Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kazan and Sofia

For one person, living is cheaper in Kazan: $1,335 a month against $1,585 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

Kazan, Russia
Sofia, Bulgaria
Kazan
🇷🇺 Russia
$1,335
/mo nomad
Sofia
🇧🇬 Bulgaria
$1,585
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,335 in Kazan versus $1,585 in Sofia.

  • Kazan $1,335
  • Sofia $1,585

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,021 in Kazan versus $2,486 in Sofia.

  • Kazan $2,021
  • Sofia $2,486

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,707 in Kazan versus $3,387 in Sofia.

  • Kazan $2,707
  • Sofia $3,387

Living in Kazan costs roughly 16% less than in Sofia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Kazan
Sofia
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$18.69 ₽1,524
$16.57 BGN 28.84
12.79%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$36.60 ₽2,985
$67.7 BGN 118
-45.92%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$5.60 ₽457
$11.68 BGN 20.33
-52.05%
Cappuccino
$3.26 ₽266
$3.41 BGN 5.93
-4.40%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.47 ₽120
$2.36 BGN 4.11
-37.71%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.56 ₽45.85
$1.67 BGN 2.91
-66.47%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.82 ₽148
$3.99 BGN 6.94
-54.39%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.40 ₽196
$4.53 BGN 7.88
-47.02%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Kazan
Sofia
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.12 ₽91.0
$1.94 BGN 3.38
-42.27%
White Bread (500g)
$0.75 ₽61.0
$1.55 BGN 2.70
-51.61%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.64 ₽134
$2.35 BGN 4.09
-30.21%
Eggs
$1.65 ₽134
$4.60 BGN 8.00
-64.13%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$11.62 ₽947
$11.47 BGN 19.96
1.31%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$4.80 ₽391
$8.65 BGN 15.04
-44.51%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$10.79 ₽880
$17.34 BGN 30.17
-37.77%
Apples (1kg)
$1.84 ₽150
$2.15 BGN 3.73
-14.42%
Banana (1kg)
$1.86 ₽152
$1.98 BGN 3.45
-6.06%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.74 ₽142
$1.83 BGN 3.18
-4.92%
Tomato (1kg)
$3.36 ₽274
$4.27 BGN 7.43
-21.31%
Potato (1kg)
$0.90 ₽73.8
$1.04 BGN 1.82
-13.46%
Onion (1kg)
$0.41 ₽33.74
$0.89 BGN 1.54
-53.93%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.45 ₽119
$1.19 BGN 2.06
21.85%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.75 ₽61.1
$0.83 BGN 1.45
-9.64%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.00 ₽245
$4.40 BGN 7.66
-31.82%
Wine (Bottle)
$9.64 ₽786
$7.42 BGN 12.91
29.92%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.25 ₽102
$1.16 BGN 2.01
7.76%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.93 ₽158
$1.90 BGN 3.30
1.58%
🚌 Getting Around
Kazan
Sofia
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.59 ₽47.77
$0.92 BGN 1.60
-35.87%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$30.30 ₽2,472
$28.11 BGN 48.91
7.79%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.45 ₽118
$1.67 BGN 2.90
-13.17%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.52 ₽42.75
$0.85 BGN 1.49
-38.82%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$7.48 ₽610
$16.59 BGN 28.87
-54.91%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$0.88 ₽71.6
$1.74 BGN 3.03
-49.43%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$53.6K ₽4.4M
$29.9K BGN 52.1K
79.17%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$41.9K ₽3.4M
$25.0K BGN 43.5K
67.65%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Kazan
Sofia
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$131 ₽10.7K
$158 BGN 275
-16.96%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$6.12 ₽499
$21.27 BGN 37.01
-71.23%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$6.89 ₽562
$15.12 BGN 26.30
-54.43%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Kazan
Sofia
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$37.72 ₽3,077
$46.85 BGN 81.5
-19.49%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$31.35 ₽2,557
$27.82 BGN 48.41
12.69%
Cinema Ticket
$6.01 ₽490
$10.00 BGN 17.39
-39.90%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Kazan
Sofia
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$292 ₽23.8K
$815 BGN 1,419
-64.19%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$6,702 ₽546.7K
$14.6K BGN 25.5K
-54.23%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Kazan
Sofia
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$94.8 ₽7,733
$87.1 BGN 152
8.88%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$93.9 ₽7,654
$38.28 BGN 66.6
145.17%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$109 ₽8,914
$106 BGN 184
3.49%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$81.5 ₽6,645
$107 BGN 187
-23.99%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Kazan
Sofia
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$685 ₽55.9K
$769 BGN 1,338
-10.86%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$492 ₽40.1K
$593 BGN 1,032
-17.11%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,138 ₽92.8K
$1,530 BGN 2,662
-25.58%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$818 ₽66.7K
$1,061 BGN 1,846
-22.85%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,576 ₽373.2K
$4,526 BGN 7,875
1.10%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,425 ₽197.8K
$3,109 BGN 5,410
-22.01%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Kazan
Sofia
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$997 ₽81.3K
$1,780 BGN 3,098
-44.01%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
20.8
2.89
619.72%

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

Last update for Kazan: November 3, 2026

Last update for Sofia: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Kazan
$492
Sofia
$593 20.6% $101
Eating Out
Kazan
$227
Sofia
$254 11.5% $26
Groceries & Markets
Kazan
$215
Sofia
$288 34% $73
Clothing & Footwear
Kazan
$171
Sofia
$152 10.9% $19
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Kazan
$144
Sofia
$194 34.8% $50
Sport & Entertainment
Kazan
$50
Sofia
$67 34.4% $17
Getting Around
Kazan
$37
Sofia
$38 2.7% $1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $685 in Kazan and $769 in Sofia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sofia pays 79% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $37 in Kazan vs $68 in Sofia for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $215 vs $288 per month, with Kazan cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇷🇺 Kazan
🇧🇬 Sofia
🕒 Local time
07:34 7:34 AM
06:34 6:34 AM
1 h behind Kazan
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
1,257,341
1,286,383 Capital
💱 Currency
Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.
Exchange rates and currency converter

BGN, USD, EUR to RUB – Russian Ruble Converter

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 81.56 RUB (100 RUB = 1.23 USD). 1 EUR = 91.56 RUB (100 RUB = 1.09 EUR).

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BGN (1 BGN = 0.575 USD). 1 EUR = 1.95 BGN (1 BGN = 0.512 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Kazan Sofia 2,350 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Kazan
  • Sofia

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated March 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.
Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index
Kazan vs Sofia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Kazan and in Sofia?
Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,335 in Kazan and $1,585 in Sofia, so Kazan is about 16% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city has better-paying jobs?
On paper, salaries run 44% lower in Kazan. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.
How do apartment prices compare in Kazan and in Sofia?
Rent for a central apartment: $685 in Kazan versus $769 in Sofia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
Which city has cheaper restaurants?
Dining out is cheaper in Kazan – a meal for two runs $37 versus $68 in Sofia. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.
Which city is more expensive overall: Kazan or Sofia?
All in, you’ll spend $1,335 per month in Kazan versus $1,585 in Sofia – Kazan is about 16% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.
How far does $2,000 go in Kazan compared to Sofia?
Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Kazan gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.
How does quality of life compare between Kazan and Sofia?
Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.
Is Kazan or Sofia safer for residents?
Safety-wise, Kazan and Sofia are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.
How do I decide between Kazan and Sofia?
It comes down to priorities – Kazan wins on affordability, Sofia on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.

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