Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Portsmouth and Sofia

For one person, living is cheaper in Sofia: $1,594 a month against $2,763 in Portsmouth, rent and utilities included – about $14,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

134

Cost of Living Index in Portsmouth
Learn more

Portsmouth Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
Learn more

Sofia Living Index

Jump to prices

Portsmouth

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,763

/mo nomad

Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,594

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,763 in Portsmouth versus $1,594 in Sofia.

Portsmouth $2,763
Sofia $1,594

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,798 in Portsmouth versus $2,478 in Sofia.

Portsmouth $3,798
Sofia $2,478

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,834 in Portsmouth versus $3,361 in Sofia.

Portsmouth $4,834
Sofia $3,361

Living in Portsmouth is roughly 73% more expensive than in Sofia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Portsmouth 105% above, Sofia 18% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.81 £14.86

$16.87 BGN 29.35

17.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.4 £49.78

$65.8 BGN 115

0.82%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.34 £7.76

$11.32 BGN 19.69

-8.66%

Cappuccino

$4.79 £3.59

$3.43 BGN 5.98

39.65%

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

$2.66 £1.99

$2.41 BGN 4.19

10.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 £1.71

$1.85 BGN 3.22

22.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.18 £4.63

$3.70 BGN 6.44

67.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.83 £4.38

$4.58 BGN 7.97

27.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.41 £1.06

$2.02 BGN 3.51

-30.20%

White Bread (500g)

$1.58 £1.18

$1.56 BGN 2.72

1.28%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.69 £2.77

$2.33 BGN 4.05

58.37%

Eggs

$3.39 £2.55

$4.36 BGN 7.59

-22.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.26 £9.95

$11.76 BGN 20.47

12.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.32 £6.24

$8.83 BGN 15.37

-5.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.02 £9.77

$17.46 BGN 30.38

-25.43%

Apples (1kg)

$3.86 £2.90

$2.15 BGN 3.74

79.53%

Banana (1kg)

$1.91 £1.43

$1.98 BGN 3.44

-3.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.85 £2.14

$1.93 BGN 3.37

47.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.34 £2.51

$4.24 BGN 7.37

-21.23%

Potato (1kg)

$1.65 £1.23

$1.04 BGN 1.80

58.65%

Onion (1kg)

$1.63 £1.23

$0.85 BGN 1.48

91.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.20 £0.90

$1.15 BGN 2.00

4.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.52 £1.14

$0.89 BGN 1.56

70.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.07 £17.31

$4.21 BGN 7.33

447.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.29 £8.47

$7.46 BGN 12.98

51.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.94 £2.21

$1.15 BGN 2.01

155.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 £1.60

$1.85 BGN 3.23

15.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.08 £3.06

$0.87 BGN 1.51

368.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$88.0 £66.0

$28.53 BGN 49.65

208.55%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.16 £3.87

$1.68 BGN 2.93

207.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.60 £1.20

$0.94 BGN 1.63

70.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.02 £15.02

$15.35 BGN 26.70

30.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.08 £1.56

$1.69 BGN 2.94

23.08%

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

$38.6K £29.0K

$29.8K BGN 51.9K

29.63%

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

$40.1K £30.1K

$26.1K BGN 45.5K

53.57%

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

$654 £491

$156 BGN 272

319.28%

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

$14.83 £11.12

$21.56 BGN 37.52

-31.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.05 £31.55

$15.24 BGN 26.51

175.92%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.39 £28.80

$46.08 BGN 80.2

-16.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.15 £12.86

$27.92 BGN 48.58

-38.57%

Cinema Ticket

$10.65 £7.99

$10.18 BGN 17.72

4.62%

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

$1,249 £937

$774 BGN 1,347

61.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$20.0K £15.0K

$12.8K BGN 22.3K

56.51%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.5 £67.9

$89.9 BGN 157

0.61%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.83 £29.88

$41.29 BGN 71.8

-3.54%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.6 £74.0

$105 BGN 183

-6.21%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 £89.8

$107 BGN 186

12.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,457 £1,093

$783 BGN 1,362

86.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,098 £824

$597 BGN 1,038

83.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,091 £1,569

$1,516 BGN 2,638

37.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,714 £1,286

$1,030 BGN 1,792

66.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,504 £3,378

$4,350 BGN 7,568

3.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,703 £2,778

$3,177 BGN 5,528

16.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,350 £2,513

$1,735 BGN 3,019

93.08%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.16

2.89

78.55%

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

Last update for Portsmouth: October 12, 2026

Last update for Sofia: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Portsmouth

$1.1K 39.8%

Sofia

$597 37.4% 45.6% $501

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Portsmouth

$711 25.7%

Sofia

$193 12.1% 72.9% $518

Groceries & Markets

Portsmouth

$310 11.2%

Sofia

$290 18.2% 6.4% $20

Eating Out

Portsmouth

$309 11.2%

Sofia

$255 16% 17.6% $54

Clothing & Footwear

Portsmouth

$157 5.7%

Sofia

$154 9.7% 1.6% $2.5

Getting Around

Portsmouth

$118 4.3%

Sofia

$38 2.4% 67.3% $79

Sport & Entertainment

Portsmouth

$60 2.2%

Sofia

$66 4.2% 11.3% $6.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,457 in Portsmouth and $783 in Sofia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Portsmouth pays 93% 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: $66.0 in Portsmouth vs $66.0 in Sofia. Groceries flip the comparison at $310 vs $290, with Sofia cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Portsmouth

🇧🇬 Sofia

🕒 Local time

23:58 11:58 PM

01:58 1:58 AM

2 h ahead of Portsmouth

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

198,974

1,286,383 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BGN, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BGN (1 BGN = 0.575 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.511 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Portsmouth Sofia 2,050 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Portsmouth
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

Portsmouth vs Sofia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Portsmouth and Sofia differ by about 73% in total monthly costs ($2,763 vs $1,594 including rent). Sofia is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 93% higher in Portsmouth, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,457 in Portsmouth versus $783 in Sofia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 7% higher in Portsmouth. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Sofia – a meal for two runs $66.0 versus $66.0 in Portsmouth. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,594 in Sofia versus $2,763 in Portsmouth, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Sofia but tight or insufficient in Portsmouth. The gap between the two cities makes Sofia 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, Portsmouth 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 Sofia gentler on the wallet – expenses run 73% less than in Portsmouth. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.