Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lusaka and Sofia

For one person, living is cheaper in Lusaka: $889 a month against $1,589 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

43

Cost of Living Index in Lusaka
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Lusaka Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
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Sofia Living Index

Jump to prices

Lusaka

🇿🇲 Zambia

$889

/mo nomad

Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,589

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $889 in Lusaka versus $1,589 in Sofia.

Lusaka $889
Sofia $1,589

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,510 in Lusaka versus $2,456 in Sofia.

Lusaka $1,510
Sofia $2,456

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,131 in Lusaka versus $3,324 in Sofia.

Lusaka $2,131
Sofia $3,324

Living in Lusaka costs roughly 44% less than in Sofia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lusaka is 34% below, Sofia is 19% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.74 ZMW 114

$17.10 BGN 29.93

-66.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$30.85 ZMW 612

$66.9 BGN 117

-53.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.96 ZMW 98.4

$11.77 BGN 20.59

-57.86%

Cappuccino

$2.90 ZMW 57.4

$3.42 BGN 5.99

-15.20%

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

$0.74 ZMW 14.65

$2.42 BGN 4.23

-69.42%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.46 ZMW 9.16

$1.86 BGN 3.26

-75.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.30 ZMW 25.85

$3.33 BGN 5.83

-60.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 ZMW 44.98

$4.53 BGN 7.92

-49.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.76 ZMW 34.83

$1.92 BGN 3.36

-8.33%

White Bread (500g)

$1.18 ZMW 23.41

$1.51 BGN 2.64

-21.85%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.13 ZMW 42.28

$2.21 BGN 3.88

-3.62%

Eggs

$1.92 ZMW 38.15

$4.40 BGN 7.69

-56.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.36 ZMW 205

$11.56 BGN 20.22

-10.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.25 ZMW 124

$8.79 BGN 15.38

-28.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.62 ZMW 131

$16.97 BGN 29.71

-60.99%

Apples (1kg)

$3.48 ZMW 69.0

$2.17 BGN 3.79

60.37%

Banana (1kg)

$2.40 ZMW 47.66

$2.04 BGN 3.57

17.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.59 ZMW 71.1

$1.84 BGN 3.22

95.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.58 ZMW 31.25

$4.29 BGN 7.51

-63.17%

Potato (1kg)

$2.53 ZMW 50.1

$1.03 BGN 1.80

145.63%

Onion (1kg)

$1.81 ZMW 35.93

$0.93 BGN 1.62

94.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ZMW 22.23

$1.20 BGN 2.11

-6.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.79 ZMW 15.68

$0.92 BGN 1.62

-14.13%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.96 ZMW 58.7

$4.30 BGN 7.53

-31.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.26 ZMW 203

$7.33 BGN 12.83

39.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.44 ZMW 28.53

$1.18 BGN 2.06

22.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.35 ZMW 46.63

$1.87 BGN 3.28

25.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.98 ZMW 19.51

$0.87 BGN 1.52

12.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$49.75 ZMW 987

$28.14 BGN 49.24

76.79%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.51 ZMW 49.71

$1.74 BGN 3.04

44.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 ZMW 30.84

$0.96 BGN 1.68

62.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.02 ZMW 99.6

$15.54 BGN 27.19

-67.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.55 ZMW 30.69

$1.79 BGN 3.14

-13.41%

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

$7,507 ZMW 148.9K

$30.0K BGN 52.5K

-74.96%

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

$27.0K ZMW 536.2K

$26.4K BGN 46.1K

2.55%

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

$80.5 ZMW 1,595

$156 BGN 273

-48.41%

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

$10.41 ZMW 207

$21.21 BGN 37.11

-50.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.5 ZMW 1,101

$15.64 BGN 27.37

255.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.5 ZMW 1,100

$46.76 BGN 81.8

18.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.10 ZMW 300

$27.74 BGN 48.54

-45.57%

Cinema Ticket

$6.00 ZMW 119

$10.02 BGN 17.53

-40.12%

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

$139 ZMW 2,748

$766 BGN 1,341

-81.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.7K ZMW 331.0K

$12.8K BGN 22.4K

30.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$23.34 ZMW 463

$89.7 BGN 157

-73.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$15.35 ZMW 304

$40.88 BGN 71.5

-62.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$45.95 ZMW 911

$106 BGN 186

-56.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.3 ZMW 1,433

$105 BGN 183

-30.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$391 ZMW 7,744

$796 BGN 1,393

-50.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$180 ZMW 3,575

$607 BGN 1,063

-70.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,107 ZMW 21.9K

$1,563 BGN 2,735

-29.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$596 ZMW 11.8K

$1,060 BGN 1,855

-43.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,906 ZMW 37.8K

$4,357 BGN 7,626

-56.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,999 ZMW 99.1K

$3,250 BGN 5,688

53.80%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$317 ZMW 6,282

$1,740 BGN 3,044

-81.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.89

903.46%

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

Last update for Lusaka: October 4, 2026

Last update for Sofia: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Lusaka

$239 27.2%

Sofia

$287 17.9% 20% $48

Accommodation & Living

Lusaka

$180 20.5%

Sofia

$607 37.9% 237% $427

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lusaka

$146 16.7%

Sofia

$193 12% 31.7% $46

Eating Out

Lusaka

$111 12.7%

Sofia

$256 16% 130% $145

Clothing & Footwear

Lusaka

$71 8%

Sofia

$154 9.6% 118% $83

Sport & Entertainment

Lusaka

$67 7.7%

Sofia

$67 4.2% 1% $0.7

Getting Around

Lusaka

$64 7.3%

Sofia

$38 2.4% 40.3% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $391 in Lusaka and $796 in Sofia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sofia pays 449% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $31.00 in Lusaka vs $67.0 in Sofia for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $239 vs $287 per month, with Lusaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇲 Lusaka

🇧🇬 Sofia

🕒 Local time

12:03 12:03 PM

13:03 1:03 PM

1 h ahead of Lusaka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,742,979 Capital

1,286,383 Capital

💱 Currency

Zambian Kwacha ZMW ZK

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZMW = 5.04 USD

100 ZMW = 4.5 EUR

1 BGN = 0.571 USD

1 BGN = 0.51 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BGN, USD, EUR to ZMW – Zambian Kwacha Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇲 Zambian Kwacha (ZK)

Zambian Kwacha exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 19.83 ZMW (100 ZMW = 5.04 USD). 1 EUR = 22.22 ZMW (100 ZMW = 4.5 EUR).

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.75 BGN (1 BGN = 0.571 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.51 EUR).

USD to ZMW in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lusaka Sofia 6,480 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Lusaka
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

Lusaka vs Sofia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lusaka and Sofia differ by about 79% in total monthly costs ($889 vs $1,589 including rent). Lusaka is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 449% lower in Sofia. 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: $391 in Lusaka versus $796 in Sofia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $889 per month in Lusaka versus $1,589 in Sofia – a 79% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Lusaka runs roughly 77% less than in Sofia. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $889 in Lusaka versus $1,589 in Sofia, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lusaka but tight or insufficient in Sofia. The gap between the two cities makes Lusaka the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Safety-wise, Lusaka 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.

Expats usually find Lusaka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 79% less than in Sofia. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.