Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sofia and Gramsh

For one person, living is cheaper in Gramsh: $1,063 a month against $1,594 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $6,400 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
53

Cost of Living Index in Gramsh
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Gramsh Living Index

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Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,594

/mo nomad

Gramsh

🇦🇱 Albania

$1,063

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sofia and in Gramsh

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

A single person spends $1,594 per month in Sofia vs $1,063 in Gramsh, rent included.

Sofia $1,594
Gramsh $1,063

A couple spends around $2,478 per month in Sofia vs $1,678 in Gramsh, rent included.

Sofia $2,478
Gramsh $1,678

A family of three spends $3,361 per month in Sofia vs $2,294 in Gramsh, rent included.

Sofia $3,361
Gramsh $2,294

Sofia costs about 50% more than Gramsh, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sofia sits 18% above the global median, while Gramsh is 21% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.87 BGN 29.35

$9.57 ALL 770

76.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 BGN 115

$39.19 ALL 3,156

67.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.32 BGN 19.69

$7.23 ALL 582

56.57%

Cappuccino

$3.43 BGN 5.98

$1.84 ALL 148

86.41%

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

$2.41 BGN 4.19

$1.76 ALL 142

36.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 BGN 3.22

$0.63 ALL 51.0

193.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 BGN 6.44

$2.45 ALL 197

51.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.58 BGN 7.97

$3.32 ALL 267

37.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.02 BGN 3.51

$1.89 ALL 153

6.88%

White Bread (500g)

$1.56 BGN 2.72

$0.97 ALL 78.5

60.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.33 BGN 4.05

$2.07 ALL 167

12.56%

Eggs

$4.36 BGN 7.59

$2.67 ALL 215

63.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.76 BGN 20.47

$10.25 ALL 826

14.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.83 BGN 15.37

$8.64 ALL 696

2.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.46 BGN 30.38

$13.85 ALL 1,115

26.06%

Apples (1kg)

$2.15 BGN 3.74

$2.01 ALL 162

6.97%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 BGN 3.44

$2.30 ALL 185

-13.91%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.93 BGN 3.37

$1.69 ALL 136

14.20%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.24 BGN 7.37

$1.63 ALL 131

160.12%

Potato (1kg)

$1.04 BGN 1.80

$1.08 ALL 86.9

-3.70%

Onion (1kg)

$0.85 BGN 1.48

$1.24 ALL 99.8

-31.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 BGN 2.00

$1.18 ALL 95.0

-2.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 BGN 1.56

$0.79 ALL 63.5

12.66%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.21 BGN 7.33

$4.16 ALL 335

1.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.46 BGN 12.98

$8.04 ALL 647

-7.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 BGN 2.01

$1.72 ALL 139

-33.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 BGN 3.23

$1.86 ALL 150

-0.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 BGN 1.51

$0.52 ALL 42.00

67.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.53 BGN 49.65

$22.07 ALL 1,777

29.27%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.68 BGN 2.93

$3.68 ALL 296

-54.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.94 BGN 1.63

$3.74 ALL 301

-74.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.35 BGN 26.70

$18.37 ALL 1,480

-16.44%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.69 BGN 2.94

$2.17 ALL 175

-22.12%

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

$29.8K BGN 51.9K

$32.8K ALL 2.6M

-9.29%

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

$26.1K BGN 45.5K

$24.5K ALL 2.0M

6.64%

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

$156 BGN 272

$61.5 ALL 4,950

153.91%

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

$21.56 BGN 37.52

$16.54 ALL 1,332

30.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.24 BGN 26.51

$16.88 ALL 1,360

-9.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.08 BGN 80.2

$55.9 ALL 4,505

-17.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.92 BGN 48.58

Cinema Ticket

$10.18 BGN 17.72

$8.52 ALL 686

19.48%

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

$774 BGN 1,347

$97.2 ALL 7,828

696.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.8K BGN 22.3K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.9 BGN 157

$49.40 ALL 3,978

82.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.29 BGN 71.8

$56.0 ALL 4,509

-26.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 BGN 183

$97.0 ALL 7,814

8.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 BGN 186

$149 ALL 12.0K

-28.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$783 BGN 1,362

$548 ALL 44.1K

42.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$597 BGN 1,038

$291 ALL 23.5K

104.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,516 BGN 2,638

$738 ALL 59.5K

105.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,030 BGN 1,792

$511 ALL 41.2K

101.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,350 BGN 7,568

$1,887 ALL 152.0K

130.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,177 BGN 5,528

$1,260 ALL 101.5K

152.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,735 BGN 3,019

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.89

-42.20%

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

Last update for Sofia: October 13, 2026

Last update for Gramsh: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sofia

$597 37.4%

Gramsh

$291 27.4% 51.2% $306

Groceries & Markets

Sofia

$290 18.2%

Gramsh

$250 23.6% 13.8% $40

Eating Out

Sofia

$255 16%

Gramsh

$149 14% 41.6% $106

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sofia

$193 12.1%

Gramsh

$95 8.9% 50.8% $98

Clothing & Footwear

Sofia

$154 9.7%

Gramsh

$158 14.9% 2.4% $3.7

Sport & Entertainment

Sofia

$66 4.2%

Gramsh

$73 6.9% 9.8% $6.5

Getting Around

Sofia

$38 2.4%

Gramsh

$47 4.4% 21.2% $8.1

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $783 in Sofia versus $548 in Gramsh. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $66.0 in Sofia versus $39.00 in Gramsh. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $290 vs $250 – making Gramsh the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Sofia

🇦🇱 Gramsh

🕒 Local time

08:46 8:46 AM

07:46 7:46 AM

1 h behind Sofia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,286,383 Capital

8,400

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Albanian Lek ALL L

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 EUR

100 ALL = 1.24 USD

100 ALL = 1.1 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ALL, USD, EUR 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).

Albanian Lek exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 80.53 ALL (100 ALL = 1.24 USD). 1 EUR = 90.53 ALL (100 ALL = 1.1 EUR).

USD to BGN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Sofia Gramsh 330 km

From you

Sofia
Gramsh

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 Gramsh: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Sofia is pricier by about 50%, 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 $1,594 in Gramsh. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Gramsh, 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 $97.2 in Gramsh. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 16% 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 Gramsh, where all-in costs run around $1,063, than in Sofia at $1,594. In Gramsh it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sofia it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Gramsh – 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 Gramsh. 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.