Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Jeddah and Sofia

For one person, living is cheaper in Jeddah: $1,374 a month against $1,594 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $2,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

67

Cost of Living Index in Jeddah
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Jeddah Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
Learn more

Sofia Living Index

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Jeddah

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,374

/mo nomad

Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,594

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,374 per month in Jeddah vs $1,594 in Sofia, rent included.

Jeddah $1,374
Sofia $1,594

A couple spends around $2,148 per month in Jeddah vs $2,478 in Sofia, rent included.

Jeddah $2,148
Sofia $2,478

A family of three spends $2,922 per month in Jeddah vs $3,361 in Sofia, rent included.

Jeddah $2,922
Sofia $3,361

Jeddah is about 14% cheaper than Sofia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Jeddah and Sofia sit above the global median – Jeddah by 2%, Sofia by 18%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.04 SAR 22.67

$16.87 BGN 29.35

-64.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$80.3 SAR 301

$65.8 BGN 115

22.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 SAR 35.65

$11.32 BGN 19.69

-16.08%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.38 SAR 8.95

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 SAR 9.88

Cappuccino

$3.73 SAR 13.98

$3.43 BGN 5.98

8.75%

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

$0.97 SAR 3.62

$2.41 BGN 4.19

-59.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.26 SAR 0.98

$1.85 BGN 3.22

-85.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 BGN 6.44

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.58 BGN 7.97

Milk (1 liter)

$1.68 SAR 6.32

$2.02 BGN 3.51

-16.83%

White Bread (500g)

$1.26 SAR 4.71

$1.56 BGN 2.72

-19.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.34 SAR 8.76

$2.33 BGN 4.05

0.43%

Eggs

$2.43 SAR 9.13

$4.36 BGN 7.59

-44.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.36 SAR 23.88

$11.76 BGN 20.47

-45.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.30 SAR 31.14

$8.83 BGN 15.37

-6.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.23 SAR 49.66

$17.46 BGN 30.38

-24.23%

Apples (1kg)

$2.13 SAR 7.98

$2.15 BGN 3.74

-0.93%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 SAR 6.33

$1.98 BGN 3.44

-14.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.62 SAR 6.07

$1.93 BGN 3.37

-16.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.69 SAR 6.32

$4.24 BGN 7.37

-60.14%

Potato (1kg)

$1.12 SAR 4.22

$1.04 BGN 1.80

7.69%

Onion (1kg)

$1.26 SAR 4.71

$0.85 BGN 1.48

48.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 SAR 4.01

$1.15 BGN 2.00

-6.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 SAR 1.99

$0.89 BGN 1.56

-40.45%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$4.21 SAR 15.81

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 SAR 6.59

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.49 SAR 9.36

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.71 SAR 25.17

$4.21 BGN 7.33

59.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.46 BGN 12.98

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 BGN 2.01

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 BGN 3.23

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.96 SAR 3.61

$0.87 BGN 1.51

10.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$55.4 SAR 208

$28.53 BGN 49.65

94.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.16 SAR 11.85

$1.68 BGN 2.93

88.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.76 SAR 6.62

$0.94 BGN 1.63

87.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.90 SAR 52.2

$15.35 BGN 26.70

-9.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.64 SAR 2.41

$1.69 BGN 2.94

-62.13%

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

$47.3K SAR 177.3K

$29.8K BGN 51.9K

58.57%

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

$22.0K SAR 82.4K

$26.1K BGN 45.5K

-16.00%

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

$90.4 SAR 339

$156 BGN 272

-42.09%

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

$38.29 SAR 144

$21.56 BGN 37.52

77.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$68.0 SAR 255

$15.24 BGN 26.51

346.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$78.0 SAR 293

$46.08 BGN 80.2

69.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$38.19 SAR 143

$27.92 BGN 48.58

36.78%

Cinema Ticket

$11.91 SAR 44.69

$10.18 BGN 17.72

16.99%

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

$769 SAR 2,887

$774 BGN 1,347

-0.64%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.7K SAR 62.8K

$12.8K BGN 22.3K

30.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.4 SAR 272

$89.9 BGN 157

-19.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.1 SAR 211

$41.29 BGN 71.8

35.89%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.9 SAR 375

$105 BGN 183

-5.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.6 SAR 351

$107 BGN 186

-12.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$789 SAR 2,961

$783 BGN 1,362

0.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$532 SAR 1,998

$597 BGN 1,038

-10.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,427 SAR 5,356

$1,516 BGN 2,638

-5.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$832 SAR 3,121

$1,030 BGN 1,792

-19.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,767 SAR 6,631

$4,350 BGN 7,568

-59.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,143 SAR 4,290

$3,177 BGN 5,528

-64.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,665 SAR 6,248

$1,735 BGN 3,019

-4.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.39

2.89

86.51%

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

Last update for Jeddah: 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

Jeddah

$532 38.7%

Sofia

$597 37.4% 12.1% $64

Groceries & Markets

Jeddah

$201 14.6%

Sofia

$290 18.2% 44.6% $90

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Jeddah

$197 14.3%

Sofia

$193 12.1% 1.9% $3.8

Clothing & Footwear

Jeddah

$145 10.5%

Sofia

$154 9.7% 6.5% $9.5

Eating Out

Jeddah

$126 9.2%

Sofia

$255 16% 102% $128

Sport & Entertainment

Jeddah

$102 7.4%

Sofia

$66 4.2% 34.7% $35

Getting Around

Jeddah

$71 5.2%

Sofia

$38 2.4% 46.1% $33

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $789 in Jeddah 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 4% higher in Sofia, 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 $80.0 in Jeddah versus $66.0 in Sofia. Groceries tell a different story – $201 in Jeddah vs $290 in Sofia – so Jeddah wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Jeddah

🇧🇬 Sofia

🕒 Local time

13:47 1:47 PM

Same time as Jeddah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,430,697

1,286,383 Capital

💱 Currency

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BGN, USD, EUR to SAR – Saudi Riyal Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇦 Saudi Riyal (ر.س)

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.22 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 EUR).

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BGN (1 BGN = 0.575 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.511 EUR).

USD to SAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Jeddah Sofia 2,770 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Jeddah
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

Jeddah vs Sofia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,374 in Jeddah, $1,594 in Sofia – roughly 16% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,062 per month in Jeddah 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 Jeddah, 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 $80.0 in Jeddah and $66.0 in Sofia. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,374 in Jeddah and $1,594 in Sofia. That's a gap of about 16%.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Jeddah, where all-in costs run around $1,374, than in Sofia at $1,594. In Jeddah 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 $1,374 in Jeddah to $1,594 in Sofia. 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 Jeddah. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Sofia makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.