Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Aqaba and Sofia

For one person, living is cheaper in Aqaba: $919 a month against $1,585 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $8,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

44

Cost of Living Index in Aqaba
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Aqaba Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
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Sofia Living Index

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Aqaba

🇯🇴 Jordan

$919

/mo nomad

Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,585

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Aqaba 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 Aqaba and in Sofia actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $919 per month in Aqaba vs $1,585 in Sofia, rent included.

Aqaba $919
Sofia $1,585

A couple spends around $1,504 per month in Aqaba vs $2,486 in Sofia, rent included.

Aqaba $1,504
Sofia $2,486

A family of three spends $2,088 per month in Aqaba vs $3,387 in Sofia, rent included.

Aqaba $2,088
Sofia $3,387

Aqaba is about 42% cheaper than Sofia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Aqaba sits 32% below the global median, while Sofia is 17% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.90 JOD 2.05

$16.57 BGN 28.84

-82.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$70.5 JOD 49.93

$67.7 BGN 118

4.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.21 JOD 2.98

$11.68 BGN 20.33

-63.96%

Cappuccino

$4.43 JOD 3.13

$3.41 BGN 5.93

29.91%

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

$0.65 JOD 0.46

$2.36 BGN 4.11

-72.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 JOD 0.38

$1.67 BGN 2.91

-67.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.54 JOD 6.04

$3.99 BGN 6.94

114.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$11.02 JOD 7.80

$4.53 BGN 7.88

143.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.44 JOD 1.02

$1.94 BGN 3.38

-25.77%

White Bread (500g)

$0.51 JOD 0.36

$1.55 BGN 2.70

-67.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.55 JOD 1.10

$2.35 BGN 4.09

-34.04%

Eggs

$1.70 JOD 1.21

$4.60 BGN 8.00

-63.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.57 JOD 3.94

$11.47 BGN 19.96

-51.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.34 JOD 3.08

$8.65 BGN 15.04

-49.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.73 JOD 6.89

$17.34 BGN 30.17

-43.89%

Apples (1kg)

$1.45 JOD 1.03

$2.15 BGN 3.73

-32.56%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 JOD 0.98

$1.98 BGN 3.45

-29.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.04 JOD 0.74

$1.83 BGN 3.18

-43.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.73 JOD 0.52

$4.27 BGN 7.43

-82.90%

Potato (1kg)

$0.74 JOD 0.52

$1.04 BGN 1.82

-28.85%

Onion (1kg)

$0.73 JOD 0.52

$0.89 BGN 1.54

-17.98%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.59 JOD 0.42

$1.19 BGN 2.06

-50.42%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 JOD 0.41

$0.83 BGN 1.45

-30.12%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.90 JOD 2.76

$4.40 BGN 7.66

-11.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$17.22 JOD 12.19

$7.42 BGN 12.91

132.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.75 JOD 1.95

$1.16 BGN 2.01

137.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 JOD 1.77

$1.90 BGN 3.30

31.58%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.92 BGN 1.60

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.11 BGN 48.91

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.51 JOD 0.36

$1.67 BGN 2.90

-69.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.38 JOD 0.98

$0.85 BGN 1.49

62.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.93 JOD 4.90

$16.59 BGN 28.87

-58.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 JOD 1.04

$1.74 BGN 3.03

-16.09%

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

$30.6K JOD 21.7K

$29.9K BGN 52.1K

2.19%

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

$31.3K JOD 22.2K

$25.0K BGN 43.5K

25.32%

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

$136 JOD 96.6

$158 BGN 275

-13.58%

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

$15.27 JOD 10.81

$21.27 BGN 37.01

-28.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.17 JOD 22.77

$15.12 BGN 26.30

112.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.2 JOD 44.73

$46.85 BGN 81.5

34.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.82 BGN 48.41

Cinema Ticket

$11.25 JOD 7.96

$10.00 BGN 17.39

12.50%

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

$544 JOD 385

$815 BGN 1,419

-33.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,805 JOD 1,985

$14.6K BGN 25.5K

-80.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.97 JOD 19.80

$87.1 BGN 152

-67.88%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.90 JOD 30.36

$38.28 BGN 66.6

12.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$42.39 JOD 30.00

$106 BGN 184

-59.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.2 JOD 50.4

$107 BGN 187

-33.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$281 JOD 199

$769 BGN 1,338

-63.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$211 JOD 149

$593 BGN 1,032

-64.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$683 JOD 483

$1,530 BGN 2,662

-55.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$453 JOD 321

$1,061 BGN 1,846

-57.30%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,108 JOD 785

$4,526 BGN 7,875

-75.51%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$561 JOD 397

$3,109 BGN 5,410

-81.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$570 JOD 404

$1,780 BGN 3,098

-67.96%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.94

2.89

140.14%

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

Last update for Aqaba: 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

Aqaba

$211 23%

Sofia

$593 37.4% 181% $382

Groceries & Markets

Aqaba

$190 20.7%

Sofia

$288 18.2% 51.6% $98

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Aqaba

$184 20%

Sofia

$194 12.3% 5.6% $10

Eating Out

Aqaba

$158 17.2%

Sofia

$254 16% 60.1% $95

Sport & Entertainment

Aqaba

$86 9.3%

Sofia

$67 4.2% 22% $19

Clothing & Footwear

Aqaba

$83 9%

Sofia

$152 9.6% 83.3% $69

Getting Around

Aqaba

$7.4 * 0.8%

Sofia

$38 2.4% 408% $30

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $281 in Aqaba 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.

Salaries in Sofia are about 3.1 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $71 in Aqaba versus $68 in Sofia. Groceries tell a different story – $190 in Aqaba vs $288 in Sofia – so Aqaba wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇯🇴 Aqaba

🇧🇬 Sofia

🕒 Local time

01:21 1:21 AM

00:21 12:21 AM

1 h behind Aqaba

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

140,000

1,286,383 Capital

💱 Currency

Jordanian Dinar JOD د.ا

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

1 JOD = 1.41 USD

1 JOD = 1.26 EUR

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.512 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BGN, USD, EUR to JOD – Jordanian Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇴 Jordanian Dinar (د.ا)

Jordanian Dinar exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 0.708 JOD (1 JOD = 1.41 USD). 1 EUR = 0.795 JOD (1 JOD = 1.26 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 JOD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Aqaba Sofia 1,800 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Aqaba
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

Aqaba vs Sofia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Sofia is pricier by about 72%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,379 per month in Aqaba 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 Aqaba, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $281 there versus $769 in Sofia.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $919 in Aqaba and $1,585 in Sofia. That makes Aqaba about 42% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $544 per month in Aqaba and $815 in Sofia. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Families tend to lean toward Aqaba – 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.

If budget matters most, go with Aqaba. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Sofia makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.