Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sofia and Aqaba

For one person, living is cheaper in Aqaba: $919 a month against $1,585 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $8,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
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Sofia Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Aqaba
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Aqaba Living Index

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Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,585

/mo nomad

Aqaba

🇯🇴 Jordan

$919

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sofia and in Aqaba

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 Aqaba actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,585 per month in Sofia vs $919 in Aqaba, rent included.

Sofia $1,585
Aqaba $919

A couple spends around $2,486 per month in Sofia vs $1,504 in Aqaba, rent included.

Sofia $2,486
Aqaba $1,504

A family of three spends $3,387 per month in Sofia vs $2,088 in Aqaba, rent included.

Sofia $3,387
Aqaba $2,088

Sofia costs about 72% more than Aqaba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Sofia sits 17% above the global median, while Aqaba is 32% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.57 BGN 28.84

$2.90 JOD 2.05

471.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.7 BGN 118

$70.5 JOD 49.93

-4.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.68 BGN 20.33

$4.21 JOD 2.98

177.43%

Cappuccino

$3.41 BGN 5.93

$4.43 JOD 3.13

-23.02%

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

$2.36 BGN 4.11

$0.65 JOD 0.46

263.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.67 BGN 2.91

$0.54 JOD 0.38

209.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.99 BGN 6.94

$8.54 JOD 6.04

-53.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 BGN 7.88

$11.02 JOD 7.80

-58.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.94 BGN 3.38

$1.44 JOD 1.02

34.72%

White Bread (500g)

$1.55 BGN 2.70

$0.51 JOD 0.36

203.92%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.35 BGN 4.09

$1.55 JOD 1.10

51.61%

Eggs

$4.60 BGN 8.00

$1.70 JOD 1.21

170.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.47 BGN 19.96

$5.57 JOD 3.94

105.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.65 BGN 15.04

$4.34 JOD 3.08

99.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.34 BGN 30.17

$9.73 JOD 6.89

78.21%

Apples (1kg)

$2.15 BGN 3.73

$1.45 JOD 1.03

48.28%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 BGN 3.45

$1.39 JOD 0.98

42.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.83 BGN 3.18

$1.04 JOD 0.74

75.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.27 BGN 7.43

$0.73 JOD 0.52

484.93%

Potato (1kg)

$1.04 BGN 1.82

$0.74 JOD 0.52

40.54%

Onion (1kg)

$0.89 BGN 1.54

$0.73 JOD 0.52

21.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 BGN 2.06

$0.59 JOD 0.42

101.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.83 BGN 1.45

$0.58 JOD 0.41

43.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.40 BGN 7.66

$3.90 JOD 2.76

12.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.42 BGN 12.91

$17.22 JOD 12.19

-56.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 BGN 2.01

$2.75 JOD 1.95

-57.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 BGN 3.30

$2.50 JOD 1.77

-24.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.92 BGN 1.60

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.11 BGN 48.91

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.67 BGN 2.90

$0.51 JOD 0.36

227.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 BGN 1.49

$1.38 JOD 0.98

-38.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.59 BGN 28.87

$6.93 JOD 4.90

139.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.74 BGN 3.03

$1.46 JOD 1.04

19.18%

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

$29.9K BGN 52.1K

$30.6K JOD 21.7K

-2.15%

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

$25.0K BGN 43.5K

$31.3K JOD 22.2K

-20.20%

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

$158 BGN 275

$136 JOD 96.6

15.71%

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

$21.27 BGN 37.01

$15.27 JOD 10.81

39.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.12 BGN 26.30

$32.17 JOD 22.77

-53.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.85 BGN 81.5

$63.2 JOD 44.73

-25.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.82 BGN 48.41

Cinema Ticket

$10.00 BGN 17.39

$11.25 JOD 7.96

-11.11%

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

$815 BGN 1,419

$544 JOD 385

49.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.6K BGN 25.5K

$2,805 JOD 1,985

422.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.1 BGN 152

$27.97 JOD 19.80

211.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.28 BGN 66.6

$42.90 JOD 30.36

-10.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 BGN 184

$42.39 JOD 30.00

149.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 BGN 187

$71.2 JOD 50.4

50.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$769 BGN 1,338

$281 JOD 199

173.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$593 BGN 1,032

$211 JOD 149

180.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,530 BGN 2,662

$683 JOD 483

124.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,061 BGN 1,846

$453 JOD 321

134.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,526 BGN 7,875

$1,108 JOD 785

308.27%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,109 BGN 5,410

$561 JOD 397

454.56%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,780 BGN 3,098

$570 JOD 404

212.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.89

6.94

-58.36%

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

Last update for Sofia: November 1, 2026

Last update for Aqaba: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sofia

$593 37.4%

Aqaba

$211 23% 64.4% $382

Groceries & Markets

Sofia

$288 18.2%

Aqaba

$190 20.7% 34% $98

Eating Out

Sofia

$254 16%

Aqaba

$158 17.2% 37.5% $95

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sofia

$194 12.3%

Aqaba

$184 20% 5.3% $10

Clothing & Footwear

Sofia

$152 9.6%

Aqaba

$83 9% 45.4% $69

Sport & Entertainment

Sofia

$67 4.2%

Aqaba

$86 9.3% 28.2% $19

Getting Around

Sofia

$38 2.4%

Aqaba

$7.4 * 0.8% 80.3% $30

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $769 in Sofia versus $281 in Aqaba. 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 3.1 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $68 in Sofia versus $71 in Aqaba. Groceries tell a different story – $288 in Sofia vs $190 in Aqaba – so Aqaba wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Sofia

🇯🇴 Aqaba

🕒 Local time

21:08 9:08 PM

22:08 10:08 PM

1 h ahead of Sofia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,286,383 Capital

140,000

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Jordanian Dinar JOD د.ا

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 EUR

1 JOD = 1.41 USD

1 JOD = 1.26 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JOD, USD, EUR to BGN – Bulgarian Lev Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇬 Bulgarian Lev (лв.)

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).

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).

USD to BGN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Sofia Aqaba 1,800 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Sofia
Aqaba

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 Aqaba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Sofia is pricier by about 72%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,378 per month in Sofia and $1,379 in Aqaba. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Aqaba, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $281 there versus $769 in Sofia.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,585 in Sofia and $919 in Aqaba. That makes Aqaba about 42% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $815 per month in Sofia and $544 in Aqaba. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Families tend to lean toward Aqaba – 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 Aqaba. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Sofia makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.