Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Al-Ula and Sofia

For one person, living is cheaper in Al-Ula: $1,230 a month against $1,585 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $4,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

58

Cost of Living Index in Al-Ula
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Al-Ula Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
Learn more

Sofia Living Index

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Al-Ula

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,230

/mo nomad

Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,585

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Al-Ula and in Sofia

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

A single person spends $1,230 per month in Al-Ula vs $1,585 in Sofia, rent included.

Al-Ula $1,230
Sofia $1,585

A couple spends around $1,822 per month in Al-Ula vs $2,486 in Sofia, rent included.

Al-Ula $1,822
Sofia $2,486

A family of three spends $2,414 per month in Al-Ula vs $3,387 in Sofia, rent included.

Al-Ula $2,414
Sofia $3,387

Al-Ula is about 22% cheaper than Sofia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Al-Ula sits 9% below the global median, while Sofia is 17% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.49 SAR 28.12

$16.57 BGN 28.84

-54.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.71 SAR 142

$67.7 BGN 118

-44.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.94 SAR 29.80

$11.68 BGN 20.33

-32.02%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.83 SAR 6.85

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 SAR 8.55

Cappuccino

$3.20 SAR 12.02

$3.41 BGN 5.93

-6.16%

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

$0.88 SAR 3.30

$2.36 BGN 4.11

-62.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.25 SAR 0.94

$1.67 BGN 2.91

-85.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.99 BGN 6.94

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 BGN 7.88

Milk (1 liter)

$1.94 SAR 7.26

$1.94 BGN 3.38

White Bread (500g)

$1.24 SAR 4.64

$1.55 BGN 2.70

-20.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.35 SAR 8.81

$2.35 BGN 4.09

Eggs

$2.43 SAR 9.11

$4.60 BGN 8.00

-47.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.55 SAR 28.35

$11.47 BGN 19.96

-34.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.07 SAR 30.29

$8.65 BGN 15.04

-6.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.55 SAR 47.10

$17.34 BGN 30.17

-27.62%

Apples (1kg)

$2.13 SAR 8.00

$2.15 BGN 3.73

-0.93%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 SAR 5.73

$1.98 BGN 3.45

-22.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.56 SAR 5.86

$1.83 BGN 3.18

-14.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.64 SAR 6.14

$4.27 BGN 7.43

-61.59%

Potato (1kg)

$1.26 SAR 4.74

$1.04 BGN 1.82

21.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.28 SAR 4.79

$0.89 BGN 1.54

43.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.27 SAR 4.77

$1.19 BGN 2.06

6.72%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 SAR 2.05

$0.83 BGN 1.45

-33.73%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$3.01 SAR 11.28

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 SAR 6.63

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.99 SAR 7.47

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.76 SAR 25.38

$4.40 BGN 7.66

53.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.42 BGN 12.91

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 BGN 2.01

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 BGN 3.30

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.07 SAR 4.03

$0.92 BGN 1.60

16.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$37.17 SAR 140

$28.11 BGN 48.91

32.23%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.65 SAR 9.96

$1.67 BGN 2.90

58.68%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 SAR 5.85

$0.85 BGN 1.49

83.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.08 SAR 60.3

$16.59 BGN 28.87

-3.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.69 SAR 2.58

$1.74 BGN 3.03

-60.34%

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

$30.1K SAR 112.9K

$29.9K BGN 52.1K

0.46%

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

$22.0K SAR 82.7K

$25.0K BGN 43.5K

-11.87%

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

$112 SAR 419

$158 BGN 275

-29.32%

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

$32.23 SAR 121

$21.27 BGN 37.01

51.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$74.4 SAR 279

$15.12 BGN 26.30

391.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$83.8 SAR 315

$46.85 BGN 81.5

78.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.82 BGN 48.41

Cinema Ticket

$13.90 SAR 52.2

$10.00 BGN 17.39

39.00%

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

$460 SAR 1,728

$815 BGN 1,419

-43.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.0K SAR 41.3K

$14.6K BGN 25.5K

-24.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$37.58 SAR 141

$87.1 BGN 152

-56.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.7 SAR 213

$38.28 BGN 66.6

48.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.3 SAR 373

$106 BGN 184

-5.99%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.9 SAR 318

$107 BGN 187

-20.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$604 SAR 2,266

$769 BGN 1,338

-21.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$393 SAR 1,474

$593 BGN 1,032

-33.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$900 SAR 3,379

$1,530 BGN 2,662

-41.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$612 SAR 2,296

$1,061 BGN 1,846

-42.34%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,857 SAR 6,969

$4,526 BGN 7,875

-58.97%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,089 SAR 4,088

$3,109 BGN 5,410

-64.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,780 BGN 3,098

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.54

2.89

91.70%

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

Last update for Al-Ula: November 2, 2026

Last update for Sofia: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Al-Ula

$393 31.9%

Sofia

$593 37.4% 51% $200

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Al-Ula

$218 17.7%

Sofia

$194 12.3% 11% $24

Groceries & Markets

Al-Ula

$204 16.6%

Sofia

$288 18.2% 41.3% $84

Eating Out

Al-Ula

$127 10.3%

Sofia

$254 16% 100% $127

Clothing & Footwear

Al-Ula

$125 10.2%

Sofia

$152 9.6% 21.5% $27

Sport & Entertainment

Al-Ula

$112 9.1%

Sofia

$67 4.2% 40.1% $45

Getting Around

Al-Ula

$52 4.2%

Sofia

$38 2.4% 27.3% $14

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $604 in Al-Ula versus $769 in Sofia. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $38 in Al-Ula versus $68 in Sofia. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $204 vs $288 – making Al-Ula the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Al-Ula

🇧🇬 Sofia

🕒 Local time

01:21 1:21 AM

00:21 12:21 AM

1 h behind Al-Ula

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

32,413

1,286,383 Capital

💱 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 5, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.21 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 EUR).

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of November 5, 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-Ula Sofia 2,230 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Al-Ula
Sofia

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-Ula vs Sofia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,230 in Al-Ula, $1,585 in Sofia – Al-Ula comes out roughly 22% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,845 per month in Al-Ula and $2,378 in Sofia. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Al-Ula, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $604 there versus $769 in Sofia.

Kindergarten costs $460 per month in Al-Ula and $815 in Sofia. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 41% more in Sofia, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,230 in Al-Ula and $1,585 in Sofia, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Al-Ula – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.