Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Madaba and Sofia

For one person, living is cheaper in Madaba: $767 a month against $1,585 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $9,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

37

Cost of Living Index in Madaba
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Madaba Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
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Sofia Living Index

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Madaba

🇯🇴 Jordan

$767

/mo nomad

Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,585

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $767 per month in Madaba vs $1,585 in Sofia, rent included.

Madaba $767
Sofia $1,585

A couple spends around $1,355 per month in Madaba vs $2,486 in Sofia, rent included.

Madaba $1,355
Sofia $2,486

A family of three spends $1,943 per month in Madaba vs $3,387 in Sofia, rent included.

Madaba $1,943
Sofia $3,387

Madaba is about 52% cheaper than Sofia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Madaba sits 43% below the global median, while Sofia is 17% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.81 JOD 4.11

$16.57 BGN 28.84

-64.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.2 JOD 35.52

$67.7 BGN 118

-25.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.21 JOD 4.40

$11.68 BGN 20.33

-46.83%

Cappuccino

$3.50 JOD 2.48

$3.41 BGN 5.93

2.64%

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

$0.63 JOD 0.45

$2.36 BGN 4.11

-73.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.57 JOD 0.41

$1.67 BGN 2.91

-65.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.29 JOD 3.04

$3.99 BGN 6.94

7.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.90 JOD 4.88

$4.53 BGN 7.88

52.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 JOD 0.99

$1.94 BGN 3.38

-28.35%

White Bread (500g)

$0.70 JOD 0.49

$1.55 BGN 2.70

-54.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.52 JOD 1.08

$2.35 BGN 4.09

-35.32%

Eggs

$1.67 JOD 1.18

$4.60 BGN 8.00

-63.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.32 JOD 3.06

$11.47 BGN 19.96

-62.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.72 JOD 4.05

$8.65 BGN 15.04

-33.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.77 JOD 9.04

$17.34 BGN 30.17

-26.36%

Apples (1kg)

$2.57 JOD 1.82

$2.15 BGN 3.73

19.53%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 JOD 0.98

$1.98 BGN 3.45

-29.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.78 JOD 1.26

$1.83 BGN 3.18

-2.73%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.70 JOD 0.49

$4.27 BGN 7.43

-83.61%

Potato (1kg)

$0.72 JOD 0.51

$1.04 BGN 1.82

-30.77%

Onion (1kg)

$0.69 JOD 0.49

$0.89 BGN 1.54

-22.47%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.36 JOD 0.26

$1.19 BGN 2.06

-69.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 JOD 0.41

$0.83 BGN 1.45

-30.12%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.07 JOD 1.46

$4.40 BGN 7.66

-52.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$20.75 JOD 14.69

$7.42 BGN 12.91

179.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.95 JOD 3.50

$1.16 BGN 2.01

326.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.08 JOD 3.60

$1.90 BGN 3.30

167.37%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 JOD 0.63

$0.92 BGN 1.60

-4.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$70.7 JOD 50.0

$28.11 BGN 48.91

151.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.58 JOD 0.41

$1.67 BGN 2.90

-65.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 JOD 1.02

$0.85 BGN 1.49

69.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.93 JOD 4.91

$16.59 BGN 28.87

-58.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.43 JOD 1.01

$1.74 BGN 3.03

-17.82%

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

$32.8K JOD 23.2K

$29.9K BGN 52.1K

9.46%

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

$33.6K JOD 23.8K

$25.0K BGN 43.5K

34.25%

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

$69.4 JOD 49.08

$158 BGN 275

-56.07%

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

$14.01 JOD 9.92

$21.27 BGN 37.01

-34.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.40 JOD 15.15

$15.12 BGN 26.30

41.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$27.90 JOD 19.75

$46.85 BGN 81.5

-40.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$70.0 JOD 49.54

$27.82 BGN 48.41

151.62%

Cinema Ticket

$11.48 JOD 8.13

$10.00 BGN 17.39

14.80%

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

$42.29 JOD 29.94

$815 BGN 1,419

-94.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,271 JOD 6,562

$14.6K BGN 25.5K

-36.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.7 JOD 45.06

$87.1 BGN 152

-26.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.8 JOD 40.17

$38.28 BGN 66.6

48.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.6 JOD 49.97

$106 BGN 184

-33.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$42.72 JOD 30.24

$107 BGN 187

-60.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$214 JOD 152

$769 BGN 1,338

-72.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$43.02 JOD 30.45

$593 BGN 1,032

-92.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$421 JOD 298

$1,530 BGN 2,662

-72.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$212 JOD 150

$1,061 BGN 1,846

-80.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,526 BGN 7,875

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,109 BGN 5,410

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$487 JOD 344

$1,780 BGN 3,098

-72.67%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.94

2.89

140.14%

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

Last update for Madaba: November 2, 2026

Last update for Sofia: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Madaba

$234 30.5%

Sofia

$288 18.2% 23.1% $54

Eating Out

Madaba

$147 19.2%

Sofia

$254 16% 72.4% $106

Clothing & Footwear

Madaba

$105 13.7%

Sofia

$152 9.6% 44.7% $47

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Madaba

$105 13.7%

Sofia

$194 12.3% 85.4% $89

Getting Around

Madaba

$82 10.7%

Sofia

$38 2.4% 54% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Madaba

$51 6.6%

Sofia

$67 4.2% 31.4% $16

Accommodation & Living

Madaba

$43 5.6%

Sofia

$593 37.4% 1279% $550

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $214 in Madaba versus $769 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 in Sofia are about 3.7 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $50 in Madaba versus $68 in Sofia. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $234 vs $288 – making Madaba the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇯🇴 Madaba

🇧🇬 Sofia

🕒 Local time

21:03 9:03 PM

20:03 8:03 PM

1 h behind Madaba

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

65,000

1,286,383 Capital

💱 Currency

Jordanian Dinar JOD د.ا

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

1 JOD = 1.41 USD

1 JOD = 1.26 EUR

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BGN, USD, EUR to JOD – Jordanian Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇴 Jordanian Dinar (د.ا)

Jordanian Dinar exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 0.708 JOD (1 JOD = 1.41 USD). 1 EUR = 0.795 JOD (1 JOD = 1.26 EUR).

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BGN (1 BGN = 0.575 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.511 EUR).

USD to JOD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Madaba Sofia 1,640 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Madaba
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

Madaba vs Sofia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sofia costs about 107% more than Madaba, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,150 per month in Madaba and $2,378 in Sofia. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Madaba, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $214 there versus $769 in Sofia.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $50 in Madaba and $68 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 $767 in Madaba and $1,585 in Sofia. That makes Madaba about 52% cheaper.

Families tend to lean toward Madaba – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Madaba. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Sofia makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.