Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cardiff and Sofia

For one person, living is cheaper in Sofia: $1,589 a month against $2,463 in Cardiff, rent and utilities included – about $10,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

119

Cost of Living Index in Cardiff
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Cardiff Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
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Sofia Living Index

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Cardiff

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,463

/mo nomad

Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,589

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,463 in Cardiff versus $1,589 in Sofia.

Cardiff $2,463
Sofia $1,589

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,467 in Cardiff versus $2,456 in Sofia.

Cardiff $3,467
Sofia $2,456

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,470 in Cardiff versus $3,324 in Sofia.

Cardiff $4,470
Sofia $3,324

Living in Cardiff is roughly 55% more expensive than in Sofia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Cardiff 84% above, Sofia 19% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.59 £14.80

$17.10 BGN 29.93

14.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$82.6 £62.4

$66.9 BGN 117

23.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.73 £8.11

$11.77 BGN 20.59

-8.84%

Cappuccino

$4.60 £3.47

$3.42 BGN 5.99

34.50%

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

$2.98 £2.25

$2.42 BGN 4.23

23.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.00 £1.51

$1.86 BGN 3.26

7.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.79 £5.88

$3.33 BGN 5.83

133.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.42 £4.85

$4.53 BGN 7.92

41.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 £1.30

$1.92 BGN 3.36

-10.42%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 £1.11

$1.51 BGN 2.64

-2.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.25 £1.70

$2.21 BGN 3.88

1.81%

Eggs

$3.72 £2.81

$4.40 BGN 7.69

-15.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.18 £6.93

$11.56 BGN 20.22

-20.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.75 £6.61

$8.79 BGN 15.38

-0.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.29 £12.31

$16.97 BGN 29.71

-4.01%

Apples (1kg)

$2.81 £2.12

$2.17 BGN 3.79

29.49%

Banana (1kg)

$1.54 £1.16

$2.04 BGN 3.57

-24.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.98 £2.25

$1.84 BGN 3.22

61.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.65 £2.76

$4.29 BGN 7.51

-14.92%

Potato (1kg)

$1.90 £1.43

$1.03 BGN 1.80

84.47%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 £1.12

$0.93 BGN 1.62

59.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.11 £0.84

$1.20 BGN 2.11

-7.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 £1.23

$0.92 BGN 1.62

77.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.34 £17.64

$4.30 BGN 7.53

442.79%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.17 £8.44

$7.33 BGN 12.83

52.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.11 £2.35

$1.18 BGN 2.06

163.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.33 £2.52

$1.87 BGN 3.28

78.07%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.30 £2.50

$0.87 BGN 1.52

279.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$78.6 £59.4

$28.14 BGN 49.24

179.35%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.56 £3.45

$1.74 BGN 3.04

162.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.74 £1.31

$0.96 BGN 1.68

81.25%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.83 £27.08

$15.54 BGN 27.19

130.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.14 £1.62

$1.79 BGN 3.14

19.55%

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

$37.8K £28.6K

$30.0K BGN 52.5K

26.21%

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

$41.3K £31.2K

$26.4K BGN 46.1K

56.46%

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

$343 £259

$156 BGN 273

120.14%

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

$25.85 £19.54

$21.21 BGN 37.11

21.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.60 £32.95

$15.64 BGN 27.37

178.77%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.02 £28.73

$46.76 BGN 81.8

-18.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.52 £8.70

$27.74 BGN 48.54

-58.47%

Cinema Ticket

$10.65 £8.05

$10.02 BGN 17.53

6.29%

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

$1,978 £1,495

$766 BGN 1,341

158.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$32.8K £24.8K

$12.8K BGN 22.4K

156.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$100 £75.6

$89.7 BGN 157

11.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.31 £35.75

$40.88 BGN 71.5

15.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$120 £90.6

$106 BGN 186

13.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$99.3 £75.0

$105 BGN 183

-5.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,158 £875

$796 BGN 1,393

45.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,097 £829

$607 BGN 1,063

80.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,185 £1,651

$1,563 BGN 2,735

39.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,514 £1,144

$1,060 BGN 1,855

42.75%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,353 £4,045

$4,357 BGN 7,626

22.84%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,479 £2,629

$3,250 BGN 5,688

7.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,223 £2,435

$1,740 BGN 3,044

85.24%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.11

2.89

76.82%

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

Last update for Cardiff: October 3, 2026

Last update for Sofia: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cardiff

$1.1K 44.6%

Sofia

$607 37.9% 44.6% $490

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cardiff

$413 16.8%

Sofia

$193 12% 53.3% $220

Eating Out

Cardiff

$316 12.8%

Sofia

$256 16% 18.9% $60

Groceries & Markets

Cardiff

$307 12.5%

Sofia

$287 17.9% 6.3% $19

Clothing & Footwear

Cardiff

$165 6.7%

Sofia

$154 9.6% 6.9% $11

Getting Around

Cardiff

$105 4.3%

Sofia

$38 2.4% 63.7% $67

Sport & Entertainment

Cardiff

$59 2.4%

Sofia

$67 4.2% 12.6% $7.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,158 in Cardiff and $796 in Sofia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cardiff pays 85% 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: $83.0 in Cardiff vs $67.0 in Sofia for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $307 vs $287 per month, with Sofia cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Cardiff

🇧🇬 Sofia

🕒 Local time

06:18 6:18 AM

08:18 8:18 AM

2 h ahead of Cardiff

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

346,100

1,286,383 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

1 BGN = 0.571 USD

1 BGN = 0.509 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BGN, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.75 BGN (1 BGN = 0.571 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.509 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cardiff Sofia 2,210 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Cardiff
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

Cardiff vs Sofia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cardiff and Sofia differ by about 55% in total monthly costs ($2,463 vs $1,589 including rent). Sofia is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 85% higher in Cardiff, 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: $1,158 in Cardiff versus $796 in Sofia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Sofia – a meal for two runs $67.0 versus $83.0 in Cardiff. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,463 per month in Cardiff versus $1,589 in Sofia – a 55% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,589 in Sofia versus $2,463 in Cardiff, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Sofia but tight or insufficient in Cardiff. The gap between the two cities makes Sofia the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Safety-wise, Cardiff 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 55% less than in Cardiff. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.