Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sofia and Cesena

For one person, living costs are similar in Sofia and in Cesena: $1,594 and $1,646 a month, rent and utilities included.

78

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
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Sofia Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Cesena
Learn more

Cesena Living Index

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Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,594

/mo nomad

Cesena

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,646

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sofia and in Cesena

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,594 in Sofia versus $1,646 in Cesena.

Sofia $1,594
Cesena $1,646

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,478 in Sofia versus $2,537 in Cesena.

Sofia $2,478
Cesena $2,537

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,361 in Sofia versus $3,428 in Cesena.

Sofia $3,361
Cesena $3,428

Living in Sofia costs roughly 3% less than in Cesena, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Sofia 18% above, Cesena 22% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.87 BGN 29.35

$16.83 €14.97

0.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 BGN 115

$89.5 €79.6

-26.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.32 BGN 19.69

$12.22 €10.87

-7.36%

Cappuccino

$3.43 BGN 5.98

$2.21 €1.96

55.20%

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

$2.41 BGN 4.19

$2.72 €2.42

-11.40%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 BGN 3.22

$1.09 €0.97

69.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 BGN 6.44

$6.04 €5.37

-38.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.58 BGN 7.97

$5.10 €4.53

-10.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.02 BGN 3.51

$1.35 €1.20

49.63%

White Bread (500g)

$1.56 BGN 2.72

$1.36 €1.21

14.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.33 BGN 4.05

$1.97 €1.75

18.27%

Eggs

$4.36 BGN 7.59

$2.77 €2.47

57.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.76 BGN 20.47

$17.63 €15.68

-33.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.83 BGN 15.37

$11.91 €10.60

-25.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.46 BGN 30.38

$17.03 €15.15

2.52%

Apples (1kg)

$2.15 BGN 3.74

$1.93 €1.72

11.40%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 BGN 3.44

$2.47 €2.20

-19.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.93 BGN 3.37

$2.39 €2.12

-19.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.24 BGN 7.37

$3.99 €3.55

6.27%

Potato (1kg)

$1.04 BGN 1.80

$1.60 €1.43

-35.00%

Onion (1kg)

$0.85 BGN 1.48

$1.65 €1.47

-48.48%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 BGN 2.00

$1.87 €1.67

-38.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 BGN 1.56

$0.34 €0.30

161.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.21 BGN 7.33

$6.52 €5.80

-35.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.46 BGN 12.98

$6.79 €6.04

9.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 BGN 2.01

$1.22 €1.09

-5.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 BGN 3.23

$1.72 €1.53

7.56%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 BGN 1.51

$2.17 €1.93

-59.91%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.53 BGN 49.65

$38.55 €34.29

-25.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.68 BGN 2.93

$8.20 €7.30

-79.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.94 BGN 1.63

$1.98 €1.76

-52.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.35 BGN 26.70

$33.88 €30.13

-54.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.69 BGN 2.94

$2.03 €1.81

-16.75%

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

$29.8K BGN 51.9K

$36.5K €32.5K

-18.33%

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

$26.1K BGN 45.5K

$34.9K €31.0K

-25.08%

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

$156 BGN 272

$189 €168

-17.35%

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

$21.56 BGN 37.52

$9.75 €8.67

121.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.24 BGN 26.51

$30.74 €27.34

-50.42%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.08 BGN 80.2

$50.8 €45.16

-9.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.92 BGN 48.58

$14.22 €12.65

96.34%

Cinema Ticket

$10.18 BGN 17.72

$9.99 €8.89

1.90%

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

$774 BGN 1,347

$537 €478

44.04%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.8K BGN 22.3K

$9,900 €8,806

29.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.9 BGN 157

$90.7 €80.7

-0.86%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.29 BGN 71.8

$36.93 €32.85

11.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 BGN 183

$82.4 €73.3

27.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 BGN 186

$78.7 €70.0

35.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$783 BGN 1,362

$660 €587

18.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$597 BGN 1,038

$591 €525

1.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,516 BGN 2,638

$1,174 €1,045

29.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,030 BGN 1,792

$925 €823

11.30%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,350 BGN 7,568

$2,953 €2,627

47.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,177 BGN 5,528

$2,583 €2,298

23.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,735 BGN 3,019

$1,750 €1,557

-0.87%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.89

3.3

-12.42%

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

Last update for Sofia: October 13, 2026

Last update for Cesena: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sofia

$597 37.4%

Cesena

$591 35.9% 1% $6.2

Groceries & Markets

Sofia

$290 18.2%

Cesena

$306 18.6% 5.5% $16

Eating Out

Sofia

$255 16%

Cesena

$253 15.4% 0.5% $1.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sofia

$193 12.1%

Cesena

$229 13.9% 18.9% $36

Clothing & Footwear

Sofia

$154 9.7%

Cesena

$130 7.9% 15.8% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Sofia

$66 4.2%

Cesena

$71 4.3% 6.5% $4.3

Getting Around

Sofia

$38 2.4%

Cesena

$65 4% 70.2% $27

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $783 in Sofia and $660 in Cesena. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cesena pays 1% 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 Sofia vs $89.0 in Cesena for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $290 vs $306 per month, with Sofia cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Sofia

🇮🇹 Cesena

🕒 Local time

20:08 8:08 PM

19:08 7:08 PM

1 h behind Sofia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,286,383 Capital

96,758

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to BGN – Bulgarian Lev Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇬 Bulgarian Lev (лв.)

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BGN (1 BGN = 0.575 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.511 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to BGN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Sofia Cesena 910 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Sofia
Cesena

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 Cesena: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sofia and Cesena differ by about 3% in total monthly costs ($1,594 vs $1,646 including rent). Sofia is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 1% lower in Cesena. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $783 in Sofia versus $660 in Cesena. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Sofia – a meal for two runs $66.0 versus $89.0 in Cesena. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,594 per month in Sofia versus $1,646 in Cesena – a 3% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,594 in Sofia versus $1,646 in Cesena, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Sofia but tight or insufficient in Cesena. 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, Sofia and Cesena 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 3% less than in Cesena. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.