Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Samarkand and Sofia

For one person, living is cheaper in Samarkand: $641 a month against $1,585 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $11,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

30

Cost of Living Index in Samarkand
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Samarkand Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
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Sofia Living Index

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Samarkand

🇺🇿 Uzbekistan

$641

/mo nomad

Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,585

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $641 per month in Samarkand vs $1,585 in Sofia, rent included.

Samarkand $641
Sofia $1,585

A couple spends around $1,014 per month in Samarkand vs $2,486 in Sofia, rent included.

Samarkand $1,014
Sofia $2,486

A family of three spends $1,388 per month in Samarkand vs $3,387 in Sofia, rent included.

Samarkand $1,388
Sofia $3,387

Samarkand is about 60% cheaper than Sofia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Samarkand sits 53% below the global median, while Sofia is 17% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.85 UZS 82.0K

$16.57 BGN 28.84

-58.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.76 UZS 236.6K

$67.7 BGN 118

-70.80%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.68 UZS 56.1K

$11.68 BGN 20.33

-59.93%

Cappuccino

$2.49 UZS 29.8K

$3.41 BGN 5.93

-26.98%

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

$0.79 UZS 9,508

$2.36 BGN 4.11

-66.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.17 UZS 2,032

$1.67 BGN 2.91

-89.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.72 UZS 20.6K

$3.99 BGN 6.94

-56.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 UZS 26.1K

$4.53 BGN 7.88

-51.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.11 UZS 13.3K

$1.94 BGN 3.38

-42.78%

White Bread (500g)

$0.31 UZS 3,770

$1.55 BGN 2.70

-80.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.67 UZS 20.0K

$2.35 BGN 4.09

-28.94%

Eggs

$1.32 UZS 15.8K

$4.60 BGN 8.00

-71.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.01 UZS 95.9K

$11.47 BGN 19.96

-30.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.28 UZS 51.3K

$8.65 BGN 15.04

-50.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.79 UZS 129.2K

$17.34 BGN 30.17

-37.77%

Apples (1kg)

$0.81 UZS 9,759

$2.15 BGN 3.73

-62.33%

Banana (1kg)

$1.76 UZS 21.1K

$1.98 BGN 3.45

-11.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.72 UZS 20.6K

$1.83 BGN 3.18

-6.01%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.73 UZS 20.7K

$4.27 BGN 7.43

-59.48%

Potato (1kg)

$0.49 UZS 5,815

$1.04 BGN 1.82

-52.88%

Onion (1kg)

$0.17 UZS 2,007

$0.89 BGN 1.54

-80.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.24 UZS 2,874

$1.19 BGN 2.06

-79.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.40 UZS 4,819

$0.83 BGN 1.45

-51.81%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.71 UZS 20.5K

$4.40 BGN 7.66

-61.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.34 UZS 40.0K

$7.42 BGN 12.91

-54.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 UZS 11.8K

$1.16 BGN 2.01

-14.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 UZS 25.6K

$1.90 BGN 3.30

12.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.24 UZS 2,867

$0.92 BGN 1.60

-73.91%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$3.34 UZS 39.9K

$28.11 BGN 48.91

-88.12%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.35 UZS 4,224

$1.67 BGN 2.90

-79.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.32 UZS 3,892

$0.85 BGN 1.49

-62.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.43 UZS 41.1K

$16.59 BGN 28.87

-79.32%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.20 UZS 14.4K

$1.74 BGN 3.03

-31.03%

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

$17.7K UZS 211.4M

$29.9K BGN 52.1K

-41.02%

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

$20.7K UZS 247.7M

$25.0K BGN 43.5K

-17.32%

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

$41.05 UZS 491.6K

$158 BGN 275

-74.00%

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

$3.99 UZS 47.8K

$21.27 BGN 37.01

-81.24%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.48 UZS 161.4K

$15.12 BGN 26.30

-10.85%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.79 UZS 476.5K

$46.85 BGN 81.5

-15.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.87 UZS 82.2K

$27.82 BGN 48.41

-75.31%

Cinema Ticket

$3.11 UZS 37.3K

$10.00 BGN 17.39

-68.90%

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

$391 UZS 4.7M

$815 BGN 1,419

-52.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,622 UZS 91.3M

$14.6K BGN 25.5K

-47.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$20.69 UZS 247.8K

$87.1 BGN 152

-76.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.93 UZS 502.1K

$38.28 BGN 66.6

9.54%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.1 UZS 911.1K

$106 BGN 184

-27.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$58.8 UZS 704.2K

$107 BGN 187

-45.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$242 UZS 2.9M

$769 BGN 1,338

-68.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$168 UZS 2.0M

$593 BGN 1,032

-71.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$465 UZS 5.6M

$1,530 BGN 2,662

-69.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$310 UZS 3.7M

$1,061 BGN 1,846

-70.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,260 UZS 15.1M

$4,526 BGN 7,875

-72.17%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$554 UZS 6.6M

$3,109 BGN 5,410

-82.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$301 UZS 3.6M

$1,780 BGN 3,098

-83.08%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

23.31

2.89

706.57%

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

Last update for Samarkand: November 2, 2026

Last update for Sofia: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Samarkand

$168 26.2%

Sofia

$593 37.4% 253% $425

Groceries & Markets

Samarkand

$158 24.6%

Sofia

$288 18.2% 82.5% $130

Eating Out

Samarkand

$116 18%

Sofia

$254 16% 120% $138

Clothing & Footwear

Samarkand

$89 13.9%

Sofia

$152 9.6% 71.2% $63

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Samarkand

$59 9.1%

Sofia

$194 12.3% 232% $136

Sport & Entertainment

Samarkand

$46 7.2%

Sofia

$67 4.2% 45.3% $21

Getting Around

Samarkand

$6.3 1%

Sofia

$38 2.4% 502% $31

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $242 in Samarkand 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 5.9 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $20 in Samarkand versus $68 in Sofia. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $158 vs $288 – making Samarkand the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇺🇿 Samarkand

🇧🇬 Sofia

🕒 Local time

16:10 4:10 PM

13:10 1:10 PM

3 h behind Samarkand

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

573,200

1,286,383 Capital

💱 Currency

Uzbekistani Som UZS soʻm

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 UZS = 8.35 USD

100,000 UZS = 7.44 EUR

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.512 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BGN, USD, EUR to UZS – Uzbekistani Som Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇺🇿 Uzbekistani Som (soʻm)

Uzbekistani Som exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 11,975 UZS (100,000 UZS = 8.35 USD). 1 EUR = 13,449 UZS (100,000 UZS = 7.44 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).

USD to UZS in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Samarkand Sofia 3,630 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Samarkand
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

Samarkand vs Sofia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Sofia is pricier by about 147%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $962 per month in Samarkand 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 Samarkand, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $242 there versus $769 in Sofia.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $641 in Samarkand and $1,585 in Sofia. That makes Samarkand about 60% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 88% less in Samarkand. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Samarkand, where all-in costs run around $641, than in Sofia at $1,585. In Samarkand it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sofia it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

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