Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Al-hawiyah and Bansko

For one person, living is cheaper in Bansko: $968 a month against $1,121 in Al-hawiyah, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

53

Cost of Living Index in Al-hawiyah
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Al-hawiyah Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Bansko
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Bansko Living Index

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Al-hawiyah

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,121

/mo nomad

Bansko

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$968

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Al-hawiyah and in Bansko

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Al-hawiyah and in Bansko actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,121 in Al-hawiyah versus $968 in Bansko.

Al-hawiyah $1,121
Bansko $968

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,611 in Al-hawiyah versus $1,479 in Bansko.

Al-hawiyah $1,611
Bansko $1,479

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,100 in Al-hawiyah versus $1,989 in Bansko.

Al-hawiyah $2,100
Bansko $1,989

Living in Al-hawiyah is roughly 16% more expensive than in Bansko, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities sit below the global median: Al-hawiyah 17% lower, Bansko 28% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.40 SAR 16.52

$8.83 BGN 15.37

-50.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$26.04 SAR 97.7

$45.43 BGN 79.1

-42.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.07 SAR 26.54

$8.92 BGN 15.52

-20.74%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.49 SAR 5.59

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.56 SAR 5.85

Cappuccino

$2.61 SAR 9.81

$2.33 BGN 4.06

12.02%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.68 SAR 2.54

$1.49 BGN 2.60

-54.36%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.23 SAR 0.86

$0.83 BGN 1.44

-72.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.75 BGN 3.05

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.01 BGN 3.49

Milk (1 liter)

$1.88 SAR 7.05

$1.72 BGN 3.00

9.30%

White Bread (500g)

$0.93 SAR 3.48

$0.86 BGN 1.49

8.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.15 SAR 8.07

$1.46 BGN 2.55

47.26%

Eggs

$2.69 SAR 10.11

$2.33 BGN 4.06

15.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.95 SAR 22.34

$9.54 BGN 16.60

-37.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.65 SAR 43.72

$6.30 BGN 10.96

84.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.81 SAR 48.07

$8.64 BGN 15.04

48.26%

Apples (1kg)

$2.06 SAR 7.72

$1.32 BGN 2.29

56.06%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 SAR 6.08

$1.65 BGN 2.86

-1.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.82 SAR 6.82

$1.74 BGN 3.02

4.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.49 SAR 5.59

$1.94 BGN 3.38

-23.20%

Potato (1kg)

$1.30 SAR 4.87

$0.95 BGN 1.66

36.84%

Onion (1kg)

$1.44 SAR 5.40

$0.72 BGN 1.26

100.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 SAR 4.07

$0.55 BGN 0.96

96.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.73 SAR 2.74

$0.59 BGN 1.03

23.73%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$2.68 SAR 10.05

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.08 SAR 7.81

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 SAR 5.91

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.79 SAR 29.23

$3.33 BGN 5.79

133.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.08 BGN 8.84

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.12 BGN 1.95

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 BGN 3.01

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.10 SAR 4.11

$0.89 BGN 1.55

23.60%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$37.15 SAR 139

$27.08 BGN 47.11

37.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.69 SAR 6.33

$1.64 BGN 2.85

3.05%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.67 SAR 10.03

$0.91 BGN 1.59

193.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$14.24 SAR 53.4

$10.00 BGN 17.39

42.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.64 SAR 2.41

$1.50 BGN 2.61

-57.33%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$26.2K SAR 98.2K

$28.6K BGN 49.7K

-8.34%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$21.3K SAR 79.9K

$21.2K BGN 36.9K

0.28%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$65.5 SAR 246

$92.5 BGN 161

-29.25%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$34.01 SAR 128

$14.59 BGN 25.39

133.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$61.7 SAR 231

$12.13 BGN 21.11

408.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.1 SAR 267

$31.84 BGN 55.4

123.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.46 BGN 14.72

Cinema Ticket

$14.91 SAR 56.0

$5.51 BGN 9.59

170.60%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$483 SAR 1,813

$227 BGN 395

112.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,279 SAR 19.8K

$2,311 BGN 4,021

128.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$13.32 SAR 50.0

$30.56 BGN 53.2

-56.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.5 SAR 208

$18.95 BGN 32.97

192.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$39.73 SAR 149

$45.80 BGN 79.7

-13.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$52.5 SAR 197

$48.28 BGN 84.0

8.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$635 SAR 2,383

$510 BGN 887

24.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$422 SAR 1,585

$364 BGN 634

15.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$824 SAR 3,092

$624 BGN 1,085

32.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$584 SAR 2,192

$566 BGN 985

3.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,930 SAR 7,245

$1,166 BGN 2,028

65.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,066 SAR 4,000

$969 BGN 1,686

9.98%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,680 BGN 2,923

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.25

2.99

75.59%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Al-hawiyah: November 2, 2026

Last update for Bansko: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Al-hawiyah

$422 37.7%

Bansko

$364 37.6% 13.7% $58

Groceries & Markets

Al-hawiyah

$217 19.3%

Bansko

$193 19.9% 10.9% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Al-hawiyah

$161 14.4%

Bansko

$119 12.3% 26% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Al-hawiyah

$101 9%

Bansko

$43 4.4% 57.5% $58

Eating Out

Al-hawiyah

$91 8.2%

Bansko

$147 15.2% 61.3% $56

Clothing & Footwear

Al-hawiyah

$72 6.5%

Bansko

$65 6.7% 10.8% $7.8

Getting Around

Al-hawiyah

$57 5.1%

Bansko

$37 3.8% 34.9% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $635 in Al-hawiyah and $510 in Bansko. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $26 in Al-hawiyah vs $45 in Bansko. Groceries flip the comparison at $217 vs $193, with Bansko cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Al-hawiyah

🇧🇬 Bansko

🕒 Local time

16:24 4:24 PM

15:24 3:24 PM

1 h behind Al-hawiyah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

148,151

8,000

💱 Currency

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.512 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BGN, USD, EUR to SAR – Saudi Riyal Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇦 Saudi Riyal (ر.س)

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.22 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 EUR).

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BGN (1 BGN = 0.575 USD). 1 EUR = 1.95 BGN (1 BGN = 0.512 EUR).

USD to SAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Al-hawiyah Bansko 2,770 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Al-hawiyah
Bansko

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Al-hawiyah vs Bansko: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,121 in Al-hawiyah and $968 in Bansko, so Bansko is about 14% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,682 in Al-hawiyah and $1,452 in Bansko to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $635 in Al-hawiyah versus $510 in Bansko. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Al-hawiyah – a meal for two runs $26 versus $45 in Bansko. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,121 per month in Al-hawiyah versus $968 in Bansko – Bansko is about 14% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.