Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Durres and Sofia

For one person, living is cheaper in Durres: $1,138 a month against $1,594 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

55

Cost of Living Index in Durres
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Durres Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
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Sofia Living Index

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Durres

🇦🇱 Albania

$1,138

/mo nomad

Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,594

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,138 in Durres versus $1,594 in Sofia.

Durres $1,138
Sofia $1,594

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,733 in Durres versus $2,478 in Sofia.

Durres $1,733
Sofia $2,478

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,329 in Durres versus $3,361 in Sofia.

Durres $2,329
Sofia $3,361

Living in Durres costs roughly 29% less than in Sofia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Durres is 16% below, Sofia is 18% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.51 ALL 846

$16.87 BGN 29.35

-37.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.27 ALL 3,001

$65.8 BGN 115

-43.37%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.18 ALL 820

$11.32 BGN 19.69

-10.07%

Cappuccino

$1.98 ALL 160

$3.43 BGN 5.98

-42.27%

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

$2.04 ALL 164

$2.41 BGN 4.19

-15.35%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.05 ALL 84.2

$1.85 BGN 3.22

-43.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.98 ALL 240

$3.70 BGN 6.44

-19.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.23 ALL 340

$4.58 BGN 7.97

-7.64%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.11 ALL 170

$2.02 BGN 3.51

4.46%

White Bread (500g)

$1.07 ALL 86.2

$1.56 BGN 2.72

-31.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.37 ALL 190

$2.33 BGN 4.05

1.72%

Eggs

$3.69 ALL 297

$4.36 BGN 7.59

-15.37%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.79 ALL 1,030

$11.76 BGN 20.47

8.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.64 ALL 615

$8.83 BGN 15.37

-13.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.57 ALL 1,173

$17.46 BGN 30.38

-16.55%

Apples (1kg)

$1.15 ALL 93.0

$2.15 BGN 3.74

-46.51%

Banana (1kg)

$2.38 ALL 192

$1.98 BGN 3.44

20.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.54 ALL 124

$1.93 BGN 3.37

-20.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.31 ALL 106

$4.24 BGN 7.37

-69.10%

Potato (1kg)

$0.92 ALL 74.0

$1.04 BGN 1.80

-11.54%

Onion (1kg)

$0.94 ALL 76.1

$0.85 BGN 1.48

10.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 ALL 101

$1.15 BGN 2.00

8.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.70 ALL 56.7

$0.89 BGN 1.56

-21.35%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.24 ALL 341

$4.21 BGN 7.33

0.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.01 ALL 887

$7.46 BGN 12.98

47.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.50 ALL 121

$1.15 BGN 2.01

30.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 ALL 166

$1.85 BGN 3.23

11.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.48 ALL 38.53

$0.87 BGN 1.51

-44.83%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.19 ALL 1,545

$28.53 BGN 49.65

-32.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.57 ALL 287

$1.68 BGN 2.93

112.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.47 ALL 199

$0.94 BGN 1.63

162.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.35 BGN 26.70

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.18 ALL 176

$1.69 BGN 2.94

28.99%

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

$16.1K ALL 1.3M

$29.8K BGN 51.9K

-46.08%

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

$26.1K BGN 45.5K

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

$93.6 ALL 7,534

$156 BGN 272

-40.06%

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

$16.62 ALL 1,338

$21.56 BGN 37.52

-22.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.68 ALL 1,343

$15.24 BGN 26.51

9.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.50 ALL 3,262

$46.08 BGN 80.2

-12.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$61.3 ALL 4,932

$27.92 BGN 48.58

119.38%

Cinema Ticket

$7.48 ALL 602

$10.18 BGN 17.72

-26.52%

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

$183 ALL 14.7K

$774 BGN 1,347

-76.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,590 ALL 369.6K

$12.8K BGN 22.3K

-64.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$39.06 ALL 3,146

$89.9 BGN 157

-56.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.02 ALL 3,303

$41.29 BGN 71.8

-0.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.4 ALL 7,195

$105 BGN 183

-15.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 ALL 12.8K

$107 BGN 186

49.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$444 ALL 35.8K

$783 BGN 1,362

-43.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$336 ALL 27.0K

$597 BGN 1,038

-43.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$690 ALL 55.6K

$1,516 BGN 2,638

-54.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$469 ALL 37.8K

$1,030 BGN 1,792

-54.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,774 ALL 142.9K

$4,350 BGN 7,568

-59.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,154 ALL 92.9K

$3,177 BGN 5,528

-63.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$940 ALL 75.7K

$1,735 BGN 3,019

-45.81%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.25

2.89

81.66%

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

Last update for Durres: October 12, 2026

Last update for Sofia: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Durres

$336 29.5%

Sofia

$597 37.4% 77.8% $261

Groceries & Markets

Durres

$261 22.9%

Sofia

$290 18.2% 11.4% $30

Eating Out

Durres

$174 15.3%

Sofia

$255 16% 46.3% $81

Clothing & Footwear

Durres

$148 13%

Sofia

$154 9.7% 4.4% $6.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Durres

$127 11.2%

Sofia

$193 12.1% 52.1% $66

Sport & Entertainment

Durres

$55 4.9%

Sofia

$66 4.2% 19.8% $11

Getting Around

Durres

$37 3.3%

Sofia

$38 2.4% 3.7% $1.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $444 in Durres and $783 in Sofia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sofia 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: $37.00 in Durres vs $66.0 in Sofia for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $261 vs $290 per month, with Durres cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇱 Durres

🇧🇬 Sofia

🕒 Local time

07:33 7:33 AM

08:33 8:33 AM

1 h ahead of Durres

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

175,110

1,286,383 Capital

💱 Currency

Albanian Lek ALL L

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

100 ALL = 1.24 USD

100 ALL = 1.1 EUR

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BGN, USD, EUR to ALL – Albanian Lek Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇱 Albanian Lek (L)

Albanian Lek exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 80.53 ALL (100 ALL = 1.24 USD). 1 EUR = 90.53 ALL (100 ALL = 1.1 EUR).

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BGN (1 BGN = 0.575 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.511 EUR).

USD to ALL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Durres Sofia 360 km

From you

Durres
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

Durres vs Sofia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Durres wins on cost – living expenses run 40% lower than in Sofia. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Durres the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 85% lower in Sofia. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $444 in Durres versus $783 in Sofia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,138 per month in Durres versus $1,594 in Sofia – a 40% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Durres runs roughly 49% less than in Sofia. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,138 in Durres versus $1,594 in Sofia, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Durres but tight or insufficient in Sofia. The gap between the two cities makes Durres the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Durres delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,138 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Durres hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Durres 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 Durres gentler on the wallet – expenses run 40% less than in Sofia. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.