Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sofia and Le Havre

For one person, living is cheaper in Le Havre: $1,404 a month against $1,600 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $2,400 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
68

Cost of Living Index in Le Havre
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Le Havre Living Index

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Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,600

/mo nomad

Le Havre

🇫🇷 France

$1,404

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sofia and in Le Havre

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

A single person spends $1,600 per month in Sofia vs $1,404 in Le Havre, rent included.

Sofia $1,600
Le Havre $1,404

A couple spends around $2,490 per month in Sofia vs $2,147 in Le Havre, rent included.

Sofia $2,490
Le Havre $2,147

A family of three spends $3,380 per month in Sofia vs $2,889 in Le Havre, rent included.

Sofia $3,380
Le Havre $2,889

Sofia costs about 14% more than Le Havre, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Sofia and Le Havre sit above the global median – Sofia by 18%, Le Havre by 4%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.96 BGN 29.51

$14.40 €12.81

17.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.3 BGN 119

$55.8 €49.62

22.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.62 BGN 20.21

$13.53 €12.04

-14.12%

Cappuccino

$3.43 BGN 5.98

$2.66 €2.36

28.95%

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

$2.34 BGN 4.08

$2.41 €2.14

-2.90%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 BGN 3.19

$1.47 €1.31

24.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.41 BGN 5.93

$6.88 €6.12

-50.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.44 BGN 7.73

$5.49 €4.88

-19.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.97 BGN 3.42

$1.08 €0.96

82.41%

White Bread (500g)

$1.49 BGN 2.59

$1.72 €1.53

-13.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.33 BGN 4.05

$1.72 €1.53

35.47%

Eggs

$4.41 BGN 7.68

$3.68 €3.27

19.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.54 BGN 20.08

$16.97 €15.10

-32.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.88 BGN 15.44

$12.18 €10.84

-27.09%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.51 BGN 30.46

$24.29 €21.61

-27.91%

Apples (1kg)

$2.15 BGN 3.74

$2.36 €2.10

-8.90%

Banana (1kg)

$2.07 BGN 3.60

$1.93 €1.71

7.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.93 BGN 3.37

$4.54 €4.04

-57.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.25 BGN 7.39

$3.28 €2.92

29.57%

Potato (1kg)

$1.03 BGN 1.79

$0.76 €0.67

35.53%

Onion (1kg)

$0.88 BGN 1.54

$1.91 €1.70

-53.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 BGN 2.07

$1.14 €1.01

4.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 BGN 1.55

$0.18 €0.16

394.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.23 BGN 7.35

$11.08 €9.86

-61.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.87 BGN 13.69

$6.59 €5.86

19.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 BGN 2.06

$3.07 €2.73

-61.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 BGN 3.29

$3.53 €3.14

-46.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.93 BGN 1.62

$1.89 €1.68

-50.79%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.30 BGN 49.24

$33.20 €29.53

-14.76%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.68 BGN 2.93

$6.61 €5.88

-74.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.96 BGN 1.68

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.36 BGN 26.73

$45.57 €40.54

-66.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.77 BGN 3.09

$2.06 €1.83

-14.08%

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

$30.5K BGN 53.1K

$24.6K €21.9K

24.06%

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

$25.1K BGN 43.6K

$37.9K €33.7K

-33.85%

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

$157 BGN 273

$155 €138

1.23%

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

$21.12 BGN 36.74

$13.19 €11.74

60.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.32 BGN 26.65

$30.27 €26.93

-49.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.39 BGN 80.7

$28.96 €25.76

60.19%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.09 BGN 48.87

$8.77 €7.80

220.30%

Cinema Ticket

$10.04 BGN 17.46

$12.20 €10.86

-17.70%

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

$775 BGN 1,348

$506 €450

53.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.5K BGN 21.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.1 BGN 153

$55.9 €49.70

57.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.39 BGN 72.0

$28.12 €25.02

47.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 BGN 186

$90.2 €80.2

18.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 BGN 185

$49.79 €44.29

113.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$770 BGN 1,340

$497 €442

54.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$602 BGN 1,048

$415 €369

45.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,564 BGN 2,721

$958 €852

63.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,036 BGN 1,803

$660 €587

57.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,567 BGN 7,946

$2,824 €2,512

61.75%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,162 BGN 5,502

$1,740 €1,547

81.78%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,742 BGN 3,031

$2,339 €2,080

-25.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.89

3.77

-23.34%

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

Last update for Sofia: October 19, 2026

Last update for Le Havre: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sofia

$602 37.6%

Le Havre

$415 29.6% 31.1% $187

Groceries & Markets

Sofia

$291 18.2%

Le Havre

$341 24.3% 17.1% $50

Eating Out

Sofia

$254 15.9%

Le Havre

$249 17.7% 2.3% $5.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sofia

$194 12.1%

Le Havre

$199 14.1% 2.6% $5.1

Clothing & Footwear

Sofia

$154 9.6%

Le Havre

$101 7.2% 34.6% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Sofia

$66 4.2%

Le Havre

$53 3.8% 19.7% $13

Getting Around

Sofia

$39 2.4%

Le Havre

$47 * 3.4% 22.9% $8.8

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $770 in Sofia versus $497 in Le Havre. 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 34% higher in Le Havre, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $68.0 in Sofia versus $56.0 in Le Havre. Groceries tell a different story – $291 in Sofia vs $341 in Le Havre – so Sofia wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Sofia

🇫🇷 Le Havre

🕒 Local time

19:52 7:52 PM

18:52 6:52 PM

1 h behind Sofia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,286,383 Capital

166,058

💱 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 20, 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 20, 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 Le Havre 1,930 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Sofia
Le Havre

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 Le Havre: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sofia costs about 14% more than Le Havre, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from clothing. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,400 per month in Sofia and $2,107 in Le Havre. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,600 in Sofia and $1,404 in Le Havre. That's a gap of about 14%.

Public transport costs about 17% less in Le Havre. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Le Havre, where all-in costs run around $1,404, than in Sofia at $1,600. In Le Havre it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sofia it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Le Havre costs $1,404 versus $1,600 in Sofia. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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 Le Havre. 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.