Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sofia and Guimaraes

For one person, living costs are similar in Sofia and in Guimaraes: $1,609 and $1,606 a month, rent and utilities included.

77

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
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Sofia Living Index
77

Cost of Living Index in Guimaraes
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Guimaraes Living Index

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Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,609

/mo nomad

Guimaraes

🇵🇹 Portugal

$1,606

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sofia and in Guimaraes

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

A single person spends $1,609 per month in Sofia vs $1,606 in Guimaraes, rent included.

Sofia $1,609
Guimaraes $1,606

A couple spends around $2,495 per month in Sofia vs $2,318 in Guimaraes, rent included.

Sofia $2,495
Guimaraes $2,318

A family of three spends $3,381 per month in Sofia vs $3,031 in Guimaraes, rent included.

Sofia $3,381
Guimaraes $3,031

Sofia and Guimaraes have comparable living costs – the differences are in the details.

Both Sofia and Guimaraes sit above the global median – Sofia by 18%, Guimaraes by 18%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.88 BGN 29.53

$12.99 €11.63

29.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.5 BGN 116

$49.60 €44.42

33.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.59 BGN 20.29

$9.13 €8.18

26.94%

Cappuccino

$3.52 BGN 6.17

$1.88 €1.68

87.23%

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

$2.42 BGN 4.23

$2.01 €1.80

20.40%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.77 BGN 3.09

$1.35 €1.21

31.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.68 BGN 6.44

$2.28 €2.05

61.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.38 BGN 7.66

$2.76 €2.47

58.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.96 BGN 3.42

$1.04 €0.94

88.46%

White Bread (500g)

$1.51 BGN 2.64

$1.72 €1.54

-12.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 BGN 3.85

$1.68 €1.51

30.95%

Eggs

$4.40 BGN 7.71

$2.94 €2.64

49.66%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.76 BGN 20.59

$12.48 €11.18

-5.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.68 BGN 15.19

$7.86 €7.04

10.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.37 BGN 30.40

$14.56 €13.04

19.30%

Apples (1kg)

$2.13 BGN 3.73

$2.06 €1.85

3.40%

Banana (1kg)

$2.05 BGN 3.59

$1.35 €1.21

51.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.93 BGN 3.38

$1.82 €1.63

6.04%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.17 BGN 7.30

$2.43 €2.18

71.60%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 BGN 1.89

$1.97 €1.77

-45.18%

Onion (1kg)

$0.91 BGN 1.59

$2.02 €1.81

-54.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 BGN 2.07

$1.53 €1.37

-22.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.84 BGN 1.47

$1.00 €0.89

-16.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.18 BGN 7.32

$6.66 €5.96

-37.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.68 BGN 13.43

$4.45 €3.99

72.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.17 BGN 2.05

$1.33 €1.19

-12.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 BGN 3.16

$2.17 €1.95

-17.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 BGN 1.52

$2.55 €2.28

-65.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.06 BGN 50.9

$32.09 €28.74

-9.44%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.68 BGN 2.94

$4.22 €3.78

-60.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.87 BGN 1.53

$1.41 €1.27

-38.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.76 BGN 27.58

$16.46 €14.74

-4.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.73 BGN 3.02

$2.16 €1.93

-19.91%

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

$29.7K BGN 51.9K

$33.2K €29.8K

-10.75%

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

$25.6K BGN 44.8K

$38.1K €34.1K

-32.79%

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

$161 BGN 282

$105 €93.7

53.84%

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

$21.08 BGN 36.89

$17.00 €15.23

24.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.19 BGN 26.58

$45.11 €40.40

-66.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.34 BGN 84.6

$43.17 €38.67

11.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.47 BGN 48.07

$22.26 €19.93

23.41%

Cinema Ticket

$10.16 BGN 17.78

$8.65 €7.75

17.46%

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

$785 BGN 1,374

$393 €352

100.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.8K BGN 22.3K

$6,486 €5,809

96.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.8 BGN 157

$75.8 €67.9

18.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.29 BGN 72.3

$38.54 €34.52

7.14%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 BGN 188

$83.5 €74.8

28.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$109 BGN 191

$103 €92.1

6.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$789 BGN 1,381

$936 €839

-15.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$604 BGN 1,057

$753 €675

-19.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,517 BGN 2,654

$1,310 €1,173

15.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,037 BGN 1,814

$1,073 €961

-3.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,407 BGN 7,712

$2,836 €2,540

55.37%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,137 BGN 5,490

$2,207 €1,976

42.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,736 BGN 3,038

$1,434 €1,284

21.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.89

3.7

-21.89%

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

Last update for Sofia: October 27, 2026

Last update for Guimaraes: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sofia

$604 37.5%

Guimaraes

$753 46.9% 24.7% $149

Groceries & Markets

Sofia

$288 17.9%

Guimaraes

$252 15.7% 12.4% $36

Eating Out

Sofia

$256 15.9%

Guimaraes

$184 11.5% 28% $72

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sofia

$197 12.3%

Guimaraes

$167 10.4% 15.5% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Sofia

$157 9.7%

Guimaraes

$135 8.4% 13.6% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Sofia

$69 4.3%

Guimaraes

$60 3.8% 11.9% $8.2

Getting Around

Sofia

$39 2.4%

Guimaraes

$54 3.3% 38.9% $15

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $789 in Sofia versus $936 in Guimaraes. 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 21% higher in Sofia. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $66 in Sofia versus $50 in Guimaraes. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $288 vs $252 – making Guimaraes the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Sofia

🇵🇹 Guimaraes

🕒 Local time

19:26 7:26 PM

17:26 5:26 PM

2 h behind Sofia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,286,383 Capital

156,849

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.571 USD

1 BGN = 0.512 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 November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 1.75 BGN (1 BGN = 0.571 USD). 1 EUR = 1.95 BGN (1 BGN = 0.512 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to BGN in detail →

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Between locations

Sofia Guimaraes 2,600 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Sofia
Guimaraes

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 Guimaraes: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,413 per month in Sofia and $2,409 in Guimaraes. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Sofia, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $789 there versus $936 in Guimaraes.

Groceries cost about 14% more in Sofia, though the gap depends on what you buy.

Kindergarten costs $785 per month in Sofia and $393 in Guimaraes. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,609 in Sofia and $1,606 in Guimaraes, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Sofia has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,606 in Guimaraes to $1,609 in Sofia. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

If budget matters most, go with Guimaraes. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Sofia makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.