Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Brussels and Sofia

For one person, living is cheaper in Sofia: $1,589 a month against $2,552 in Brussels, rent and utilities included – about $11,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

126

Cost of Living Index in Brussels
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Brussels Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
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Sofia Living Index

Jump to prices

Brussels

🇧🇪 Belgium

$2,552

/mo nomad

Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,589

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,552 in Brussels versus $1,589 in Sofia.

Brussels $2,552
Sofia $1,589

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,875 in Brussels versus $2,456 in Sofia.

Brussels $3,875
Sofia $2,456

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,197 in Brussels versus $3,324 in Sofia.

Brussels $5,197
Sofia $3,324

Living in Brussels is roughly 61% more expensive than in Sofia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Brussels 90% above, Sofia 19% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.61 €20.16

$17.10 BGN 29.93

32.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.2 €81.4

$66.9 BGN 117

36.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.21 €13.56

$11.77 BGN 20.59

29.23%

Cappuccino

$4.32 €3.85

$3.42 BGN 5.99

26.32%

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

$3.78 €3.37

$2.42 BGN 4.23

56.20%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.04 €2.71

$1.86 BGN 3.26

63.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.53 €4.93

$3.33 BGN 5.83

66.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.73 €5.11

$4.53 BGN 7.92

26.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.92 BGN 3.36

-31.77%

White Bread (500g)

$2.71 €2.42

$1.51 BGN 2.64

79.47%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.80 €2.50

$2.21 BGN 3.88

26.70%

Eggs

$5.33 €4.75

$4.40 BGN 7.69

21.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.78 €15.86

$11.56 BGN 20.22

53.81%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.11 €11.69

$8.79 BGN 15.38

49.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.01 €19.62

$16.97 BGN 29.71

29.70%

Apples (1kg)

$3.12 €2.78

$2.17 BGN 3.79

43.78%

Banana (1kg)

$2.37 €2.11

$2.04 BGN 3.57

16.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.75 €2.45

$1.84 BGN 3.22

49.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.24 €3.78

$4.29 BGN 7.51

-1.17%

Potato (1kg)

$2.58 €2.30

$1.03 BGN 1.80

150.49%

Onion (1kg)

$2.23 €1.99

$0.93 BGN 1.62

139.78%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.80 €1.60

$1.20 BGN 2.11

50.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 €1.13

$0.92 BGN 1.62

38.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.68 €12.20

$4.30 BGN 7.53

218.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.75 €8.69

$7.33 BGN 12.83

33.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.68 €2.39

$1.18 BGN 2.06

127.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.06 €2.72

$1.87 BGN 3.28

63.64%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.88 €2.57

$0.87 BGN 1.52

231.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$63.1 €56.2

$28.14 BGN 49.24

124.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.86 €2.55

$1.74 BGN 3.04

64.37%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.31 €2.06

$0.96 BGN 1.68

140.63%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.43 €36.05

$15.54 BGN 27.19

160.17%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.15 €1.92

$1.79 BGN 3.14

20.11%

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

$35.1K €31.3K

$30.0K BGN 52.5K

17.05%

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

$33.2K €29.6K

$26.4K BGN 46.1K

25.77%

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

$285 €254

$156 BGN 273

82.94%

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

$21.90 €19.52

$21.21 BGN 37.11

3.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.0 €47.22

$15.64 BGN 27.37

238.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.51 €29.88

$46.76 BGN 81.8

-28.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.85 €24.83

$27.74 BGN 48.54

0.40%

Cinema Ticket

$16.62 €14.82

$10.02 BGN 17.53

65.87%

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

$1,590 €1,418

$766 BGN 1,341

107.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$37.2K €33.1K

$12.8K BGN 22.4K

190.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 €92.6

$89.7 BGN 157

15.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.15 €41.14

$40.88 BGN 71.5

12.89%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 €99.1

$106 BGN 186

4.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$149 €133

$105 BGN 183

42.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,318 €1,175

$796 BGN 1,393

65.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,166 €1,039

$607 BGN 1,063

91.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,442 €2,177

$1,563 BGN 2,735

56.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,980 €1,766

$1,060 BGN 1,855

86.78%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,082 €4,531

$4,357 BGN 7,626

16.62%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,941 €3,514

$3,250 BGN 5,688

21.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,280 €2,924

$1,740 BGN 3,044

88.54%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.71

2.89

28.37%

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

Last update for Brussels: October 5, 2026

Last update for Sofia: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Brussels

$1.2K 44.8%

Sofia

$607 37.9% 47.9% $558

Groceries & Markets

Brussels

$393 15.1%

Sofia

$287 17.9% 26.9% $106

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Brussels

$360 13.8%

Sofia

$193 12% 46.5% $167

Eating Out

Brussels

$345 13.2%

Sofia

$256 16% 25.7% $89

Clothing & Footwear

Brussels

$185 7.1%

Sofia

$154 9.6% 16.8% $31

Getting Around

Brussels

$89 3.4%

Sofia

$38 2.4% 57.1% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Brussels

$67 2.6%

Sofia

$67 4.2% 0% $0

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,318 in Brussels and $796 in Sofia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Brussels pays 89% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $91.0 in Brussels vs $67.0 in Sofia for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $393 vs $287 per month, with Sofia cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇪 Brussels

🇧🇬 Sofia

🕒 Local time

05:06 5:06 AM

06:06 6:06 AM

1 h ahead of Brussels

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

188,137 Capital

1,286,383 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 BGN = 0.571 USD

1 BGN = 0.509 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

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Between locations

Brussels Sofia 1,700 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Brussels
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

Brussels vs Sofia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sofia wins on cost – living expenses run 61% lower than in Brussels. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Sofia the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 89% higher in Brussels, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,318 in Brussels versus $796 in Sofia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 37% higher in Brussels. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Sofia – a meal for two runs $67.0 versus $91.0 in Brussels. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,589 in Sofia versus $2,552 in Brussels, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Sofia but tight or insufficient in Brussels. The gap between the two cities makes Sofia the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Sofia delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,589 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Sofia hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Brussels and Sofia are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Sofia gentler on the wallet – expenses run 61% less than in Brussels. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.