Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sofia and Kingston upon Thames

For one person, living is cheaper in Sofia: $1,594 a month against $3,276 in Kingston upon Thames, rent and utilities included – about $20,200 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
161

Cost of Living Index in Kingston upon Thames
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Kingston upon Thames Living Index

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Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,594

/mo nomad

Kingston upon Thames

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,276

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sofia and in Kingston upon Thames

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 Kingston upon Thames actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,594 in Sofia versus $3,276 in Kingston upon Thames.

Sofia $1,594
Kingston upon Thames $3,276

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,478 in Sofia versus $4,746 in Kingston upon Thames.

Sofia $2,478
Kingston upon Thames $4,746

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,361 in Sofia versus $6,216 in Kingston upon Thames.

Sofia $3,361
Kingston upon Thames $6,216

Living in Sofia costs roughly 51% less than in Kingston upon Thames, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Sofia 18% above, Kingston upon Thames 143% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.87 BGN 29.35

$22.10 £16.58

-23.67%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 BGN 115

$86.6 £65.0

-24.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.32 BGN 19.69

$10.42 £7.82

8.64%

Cappuccino

$3.43 BGN 5.98

$5.46 £4.09

-37.18%

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

$2.41 BGN 4.19

$3.00 £2.25

-19.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 BGN 3.22

$1.80 £1.35

2.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 BGN 6.44

$9.20 £6.91

-59.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.58 BGN 7.97

$7.91 £5.93

-42.10%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.02 BGN 3.51

$1.68 £1.26

20.24%

White Bread (500g)

$1.56 BGN 2.72

$1.73 £1.30

-9.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.33 BGN 4.05

$2.45 £1.84

-4.90%

Eggs

$4.36 BGN 7.59

$4.91 £3.68

-11.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.76 BGN 20.47

$8.46 £6.35

39.01%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.83 BGN 15.37

$8.72 £6.54

1.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.46 BGN 30.38

$12.99 £9.74

34.41%

Apples (1kg)

$2.15 BGN 3.74

$3.13 £2.35

-31.31%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 BGN 3.44

$1.35 £1.01

46.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.93 BGN 3.37

$2.61 £1.96

-26.05%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.24 BGN 7.37

$2.90 £2.18

46.21%

Potato (1kg)

$1.04 BGN 1.80

$1.67 £1.25

-37.72%

Onion (1kg)

$0.85 BGN 1.48

$1.71 £1.28

-50.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 BGN 2.00

$1.24 £0.93

-7.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 BGN 1.56

$1.80 £1.35

-50.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.21 BGN 7.33

$23.28 £17.46

-81.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.46 BGN 12.98

$9.31 £6.99

-19.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 BGN 2.01

$3.09 £2.32

-62.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 BGN 3.23

$4.45 £3.34

-58.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 BGN 1.51

$2.37 £1.78

-63.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.53 BGN 49.65

$42.49 £31.88

-32.85%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.68 BGN 2.93

$4.91 £3.69

-65.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.94 BGN 1.63

$1.43 £1.07

-34.27%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.35 BGN 26.70

$23.70 £17.78

-35.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.69 BGN 2.94

$1.98 £1.49

-14.65%

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

$29.8K BGN 51.9K

$37.7K £28.3K

-20.93%

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

$26.1K BGN 45.5K

$39.8K £29.9K

-34.36%

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

$156 BGN 272

$371 £278

-57.88%

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

$21.56 BGN 37.52

$15.63 £11.73

37.94%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.24 BGN 26.51

$40.78 £30.60

-62.63%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.08 BGN 80.2

$102 £76.8

-55.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.92 BGN 48.58

$10.49 £7.87

166.16%

Cinema Ticket

$10.18 BGN 17.72

$19.46 £14.60

-47.69%

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

$774 BGN 1,347

$2,594 £1,946

-70.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.8K BGN 22.3K

$22.2K £16.6K

-42.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.9 BGN 157

$114 £85.7

-21.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.29 BGN 71.8

$53.6 £40.19

-22.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 BGN 183

$78.1 £58.6

34.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 BGN 186

$106 £79.7

0.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$783 BGN 1,362

$2,035 £1,527

-61.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$597 BGN 1,038

$1,832 £1,374

-67.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,516 BGN 2,638

$3,567 £2,676

-57.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,030 BGN 1,792

$3,164 £2,374

-67.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,350 BGN 7,568

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,177 BGN 5,528

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,735 BGN 3,019

$5,303 £3,978

-67.28%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.89

4.74

-39.03%

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

Last update for Sofia: October 13, 2026

Last update for Kingston upon Thames: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sofia

$597 37.4%

Kingston upon Thames

$1.8K 55.9% 207% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Sofia

$290 18.2%

Kingston upon Thames

$298 9.1% 2.6% $7.7

Eating Out

Sofia

$255 16%

Kingston upon Thames

$355 10.8% 39.2% $100

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sofia

$193 12.1%

Kingston upon Thames

$427 13% 121% $234

Clothing & Footwear

Sofia

$154 9.7%

Kingston upon Thames

$158 4.8% 2.7% $4.1

Sport & Entertainment

Sofia

$66 4.2%

Kingston upon Thames

$141 4.3% 113% $75

Getting Around

Sofia

$38 2.4%

Kingston upon Thames

$64 2% 66.8% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $783 in Sofia and $2,035 in Kingston upon Thames. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Kingston upon Thames pays 206% 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 $87.0 in Kingston upon Thames for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $290 vs $298 per month, with Sofia cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Sofia

🇬🇧 Kingston upon Thames

🕒 Local time

09:42 9:42 AM

07:42 7:42 AM

2 h behind Sofia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,286,383 Capital

43,013

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, 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).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

USD to BGN in detail →

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Between locations

Sofia Kingston upon Thames 2,020 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

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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 Kingston upon Thames: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sofia and Kingston upon Thames differ by about 105% in total monthly costs ($1,594 vs $3,276 including rent). Sofia is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 206% lower in Kingston upon Thames. 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 $2,035 in Kingston upon Thames. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Sofia runs roughly 49% less than in Kingston upon Thames. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $774 in Sofia versus $2,594 in Kingston upon Thames. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,594 in Sofia versus $3,276 in Kingston upon Thames, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Sofia but tight or insufficient in Kingston upon Thames. 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 Kingston upon Thames 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 105% less than in Kingston upon Thames. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.