Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ilford and Sofia

For one person, living is cheaper in Sofia: $1,594 a month against $2,414 in Ilford, rent and utilities included – about $9,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Ilford
Learn more

Ilford Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
Learn more

Sofia Living Index

Jump to prices

Ilford

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,414

/mo nomad

Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,594

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,414 per month in Ilford vs $1,594 in Sofia, rent included.

Ilford $2,414
Sofia $1,594

A couple spends around $3,764 per month in Ilford vs $2,478 in Sofia, rent included.

Ilford $3,764
Sofia $2,478

A family of three spends $5,115 per month in Ilford vs $3,361 in Sofia, rent included.

Ilford $5,115
Sofia $3,361

Ilford costs about 51% more than Sofia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Ilford and Sofia sit above the global median – Ilford by 79%, Sofia by 18%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.28 £15.97

$16.87 BGN 29.35

26.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$93.9 £70.5

$65.8 BGN 115

42.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.51 £7.89

$11.32 BGN 19.69

-7.16%

Cappuccino

$4.60 £3.45

$3.43 BGN 5.98

34.11%

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

$2.81 £2.11

$2.41 BGN 4.19

16.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 £1.38

$1.85 BGN 3.22

-1.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.91 £5.93

$3.70 BGN 6.44

113.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.43 £4.82

$4.58 BGN 7.97

40.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.64 £1.23

$2.02 BGN 3.51

-18.81%

White Bread (500g)

$1.72 £1.29

$1.56 BGN 2.72

10.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.30 £1.72

$2.33 BGN 4.05

-1.29%

Eggs

$4.60 £3.45

$4.36 BGN 7.59

5.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.46 £7.09

$11.76 BGN 20.47

-19.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.61 £7.21

$8.83 BGN 15.37

8.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.45 £11.59

$17.46 BGN 30.38

-11.51%

Apples (1kg)

$2.94 £2.21

$2.15 BGN 3.74

36.74%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 £1.06

$1.98 BGN 3.44

-28.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.96 £2.22

$1.93 BGN 3.37

53.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.28 £2.46

$4.24 BGN 7.37

-22.64%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 £1.25

$1.04 BGN 1.80

60.58%

Onion (1kg)

$1.77 £1.33

$0.85 BGN 1.48

108.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 £0.96

$1.15 BGN 2.00

11.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 £1.33

$0.89 BGN 1.56

98.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.20 £16.65

$4.21 BGN 7.33

427.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.88 £8.16

$7.46 BGN 12.98

45.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.04 £2.28

$1.15 BGN 2.01

164.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.92 £2.94

$1.85 BGN 3.23

111.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.43 £2.57

$0.87 BGN 1.51

294.25%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$97.6 £73.2

$28.53 BGN 49.65

242.20%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.39 £4.05

$1.68 BGN 2.93

220.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.61 £1.96

$0.94 BGN 1.63

177.66%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$25.45 £19.09

$15.35 BGN 26.70

65.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.11 £1.58

$1.69 BGN 2.94

24.85%

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

$38.9K £29.2K

$29.8K BGN 51.9K

30.68%

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

$40.9K £30.7K

$26.1K BGN 45.5K

56.61%

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

$334 £250

$156 BGN 272

113.69%

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

$18.31 £13.73

$21.56 BGN 37.52

-15.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.86 £30.65

$15.24 BGN 26.51

168.11%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.93 £33.70

$46.08 BGN 80.2

-2.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.92 BGN 48.58

Cinema Ticket

$17.09 £12.82

$10.18 BGN 17.72

67.88%

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

$2,535 £1,902

$774 BGN 1,347

227.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.1K £26.3K

$12.8K BGN 22.3K

173.83%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.0 £66.0

$89.9 BGN 157

-2.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.25 £34.69

$41.29 BGN 71.8

12.01%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.0 £69.8

$105 BGN 183

-11.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$96.2 £72.1

$107 BGN 186

-9.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,350 £1,013

$783 BGN 1,362

72.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 £768

$597 BGN 1,038

71.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,960 £2,221

$1,516 BGN 2,638

95.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,099 £1,575

$1,030 BGN 1,792

103.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,983 £3,738

$4,350 BGN 7,568

14.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,831 £2,874

$3,177 BGN 5,528

20.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,485 £2,614

$1,735 BGN 3,019

100.84%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.04

2.89

74.39%

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

Last update for Ilford: October 10, 2026

Last update for Sofia: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ilford

$1K 42.4%

Sofia

$597 37.4% 41.7% $426

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ilford

$393 16.3%

Sofia

$193 12.1% 50.9% $200

Eating Out

Ilford

$328 13.6%

Sofia

$255 16% 22.3% $73

Groceries & Markets

Ilford

$315 13.1%

Sofia

$290 18.2% 7.8% $25

Clothing & Footwear

Ilford

$146 6%

Sofia

$154 9.7% 6.1% $8.8

Getting Around

Ilford

$130 5.4%

Sofia

$38 2.4% 70.4% $91

Sport & Entertainment

Ilford

$79 3.3%

Sofia

$66 4.2% 16% $13

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,350 in Ilford versus $783 in Sofia. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 101% higher in Ilford, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $94.0 in Ilford versus $66.0 in Sofia. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $315 vs $290 – making Sofia the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Ilford

🇧🇬 Sofia

🕒 Local time

22:02 10:02 PM

00:02 12:02 AM

2 h ahead of Ilford

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

168,168

1,286,383 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 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 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BGN (1 BGN = 0.575 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.511 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ilford Sofia 2,000 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Ilford
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

Ilford vs Sofia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ilford costs about 51% more than Sofia, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,620 per month in Ilford and $2,391 in Sofia. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Groceries cost about 8% more in Ilford, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $94.0 in Ilford and $66.0 in Sofia. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Sofia, where all-in costs run around $1,594, than in Ilford at $2,414. In Sofia it covers expenses comfortably, while in Ilford it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Sofia costs $1,594 versus $2,414 in Ilford. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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 Sofia. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Ilford makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.