Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lisbon and Sofia

For one person, living is cheaper in Sofia: $1,609 a month against $2,210 in Lisbon, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
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Lisbon Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
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Sofia Living Index

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Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,210

/mo nomad

Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,609

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,210 in Lisbon versus $1,609 in Sofia.

Lisbon $2,210
Sofia $1,609

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,275 in Lisbon versus $2,495 in Sofia.

Lisbon $3,275
Sofia $2,495

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Lisbon versus $3,381 in Sofia.

Lisbon $4,341
Sofia $3,381

Living in Lisbon is roughly 37% more expensive than in Sofia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lisbon 62% above, Sofia 18% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.65 €14.93

$16.88 BGN 29.53

-1.36%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.7 €55.4

$66.5 BGN 116

-7.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.36 €10.19

$11.59 BGN 20.29

-1.98%

Cappuccino

$2.97 €2.66

$3.52 BGN 6.17

-15.62%

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

$2.29 €2.05

$2.42 BGN 4.23

-5.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 €1.56

$1.77 BGN 3.09

-1.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.05

$3.68 BGN 6.44

-7.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 €2.97

$4.38 BGN 7.66

-24.43%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 €1.04

$1.96 BGN 3.42

-40.82%

White Bread (500g)

$1.91 €1.71

$1.51 BGN 2.64

26.49%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.36

$2.20 BGN 3.85

-31.36%

Eggs

$4.02 €3.61

$4.40 BGN 7.71

-8.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.94 €11.61

$11.76 BGN 20.59

10.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.77 €6.97

$8.68 BGN 15.19

-10.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.93

$17.37 BGN 30.40

2.25%

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$2.13 BGN 3.73

7.98%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 €1.55

$2.05 BGN 3.59

-15.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$1.93 BGN 3.38

-3.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.59 €2.32

$4.17 BGN 7.30

-37.89%

Potato (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$1.08 BGN 1.89

68.52%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$0.91 BGN 1.59

116.48%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.32

$1.18 BGN 2.07

24.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.72 €0.65

$0.84 BGN 1.47

-14.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.58 €5.91

$4.18 BGN 7.32

57.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.03

$7.68 BGN 13.43

-26.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.36 €1.22

$1.17 BGN 2.05

16.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.92

$1.80 BGN 3.16

18.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.33 €2.09

$0.87 BGN 1.52

167.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$44.68 €40.08

$29.06 BGN 50.9

53.75%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 €3.45

$1.68 BGN 2.94

129.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.07 €0.96

$0.87 BGN 1.53

22.99%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.46 €14.77

$15.76 BGN 27.58

4.44%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.97

$1.73 BGN 3.02

27.17%

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

$34.2K €30.7K

$29.7K BGN 51.9K

15.25%

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

$38.7K €34.7K

$25.6K BGN 44.8K

51.37%

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

$161 €145

$161 BGN 282

0.22%

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

$18.41 €16.51

$21.08 BGN 36.89

-12.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.37

$15.19 BGN 26.58

115.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.55 €39.96

$48.34 BGN 84.6

-7.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.10 €17.13

$27.47 BGN 48.07

-30.47%

Cinema Ticket

$9.60 €8.61

$10.16 BGN 17.78

-5.51%

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

$668 €599

$785 BGN 1,374

-14.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K €15.8K

$12.8K BGN 22.3K

38.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.5

$89.8 BGN 157

13.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.46 €39.89

$41.29 BGN 72.3

7.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 €88.4

$108 BGN 188

-8.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$109 BGN 191

13.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,443

$789 BGN 1,381

103.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,190 €1,067

$604 BGN 1,057

97.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,523

$1,517 BGN 2,654

85.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,806

$1,037 BGN 1,814

94.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,839 €7,032

$4,407 BGN 7,712

77.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,576 €4,104

$3,137 BGN 5,490

45.86%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,413

$1,736 BGN 3,038

-9.28%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.85

2.89

33.22%

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

Last update for Lisbon: October 27, 2026

Last update for Sofia: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.8%

Sofia

$604 37.5% 49.3% $586

Groceries & Markets

Lisbon

$272 12.3%

Sofia

$288 17.9% 5.8% $16

Eating Out

Lisbon

$243 11%

Sofia

$256 15.9% 5.5% $13

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lisbon

$212 9.6%

Sofia

$197 12.3% 7.2% $15

Clothing & Footwear

Lisbon

$166 7.5%

Sofia

$157 9.7% 5.6% $9.3

Sport & Entertainment

Lisbon

$64 2.9%

Sofia

$69 4.3% 7.7% $4.9

Getting Around

Lisbon

$63 2.9%

Sofia

$39 2.4% 39% $25

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,608 in Lisbon and $789 in Sofia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sofia pays 10% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $62 in Lisbon vs $66 in Sofia for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $272 vs $288 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🇧🇬 Sofia

🕒 Local time

10:04 10:04 AM

12:04 12:04 PM

2 h ahead of Lisbon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

545,923 Capital

1,286,383 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1 BGN = 0.571 USD

1 BGN = 0.513 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

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Between locations

Lisbon Sofia 2,750 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Lisbon
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

Lisbon vs Sofia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lisbon and Sofia differ by about 37% in total monthly costs ($2,210 vs $1,609 including rent). Sofia is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 9% lower in Lisbon. 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: $1,608 in Lisbon versus $789 in Sofia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $668 in Lisbon versus $785 in Sofia. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 5% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Sofia gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Both work as nomad bases, but Sofia delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,609 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Sofia hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Lisbon 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.