Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sofia and Baghdad

For one person, living is cheaper in Baghdad: $1,032 a month against $1,585 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $6,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
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Sofia Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Baghdad
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Baghdad Living Index

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Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,585

/mo nomad

Baghdad

🇮🇶 Iraq

$1,032

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sofia and in Baghdad

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,585 in Sofia versus $1,032 in Baghdad.

Sofia $1,585
Baghdad $1,032

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,486 in Sofia versus $1,490 in Baghdad.

Sofia $2,486
Baghdad $1,490

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,387 in Sofia versus $1,949 in Baghdad.

Sofia $3,387
Baghdad $1,949

Living in Sofia is roughly 54% more expensive than in Baghdad, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Sofia is 17% above, Baghdad is 24% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.57 BGN 28.84

$4.34 IQD 6,556

281.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.7 BGN 118

$26.47 IQD 40.0K

155.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.68 BGN 20.33

$6.40 IQD 9,677

82.50%

Cappuccino

$3.41 BGN 5.93

$2.67 IQD 4,034

27.72%

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

$2.36 BGN 4.11

$0.39 IQD 587

505.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.67 BGN 2.91

$0.22 IQD 333

659.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.99 BGN 6.94

$3.21 IQD 4,857

24.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 BGN 7.88

$3.27 IQD 4,937

38.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.94 BGN 3.38

$0.91 IQD 1,378

113.19%

White Bread (500g)

$1.55 BGN 2.70

$0.67 IQD 1,006

131.34%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.35 BGN 4.09

$1.37 IQD 2,077

71.53%

Eggs

$4.60 BGN 8.00

$1.69 IQD 2,557

172.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.47 BGN 19.96

$3.37 IQD 5,091

240.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.65 BGN 15.04

$3.90 IQD 5,900

121.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.34 BGN 30.17

$12.44 IQD 18.8K

39.39%

Apples (1kg)

$2.15 BGN 3.73

$1.03 IQD 1,557

108.74%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 BGN 3.45

$0.90 IQD 1,356

120.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.83 BGN 3.18

$0.94 IQD 1,418

94.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.27 BGN 7.43

$0.64 IQD 963

567.19%

Potato (1kg)

$1.04 BGN 1.82

$0.60 IQD 904

73.33%

Onion (1kg)

$0.89 BGN 1.54

$0.57 IQD 861

56.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 BGN 2.06

$0.58 IQD 883

105.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.83 BGN 1.45

$0.62 IQD 935

33.87%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.40 BGN 7.66

$1.54 IQD 2,331

185.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.42 BGN 12.91

$11.95 IQD 18.1K

-37.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 BGN 2.01

$1.90 IQD 2,874

-38.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 BGN 3.30

$1.87 IQD 2,833

1.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.92 BGN 1.60

$0.34 IQD 518

170.59%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.11 BGN 48.91

$19.50 IQD 29.5K

44.15%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.67 BGN 2.90

$2.02 IQD 3,059

-17.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 BGN 1.49

$1.31 IQD 1,976

-35.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.59 BGN 28.87

$6.76 IQD 10.2K

145.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.74 BGN 3.03

$0.58 IQD 870

200.00%

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

$29.9K BGN 52.1K

$16.4K IQD 24.7M

82.79%

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

$25.0K BGN 43.5K

$16.4K IQD 24.7M

52.84%

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

$158 BGN 275

$191 IQD 288.4K

-17.28%

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

$21.27 BGN 37.01

$20.02 IQD 30.3K

6.24%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.12 BGN 26.30

$38.64 IQD 58.4K

-60.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.85 BGN 81.5

$39.72 IQD 60.0K

17.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.82 BGN 48.41

$18.37 IQD 27.8K

51.44%

Cinema Ticket

$10.00 BGN 17.39

$9.98 IQD 15.1K

0.20%

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

$815 BGN 1,419

$145 IQD 218.4K

464.01%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.6K BGN 25.5K

$5,369 IQD 8.1M

172.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.1 BGN 152

$24.76 IQD 37.4K

251.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.28 BGN 66.6

$33.12 IQD 50.0K

15.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 BGN 184

$59.3 IQD 89.6K

78.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 BGN 187

$42.11 IQD 63.6K

154.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$769 BGN 1,338

$530 IQD 800.5K

45.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$593 BGN 1,032

$348 IQD 526.3K

70.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,530 BGN 2,662

$992 IQD 1.5M

54.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,061 BGN 1,846

$611 IQD 923.3K

73.60%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,526 BGN 7,875

$4,348 IQD 6.6M

4.08%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,109 BGN 5,410

$1,403 IQD 2.1M

121.59%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,780 BGN 3,098

$517 IQD 780.9K

244.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.89

4.12

-29.85%

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

Last update for Sofia: November 1, 2026

Last update for Baghdad: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sofia

$593 37.4%

Baghdad

$348 33.8% 41.3% $245

Groceries & Markets

Sofia

$288 18.2%

Baghdad

$162 15.7% 43.6% $125

Eating Out

Sofia

$254 16%

Baghdad

$111 10.8% 56.2% $143

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sofia

$194 12.3%

Baghdad

$250 24.2% 28.4% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Sofia

$152 9.6%

Baghdad

$72 7% 52.9% $80

Sport & Entertainment

Sofia

$67 4.2%

Baghdad

$60 5.8% 10.7% $7.2

Getting Around

Sofia

$38 2.4%

Baghdad

$29 2.9% 22% $8.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $769 in Sofia and $530 in Baghdad. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sofia pays about 3.4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $68 in Sofia vs $26 in Baghdad for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $288 vs $162 per month, with Baghdad cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Sofia

🇮🇶 Baghdad

🕒 Local time

01:41 1:41 AM

02:41 2:41 AM

1 h ahead of Sofia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,286,383 Capital

7,216,040 Capital

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.512 EUR

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.9 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IQD, 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 = 1.95 BGN (1 BGN = 0.512 EUR).

Iraqi Dinar exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,696 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.9 EUR).

USD to BGN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Sofia Baghdad 2,110 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Sofia
Baghdad

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 Baghdad: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Baghdad wins on cost – living expenses run 35% lower than in Sofia. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Baghdad the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay in Sofia is about 3.4 times higher, 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: $769 in Sofia versus $530 in Baghdad. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Baghdad runs roughly 31% less than in Sofia. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $815 in Sofia versus $145 in Baghdad. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Baghdad is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.

Expats usually find Baghdad gentler on the wallet – expenses run 35% less than in Sofia. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.