Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sofia and Geel

For one person, living is cheaper in Sofia: $1,594 a month against $2,052 in Geel, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
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Sofia Living Index
99

Cost of Living Index in Geel
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Geel Living Index

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Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,594

/mo nomad

Geel

🇧🇪 Belgium

$2,052

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sofia and in Geel

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,594 in Sofia versus $2,052 in Geel.

Sofia $1,594
Geel $2,052

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,478 in Sofia versus $2,931 in Geel.

Sofia $2,478
Geel $2,931

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,361 in Sofia versus $3,810 in Geel.

Sofia $3,361
Geel $3,810

Living in Sofia costs roughly 22% less than in Geel, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Sofia 18% above, Geel 52% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.87 BGN 29.35

$18.72 €16.65

-9.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 BGN 115

$75.6 €67.2

-12.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.32 BGN 19.69

$10.77 €9.58

5.11%

Cappuccino

$3.43 BGN 5.98

$3.84 €3.42

-10.68%

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

$2.41 BGN 4.19

$2.62 €2.33

-8.02%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 BGN 3.22

$3.05 €2.71

-39.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 BGN 6.44

$4.43 €3.94

-16.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.58 BGN 7.97

$3.30 €2.93

38.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.02 BGN 3.51

$1.35 €1.20

49.63%

White Bread (500g)

$1.56 BGN 2.72

$2.70 €2.40

-42.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.33 BGN 4.05

$2.69 €2.39

-13.38%

Eggs

$4.36 BGN 7.59

$5.17 €4.60

-15.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.76 BGN 20.47

$17.98 €16.00

-34.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.83 BGN 15.37

$13.36 €11.88

-33.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.46 BGN 30.38

$21.62 €19.23

-19.24%

Apples (1kg)

$2.15 BGN 3.74

$2.98 €2.65

-27.85%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 BGN 3.44

$2.35 €2.09

-15.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.93 BGN 3.37

$2.82 €2.51

-31.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.24 BGN 7.37

$4.07 €3.62

4.18%

Potato (1kg)

$1.04 BGN 1.80

$2.47 €2.20

-57.89%

Onion (1kg)

$0.85 BGN 1.48

$2.13 €1.90

-60.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 BGN 2.00

$1.82 €1.62

-36.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 BGN 1.56

$0.76 €0.67

17.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.21 BGN 7.33

$13.24 €11.78

-68.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.46 BGN 12.98

$8.68 €7.72

-14.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 BGN 2.01

$2.59 €2.30

-55.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 BGN 3.23

$3.10 €2.75

-40.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 BGN 1.51

$3.39 €3.01

-74.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.53 BGN 49.65

$70.4 €62.6

-59.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.68 BGN 2.93

$2.87 €2.55

-41.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.94 BGN 1.63

$2.23 €1.98

-57.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.35 BGN 26.70

$39.84 €35.44

-61.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.69 BGN 2.94

$1.79 €1.60

-5.59%

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

$29.8K BGN 51.9K

$23.9K €21.2K

24.76%

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

$26.1K BGN 45.5K

$34.1K €30.3K

-23.33%

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

$156 BGN 272

$169 €151

-7.84%

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

$21.56 BGN 37.52

$21.76 €19.36

-0.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.24 BGN 26.51

$52.5 €46.69

-70.97%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.08 BGN 80.2

$39.54 €35.17

16.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.92 BGN 48.58

Cinema Ticket

$10.18 BGN 17.72

$16.73 €14.88

-39.15%

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

$774 BGN 1,347

$1,615 €1,437

-52.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.8K BGN 22.3K

$36.1K €32.1K

-64.49%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.9 BGN 157

$100 €89.3

-10.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.29 BGN 71.8

$45.86 €40.79

-9.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 BGN 183

$110 €98.0

-4.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 BGN 186

$144 €128

-25.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$783 BGN 1,362

$1,037 €923

-24.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$597 BGN 1,038

$795 €708

-24.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,516 BGN 2,638

$1,042 €927

45.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,030 BGN 1,792

$950 €845

8.48%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,350 BGN 7,568

$3,922 €3,488

10.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,177 BGN 5,528

$3,388 €3,014

-6.22%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,735 BGN 3,019

$2,410 €2,144

-28.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.89

-3.67%

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

Last update for Sofia: October 13, 2026

Last update for Geel: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sofia

$597 37.4%

Geel

$795 38.8% 33.3% $199

Groceries & Markets

Sofia

$290 18.2%

Geel

$383 18.7% 31.7% $92

Eating Out

Sofia

$255 16%

Geel

$280 13.6% 9.8% $25

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sofia

$193 12.1%

Geel

$244 11.9% 26.3% $51

Clothing & Footwear

Sofia

$154 9.7%

Geel

$180 8.8% 16.7% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Sofia

$66 4.2%

Geel

$73 3.6% 9.9% $6.6

Getting Around

Sofia

$38 2.4%

Geel

$98 4.8% 155% $60

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $783 in Sofia and $1,037 in Geel. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Geel pays 39% 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 $76.0 in Geel for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $290 vs $383 per month, with Sofia cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Sofia

🇧🇪 Geel

🕒 Local time

23:09 11:09 PM

22:09 10:09 PM

1 h behind Sofia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,286,383 Capital

40,781

💱 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 17, 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 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to BGN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Sofia Geel 1,670 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Sofia
Geel

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 Geel: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sofia and Geel differ by about 29% in total monthly costs ($1,594 vs $2,052 including rent). Sofia is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 39% lower in Geel. 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 $1,037 in Geel. 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 $76.0 in Geel. 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 $2,052 in Geel – a 29% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,594 in Sofia versus $2,052 in Geel, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Sofia but tight or insufficient in Geel. 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 Geel 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 29% less than in Geel. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.