Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cham and Bansko

For one person, living is cheaper in Bansko: $965 a month against $3,527 in Cham, rent and utilities included – about $30,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

171

Cost of Living Index in Cham
Learn more

Cham Living Index
47

Cost of Living Index in Bansko
Learn more

Bansko Living Index

Jump to prices

Cham

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,527

/mo nomad

Bansko

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$965

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,527 per month in Cham vs $965 in Bansko, rent included.

Cham $3,527
Bansko $965

A couple spends around $5,432 per month in Cham vs $1,481 in Bansko, rent included.

Cham $5,432
Bansko $1,481

A family of three spends $7,337 per month in Cham vs $1,998 in Bansko, rent included.

Cham $7,337
Bansko $1,998

Cham costs about 266% more than Bansko, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Cham sits 160% above the global median, while Bansko is 29% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$30.40 CHF 25.04

$8.74 BGN 15.20

247.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$122 CHF 101

$46.37 BGN 80.7

163.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$18.19 CHF 14.98

$8.92 BGN 15.52

103.92%

Cappuccino

$6.17 CHF 5.09

$2.27 BGN 3.94

171.81%

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

$5.52 CHF 4.55

$1.57 BGN 2.73

251.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.81 CHF 3.96

$0.89 BGN 1.54

440.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.62 CHF 7.10

$1.73 BGN 3.01

398.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.60 CHF 5.44

$1.95 BGN 3.39

238.46%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.14 CHF 1.76

$1.79 BGN 3.11

19.55%

White Bread (500g)

$3.80 CHF 3.13

$0.81 BGN 1.42

369.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.86 CHF 3.18

$1.51 BGN 2.62

155.63%

Eggs

$7.26 CHF 5.98

$2.35 BGN 4.09

208.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$26.70 CHF 21.99

$9.55 BGN 16.61

179.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$28.37 CHF 23.37

$6.63 BGN 11.54

327.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$42.48 CHF 34.98

$8.37 BGN 14.57

407.53%

Apples (1kg)

$4.22 CHF 3.48

$1.30 BGN 2.26

224.62%

Banana (1kg)

$2.12 CHF 1.75

$1.68 BGN 2.93

26.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.28 CHF 2.70

$1.68 BGN 2.92

95.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.59 CHF 3.78

$1.92 BGN 3.34

139.06%

Potato (1kg)

$2.42 CHF 1.99

$0.94 BGN 1.63

157.45%

Onion (1kg)

$2.16 CHF 1.78

$0.75 BGN 1.31

188.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 CHF 2.03

$0.59 BGN 1.02

316.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 CHF 0.95

$0.58 BGN 1.02

100.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.98 CHF 9.05

$3.26 BGN 5.67

236.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.73 CHF 10.48

$5.20 BGN 9.04

144.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.78 CHF 2.29

$1.14 BGN 1.98

143.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.14 CHF 2.59

$1.74 BGN 3.03

80.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.95 CHF 4.08

$0.90 BGN 1.57

450.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$149 CHF 122

$26.72 BGN 46.50

456.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.29 CHF 4.36

$1.30 BGN 2.26

306.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.40 CHF 2.80

$0.61 BGN 1.06

457.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$61.7 CHF 50.8

$10.29 BGN 17.91

499.32%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.32 CHF 1.91

$1.56 BGN 2.71

48.72%

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

$39.0K CHF 32.1K

$29.1K BGN 50.7K

33.93%

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

$39.1K CHF 32.2K

$21.3K BGN 37.1K

83.08%

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

$279 CHF 230

$92.8 BGN 161

200.60%

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

$30.94 CHF 25.48

$15.05 BGN 26.18

105.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.9 CHF 46.04

$12.19 BGN 21.21

358.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$90.5 CHF 74.5

$32.83 BGN 57.1

175.66%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$49.67 CHF 40.90

$8.40 BGN 14.61

491.31%

Cinema Ticket

$25.71 CHF 21.18

$5.56 BGN 9.67

362.41%

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

$1,791 CHF 1,475

$230 BGN 400

679.71%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$32.2K CHF 26.5K

$2,295 BGN 3,994

1301.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$143 CHF 118

$30.31 BGN 52.7

373.05%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.7 CHF 48.31

$19.41 BGN 33.78

202.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$168 CHF 138

$45.34 BGN 78.9

270.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$253 CHF 208

$48.47 BGN 84.3

420.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,739 CHF 1,432

$514 BGN 894

238.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,475 CHF 1,214

$361 BGN 627

308.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,977 CHF 2,452

$630 BGN 1,096

372.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,600 CHF 2,142

$571 BGN 993

355.67%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$16.9K CHF 13.9K

$1,202 BGN 2,091

1302.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$13.3K CHF 10.9K

$972 BGN 1,691

1266.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,665 BGN 2,898

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.07

2.99

-30.77%

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

Last update for Cham: October 19, 2026

Last update for Bansko: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cham

$1.5K 41.8%

Bansko

$361 37.4% 75.5% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Cham

$604 17.1%

Bansko

$194 20.2% 67.8% $410

Eating Out

Cham

$470 13.3%

Bansko

$146 15.2% 68.9% $323

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cham

$366 10.4%

Bansko

$120 12.5% 67.2% $246

Clothing & Footwear

Cham

$280 7.9%

Bansko

$65 6.7% 76.9% $215

Getting Around

Cham

$191 5.4%

Bansko

$35 3.6% 81.8% $156

Sport & Entertainment

Cham

$142 4%

Bansko

$44 4.6% 69% $98

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,739 in Cham versus $514 in Bansko. 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 $122 in Cham versus $46.00 in Bansko. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $604 vs $194 – making Bansko the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Cham

🇧🇬 Bansko

🕒 Local time

19:39 7:39 PM

20:39 8:39 PM

1 h ahead of Cham

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

17,060

8,000

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BGN, USD, EUR to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.824 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.926 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BGN (1 BGN = 0.575 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.511 EUR).

USD to CHF in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cham Bansko 1,330 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Cham
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

Cham vs Bansko: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $3,527 in Cham, $965 in Bansko – roughly 266% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $5,290 per month in Cham and $1,447 in Bansko. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Bansko, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $122 in Cham and $46.00 in Bansko. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,527 in Cham and $965 in Bansko. That's a gap of about 266%.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Bansko, where all-in costs run around $965, than in Cham at $3,527. In Bansko it covers expenses comfortably, while in Cham it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Bansko has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $965 in Bansko to $3,527 in Cham. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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