's cultural sector
4.1bn EUR
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Budgetary expenditure on culture in Hungary from 2014 to 2022 (in million forints)

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Budgetary expenditure on culture in Hungary 2014-2022

Budgetary expenditure on culture in Hungary in 2022, by segment (in million forints)

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Budgetary expenditure on culture in Hungary 2022, by segment

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