Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sofia and Gabes

For one person, living is cheaper in Gabes: $518 a month against $1,594 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $12,900 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
25

Cost of Living Index in Gabes
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Gabes Living Index

Jump to prices

Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,594

/mo nomad

Gabes

🇹🇳 Tunisia

$518

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sofia and in Gabes

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

A single person spends $1,594 per month in Sofia vs $518 in Gabes, rent included.

Sofia $1,594
Gabes $518

A couple spends around $2,478 per month in Sofia vs $827 in Gabes, rent included.

Sofia $2,478
Gabes $827

A family of three spends $3,361 per month in Sofia vs $1,136 in Gabes, rent included.

Sofia $3,361
Gabes $1,136

Sofia costs about 208% more than Gabes, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sofia sits 18% above the global median, while Gabes is 62% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.87 BGN 29.35

$2.70 TND 8.08

524.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 BGN 115

$16.86 TND 50.5

290.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.32 BGN 19.69

$3.44 TND 10.29

229.07%

Cappuccino

$3.43 BGN 5.98

$0.78 TND 2.34

339.74%

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

$2.41 BGN 4.19

$0.64 TND 1.93

276.56%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 BGN 3.22

$0.25 TND 0.75

640.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 BGN 6.44

$1.16 TND 3.46

218.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.58 BGN 7.97

$1.53 TND 4.59

199.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.02 BGN 3.51

$0.43 TND 1.30

369.77%

White Bread (500g)

$1.56 BGN 2.72

$0.25 TND 0.75

524.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.33 BGN 4.05

$1.76 TND 5.26

32.39%

Eggs

$4.36 BGN 7.59

$1.48 TND 4.44

194.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.76 BGN 20.47

$12.23 TND 36.63

-3.84%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.83 BGN 15.37

$5.60 TND 16.76

57.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.46 BGN 30.38

$14.82 TND 44.39

17.81%

Apples (1kg)

$2.15 BGN 3.74

$1.61 TND 4.83

33.54%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 BGN 3.44

$2.92 TND 8.75

-32.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.93 BGN 3.37

$0.92 TND 2.75

109.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.24 BGN 7.37

$0.87 TND 2.60

387.36%

Potato (1kg)

$1.04 BGN 1.80

$0.95 TND 2.84

9.47%

Onion (1kg)

$0.85 BGN 1.48

$0.57 TND 1.70

49.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 BGN 2.00

$0.34 TND 1.02

238.24%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 BGN 1.56

$0.29 TND 0.86

206.90%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.21 BGN 7.33

$3.31 TND 9.92

27.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.46 BGN 12.98

$3.42 TND 10.23

118.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 BGN 2.01

$0.67 TND 2.01

71.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 BGN 3.23

$0.82 TND 2.45

125.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 BGN 1.51

$0.19 TND 0.56

357.89%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.53 BGN 49.65

$6.85 TND 20.53

316.50%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.68 BGN 2.93

$0.31 TND 0.94

441.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.94 BGN 1.63

$0.18 TND 0.53

422.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.35 BGN 26.70

$3.92 TND 11.73

291.58%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.69 BGN 2.94

$0.87 TND 2.61

94.25%

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

$29.8K BGN 51.9K

$38.9K TND 116.4K

-23.34%

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

$26.1K BGN 45.5K

$28.0K TND 83.8K

-6.61%

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

$156 BGN 272

$42.91 TND 129

263.74%

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

$21.56 BGN 37.52

$7.75 TND 23.20

178.19%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.24 BGN 26.51

$16.73 TND 50.1

-8.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.08 BGN 80.2

$31.56 TND 94.5

46.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.92 BGN 48.58

$4.61 TND 13.81

505.64%

Cinema Ticket

$10.18 BGN 17.72

$3.31 TND 9.93

207.55%

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

$774 BGN 1,347

$56.0 TND 168

1283.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.8K BGN 22.3K

$1,951 TND 5,843

556.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.9 BGN 157

$32.42 TND 97.1

177.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.29 BGN 71.8

$39.92 TND 120

3.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 BGN 183

$75.9 TND 227

38.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 BGN 186

$66.2 TND 198

61.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$783 BGN 1,362

$115 TND 344

580.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$597 BGN 1,038

$70.2 TND 210

749.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,516 BGN 2,638

$204 TND 611

643.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,030 BGN 1,792

$116 TND 348

786.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,350 BGN 7,568

$945 TND 2,832

360.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,177 BGN 5,528

$620 TND 1,856

412.74%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,735 BGN 3,019

$418 TND 1,251

315.36%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.89

-75.92%

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

Last update for Sofia: October 13, 2026

Last update for Gabes: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sofia

$597 37.4%

Gabes

$70 13.6% 88.2% $527

Groceries & Markets

Sofia

$290 18.2%

Gabes

$183 35.4% 36.9% $107

Eating Out

Sofia

$255 16%

Gabes

$54 10.4% 78.9% $201

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sofia

$193 12.1%

Gabes

$67 13% 65.1% $126

Clothing & Footwear

Sofia

$154 9.7%

Gabes

$97 18.6% 37.5% $58

Sport & Entertainment

Sofia

$66 4.2%

Gabes

$38 7.4% 42.5% $28

Getting Around

Sofia

$38 2.4%

Gabes

$8.8 1.7% 77.1% $30

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $783 in Sofia versus $115 in Gabes. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 315% higher in Sofia, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $66.0 in Sofia versus $17.00 in Gabes. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $290 vs $183 – making Gabes the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Sofia

🇹🇳 Gabes

🕒 Local time

02:03 2:03 AM

00:03 12:03 AM

2 h behind Sofia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,286,383 Capital

130,984

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Tunisian Dinar TND د.ت

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 EUR

1 TND = 0.334 USD

1 TND = 0.297 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TND, USD, EUR to BGN – Bulgarian Lev Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇬 Bulgarian Lev (лв.)

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BGN (1 BGN = 0.575 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.511 EUR).

Tunisian Dinar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 2.99 TND (1 TND = 0.334 USD). 1 EUR = 3.37 TND (1 TND = 0.297 EUR).

USD to BGN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Sofia Gabes 1,510 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Sofia
Gabes

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 Gabes: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Sofia is pricier by about 208%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,391 per month in Sofia and $777 in Gabes. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Kindergarten costs $774 per month in Sofia and $56.0 in Gabes. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 59% 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 $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Gabes, where all-in costs run around $518, than in Sofia at $1,594. In Gabes it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sofia it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

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 Gabes. 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.