Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hawassa and Sofia

For one person, living is cheaper in Hawassa: $838 a month against $1,585 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $9,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

40

Cost of Living Index in Hawassa
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Hawassa Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
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Sofia Living Index

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Hawassa

🇪🇹 Ethiopia

$838

/mo nomad

Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,585

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $838 per month in Hawassa vs $1,585 in Sofia, rent included.

Hawassa $838
Sofia $1,585

A couple spends around $1,202 per month in Hawassa vs $2,486 in Sofia, rent included.

Hawassa $1,202
Sofia $2,486

A family of three spends $1,566 per month in Hawassa vs $3,387 in Sofia, rent included.

Hawassa $1,566
Sofia $3,387

Hawassa is about 47% cheaper than Sofia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Hawassa sits 38% below the global median, while Sofia is 17% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.88 ETB 625

$16.57 BGN 28.84

-76.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.15 ETB 6,777

$67.7 BGN 118

-37.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.60 ETB 1,061

$11.68 BGN 20.33

-43.49%

Cappuccino

$0.88 ETB 142

$3.41 BGN 5.93

-74.19%

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

$0.63 ETB 101

$2.36 BGN 4.11

-73.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.68 ETB 109

$1.67 BGN 2.91

-59.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.78 ETB 125

$3.99 BGN 6.94

-80.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.21 ETB 355

$4.53 BGN 7.88

-51.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.05 ETB 169

$1.94 BGN 3.38

-45.88%

White Bread (500g)

$1.17 ETB 189

$1.55 BGN 2.70

-24.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.03 ETB 165

$2.35 BGN 4.09

-56.17%

Eggs

$1.58 ETB 254

$4.60 BGN 8.00

-65.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.38 ETB 1,186

$11.47 BGN 19.96

-35.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.02 ETB 1,612

$8.65 BGN 15.04

15.84%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.27 ETB 1,491

$17.34 BGN 30.17

-46.54%

Apples (1kg)

$5.23 ETB 841

$2.15 BGN 3.73

143.26%

Banana (1kg)

$0.63 ETB 101

$1.98 BGN 3.45

-68.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.24 ETB 361

$1.83 BGN 3.18

22.40%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.69 ETB 112

$4.27 BGN 7.43

-83.84%

Potato (1kg)

$0.47 ETB 75.0

$1.04 BGN 1.82

-54.81%

Onion (1kg)

$1.09 ETB 175

$0.89 BGN 1.54

22.47%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.66 ETB 106

$1.19 BGN 2.06

-44.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.57 ETB 91.7

$0.83 BGN 1.45

-31.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.91 ETB 1,272

$4.40 BGN 7.66

79.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.65 ETB 908

$7.42 BGN 12.91

-23.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 ETB 108

$1.16 BGN 2.01

-42.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.22 ETB 197

$1.90 BGN 3.30

-35.79%

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)

$1.36 ETB 218

$1.67 BGN 2.90

-18.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.27 ETB 43.39

$0.85 BGN 1.49

-68.24%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.02 ETB 325

$16.59 BGN 28.87

-87.82%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.95 ETB 153

$1.74 BGN 3.03

-45.40%

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

$54.3K ETB 8.7M

$29.9K BGN 52.1K

81.31%

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

$55.5K ETB 8.9M

$25.0K BGN 43.5K

122.04%

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

$205 ETB 33.0K

$158 BGN 275

29.94%

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

$7.48 ETB 1,202

$21.27 BGN 37.01

-64.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$216 ETB 34.8K

$15.12 BGN 26.30

1331.81%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.85 BGN 81.5

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.82 BGN 48.41

Cinema Ticket

$3.81 ETB 613

$10.00 BGN 17.39

-61.90%

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

$616 ETB 99.1K

$815 BGN 1,419

-24.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.4K ETB 4.9M

$14.6K BGN 25.5K

107.79%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$33.38 ETB 5,368

$87.1 BGN 152

-61.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$69.6 ETB 11.2K

$38.28 BGN 66.6

81.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.4 ETB 12.4K

$106 BGN 184

-26.69%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$83.5 ETB 13.4K

$107 BGN 187

-22.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$769 BGN 1,338

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$593 BGN 1,032

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,530 BGN 2,662

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,061 BGN 1,846

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,526 BGN 7,875

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$500 ETB 80.3K

$3,109 BGN 5,410

-83.93%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,780 BGN 3,098

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

18.5

2.89

540.14%

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

Last update for Hawassa: November 1, 2026

Last update for Sofia: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hawassa

$429 51.2%

Sofia

$194 12.3% 54.7% $235

Groceries & Markets

Hawassa

$205 24.5%

Sofia

$288 18.2% 40.2% $83

Clothing & Footwear

Hawassa

$119 14.2%

Sofia

$152 9.6% 28.1% $33

Eating Out

Hawassa

$75 8.9%

Sofia

$254 16% 238% $179

Sport & Entertainment

Hawassa

$7.6 * 0.9%

Sofia

$67 4.2% 777% $59

Getting Around

Hawassa

$2.7 * 0.3%

Sofia

$38 2.4% 1292% $35

Accommodation & Living

Hawassa

- * 0%

Sofia

$593 37.4%

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $42 in Hawassa versus $68 in Sofia. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $205 vs $288 – making Hawassa the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇹 Hawassa

🇧🇬 Sofia

🕒 Local time

20:08 8:08 PM

19:08 7:08 PM

1 h behind Hawassa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

160,000

1,286,383 Capital

💱 Currency

Ethiopian Birr ETB Br

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 ETB = 6.22 USD

1,000 ETB = 5.53 EUR

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BGN, USD, EUR to ETB – Ethiopian Birr Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇹 Ethiopian Birr (Br)

Ethiopian Birr exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 161 ETB (1,000 ETB = 6.22 USD). 1 EUR = 181 ETB (1,000 ETB = 5.53 EUR).

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BGN (1 BGN = 0.575 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.511 EUR).

USD to ETB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Hawassa Sofia 4,230 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Hawassa
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

Hawassa vs Sofia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $838 in Hawassa, $1,585 in Sofia – Hawassa comes out roughly 47% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,258 per month in Hawassa and $2,378 in Sofia. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $42 in Hawassa and $68 in Sofia. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 40% more in Sofia, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Hawassa, where all-in costs run around $838, than in Sofia at $1,585. In Hawassa it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sofia it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Sofia has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $838 in Hawassa to $1,585 in Sofia. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.