Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sofia and Al-hawamidiyah

For one person, living is cheaper in Al-hawamidiyah: $457 a month against $1,600 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $13,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
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Sofia Living Index
22

Cost of Living Index in Al-hawamidiyah
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Al-hawamidiyah Living Index

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Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,600

/mo nomad

Al-hawamidiyah

🇪🇬 Egypt

$457

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sofia and in Al-hawamidiyah

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Sofia and in Al-hawamidiyah actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,600 per month in Sofia vs $457 in Al-hawamidiyah, rent included.

Sofia $1,600
Al-hawamidiyah $457

A couple spends around $2,490 per month in Sofia vs $751 in Al-hawamidiyah, rent included.

Sofia $2,490
Al-hawamidiyah $751

A family of three spends $3,380 per month in Sofia vs $1,045 in Al-hawamidiyah, rent included.

Sofia $3,380
Al-hawamidiyah $1,045

Sofia costs about 250% more than Al-hawamidiyah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sofia sits 18% above the global median, while Al-hawamidiyah is 66% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.96 BGN 29.51

$4.17 E£223

306.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.3 BGN 119

$19.31 E£1,031

253.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.62 BGN 20.21

$4.73 E£253

145.67%

Cappuccino

$3.43 BGN 5.98

$1.30 E£69.7

163.85%

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

$2.34 BGN 4.08

$0.32 E£17.30

631.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 BGN 3.19

$0.11 E£5.68

1563.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.41 BGN 5.93

$1.35 E£72.3

152.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.44 BGN 7.73

$2.82 E£150

57.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.97 BGN 3.42

$0.81 E£43.23

143.21%

White Bread (500g)

$1.49 BGN 2.59

$0.68 E£36.16

119.12%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.33 BGN 4.05

$0.60 E£32.04

288.33%

Eggs

$4.41 BGN 7.68

$1.15 E£61.4

283.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.54 BGN 20.08

$3.87 E£207

198.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.88 BGN 15.44

$4.41 E£236

101.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.51 BGN 30.46

$9.31 E£497

88.08%

Apples (1kg)

$2.15 BGN 3.74

$1.51 E£80.9

42.38%

Banana (1kg)

$2.07 BGN 3.60

$0.79 E£42.12

162.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.93 BGN 3.37

$0.56 E£30.00

244.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.25 BGN 7.39

$0.36 E£18.97

1080.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.03 BGN 1.79

$0.26 E£14.00

296.15%

Onion (1kg)

$0.88 BGN 1.54

$0.32 E£17.17

175.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 BGN 2.07

$0.27 E£14.52

340.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 BGN 1.55

$0.22 E£11.50

304.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.23 BGN 7.35

$1.89 E£101

123.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.87 BGN 13.69

$5.62 E£300

40.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 BGN 2.06

$1.19 E£63.8

-0.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 BGN 3.29

$2.23 E£119

-15.25%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.93 BGN 1.62

$0.21 E£11.12

342.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.30 BGN 49.24

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.68 BGN 2.93

$0.59 E£31.46

184.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.96 BGN 1.68

$0.22 E£11.60

336.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.36 BGN 26.73

$1.19 E£63.5

1190.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.77 BGN 3.09

$0.46 E£24.79

284.78%

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

$30.5K BGN 53.1K

$32.1K E£1.7M

-5.01%

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

$25.1K BGN 43.6K

$26.9K E£1.4M

-6.83%

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

$157 BGN 273

$14.45 E£772

987.06%

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

$21.12 BGN 36.74

$6.88 E£367

206.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.32 BGN 26.65

$13.26 E£708

15.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.39 BGN 80.7

$16.28 E£870

184.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.09 BGN 48.87

Cinema Ticket

$10.04 BGN 17.46

$2.86 E£153

251.05%

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

$775 BGN 1,348

$86.1 E£4,597

800.01%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.5K BGN 21.8K

$2,083 E£111.2K

502.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.1 BGN 153

$33.68 E£1,798

161.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.39 BGN 72.0

$46.40 E£2,478

-10.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 BGN 186

$128 E£6,838

-16.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 BGN 185

$55.8 E£2,981

90.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$770 BGN 1,340

$129 E£6,866

498.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$602 BGN 1,048

$75.0 E£4,002

703.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,564 BGN 2,721

$258 E£13.8K

506.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,036 BGN 1,803

$145 E£7,740

614.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,567 BGN 7,946

$758 E£40.5K

502.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,162 BGN 5,502

$357 E£19.1K

785.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,742 BGN 3,031

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.89

21.33

-86.45%

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

Last update for Sofia: October 19, 2026

Last update for Al-hawamidiyah: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sofia

$602 37.6%

Al-hawamidiyah

$75 16.4% 87.6% $527

Groceries & Markets

Sofia

$291 18.2%

Al-hawamidiyah

$127 27.7% 56.5% $164

Eating Out

Sofia

$254 15.9%

Al-hawamidiyah

$77 16.9% 69.6% $177

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sofia

$194 12.1%

Al-hawamidiyah

$35 7.6% 82.1% $159

Clothing & Footwear

Sofia

$154 9.6%

Al-hawamidiyah

$119 26% 22.9% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Sofia

$66 4.2%

Al-hawamidiyah

$22 4.8% 66.9% $44

Getting Around

Sofia

$39 2.4%

Al-hawamidiyah

$2.5 * 0.6% 93.5% $36

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $770 in Sofia versus $129 in Al-hawamidiyah. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $68.0 in Sofia versus $19.00 in Al-hawamidiyah. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $291 vs $127 – making Al-hawamidiyah the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Sofia

🇪🇬 Al-hawamidiyah

🕒 Local time

11:41 11:41 AM

12:41 12:41 PM

1 h ahead of Sofia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,286,383 Capital

155,055

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 EUR

100 EGP = 1.87 USD

100 EGP = 1.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, USD, EUR to BGN – Bulgarian Lev Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇬 Bulgarian Lev (лв.)

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 25, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BGN (1 BGN = 0.575 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.511 EUR).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 25, 2026: 1 USD = 53.4 EGP (100 EGP = 1.87 USD). 1 EUR = 60.03 EGP (100 EGP = 1.67 EUR).

USD to BGN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Sofia Al-hawamidiyah 1,590 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Sofia
Al-hawamidiyah

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

Sofia vs Al-hawamidiyah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sofia costs about 250% more than Al-hawamidiyah, 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 $2,400 per month in Sofia and $685 in Al-hawamidiyah. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Al-hawamidiyah, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $68.0 in Sofia and $19.00 in Al-hawamidiyah. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 130% more in Sofia, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Al-hawamidiyah, where all-in costs run around $457, than in Sofia at $1,600. In Al-hawamidiyah it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sofia it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Al-hawamidiyah costs $457 versus $1,600 in Sofia. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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