Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sofia and Lulea

For one person, living is cheaper in Sofia: $1,589 a month against $1,823 in Lulea, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
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Sofia Living Index
88

Cost of Living Index in Lulea
Learn more

Lulea Living Index

Jump to prices

Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,589

/mo nomad

Lulea

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,823

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sofia and in Lulea

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,589 in Sofia versus $1,823 in Lulea.

Sofia $1,589
Lulea $1,823

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,456 in Sofia versus $2,920 in Lulea.

Sofia $2,456
Lulea $2,920

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,324 in Sofia versus $4,016 in Lulea.

Sofia $3,324
Lulea $4,016

Living in Sofia costs roughly 13% less than in Lulea, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Sofia 19% above, Lulea 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.10 BGN 29.93

$11.72 SEK 117

45.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.9 BGN 117

$95.5 SEK 955

-29.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.77 BGN 20.59

$10.95 SEK 109

7.49%

Cappuccino

$3.42 BGN 5.99

$4.36 SEK 43.52

-21.56%

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

$2.42 BGN 4.23

$2.51 SEK 25.10

-3.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.86 BGN 3.26

$1.87 SEK 18.66

-0.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.33 BGN 5.83

$8.58 SEK 85.8

-61.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 BGN 7.92

$9.49 SEK 94.8

-52.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 BGN 3.36

$1.77 SEK 17.71

8.47%

White Bread (500g)

$1.51 BGN 2.64

$3.26 SEK 32.60

-53.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.21 BGN 3.88

$4.94 SEK 49.41

-55.26%

Eggs

$4.40 BGN 7.69

$4.65 SEK 46.43

-5.38%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.56 BGN 20.22

$12.25 SEK 122

-5.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.79 BGN 15.38

$13.21 SEK 132

-33.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 BGN 29.71

$26.18 SEK 262

-35.18%

Apples (1kg)

$2.17 BGN 3.79

$2.55 SEK 25.47

-14.90%

Banana (1kg)

$2.04 BGN 3.57

$2.65 SEK 26.53

-23.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.84 BGN 3.22

$2.49 SEK 24.87

-26.10%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.29 BGN 7.51

$4.11 SEK 41.10

4.38%

Potato (1kg)

$1.03 BGN 1.80

$2.04 SEK 20.39

-49.51%

Onion (1kg)

$0.93 BGN 1.62

$1.54 SEK 15.43

-39.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.20 BGN 2.11

$3.36 SEK 33.58

-64.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.92 BGN 1.62

$1.29 SEK 12.93

-28.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 BGN 7.53

$6.68 SEK 66.7

-35.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.33 BGN 12.83

$12.05 SEK 120

-39.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 BGN 2.06

$1.78 SEK 17.77

-33.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 BGN 3.28

$1.72 SEK 17.15

8.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 BGN 1.52

$3.32 SEK 33.21

-73.80%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.14 BGN 49.24

$55.4 SEK 554

-49.24%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.74 BGN 3.04

$9.04 SEK 90.3

-80.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.96 BGN 1.68

$2.05 SEK 20.52

-53.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.54 BGN 27.19

$70.6 SEK 706

-77.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 BGN 3.14

$1.77 SEK 17.65

1.13%

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

$30.0K BGN 52.5K

$31.9K SEK 318.5K

-5.91%

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

$26.4K BGN 46.1K

$33.5K SEK 334.6K

-21.26%

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

$156 BGN 273

$160 SEK 1,603

-2.78%

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

$21.21 BGN 37.11

$31.51 SEK 315

-32.69%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.64 BGN 27.37

$26.96 SEK 269

-41.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.76 BGN 81.8

$46.15 SEK 461

1.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.74 BGN 48.54

$35.47 SEK 354

-21.79%

Cinema Ticket

$10.02 BGN 17.53

$12.94 SEK 129

-22.57%

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

$766 BGN 1,341

$153 SEK 1,528

401.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.8K BGN 22.4K

$5,466 SEK 54.6K

133.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.7 BGN 157

$117 SEK 1,168

-23.23%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.88 BGN 71.5

$31.97 SEK 320

27.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 BGN 186

$120 SEK 1,202

-11.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 BGN 183

$161 SEK 1,611

-35.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$796 BGN 1,393

$778 SEK 7,773

2.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$607 BGN 1,063

$581 SEK 5,811

4.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,563 BGN 2,735

$1,418 SEK 14.2K

10.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,060 BGN 1,855

$1,098 SEK 11.0K

-3.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,357 BGN 7,626

$3,049 SEK 30.5K

42.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,250 BGN 5,688

$2,254 SEK 22.5K

44.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,740 BGN 3,044

$2,595 SEK 25.9K

-32.97%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.89

3.85

-24.94%

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

Last update for Sofia: October 3, 2026

Last update for Lulea: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sofia

$607 37.9%

Lulea

$581 32% 4.3% $26

Groceries & Markets

Sofia

$287 17.9%

Lulea

$404 22.2% 40.5% $116

Eating Out

Sofia

$256 16%

Lulea

$258 14.2% 0.9% $2.2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sofia

$193 12%

Lulea

$219 12.1% 13.5% $26

Clothing & Footwear

Sofia

$154 9.6%

Lulea

$194 10.7% 26.1% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Sofia

$67 4.2%

Lulea

$72 4% 7.8% $5.2

Getting Around

Sofia

$38 2.4%

Lulea

$88 4.9% 131% $50

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $796 in Sofia and $778 in Lulea. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lulea pays 49% 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: $67.0 in Sofia vs $96.0 in Lulea for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $287 vs $404 per month, with Sofia cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Sofia

🇸🇪 Lulea

🕒 Local time

08:18 8:18 AM

07:18 7:18 AM

1 h behind Sofia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,286,383 Capital

73,864

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.571 USD

1 BGN = 0.509 EUR

100 SEK = 10.01 USD

100 SEK = 8.92 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SEK, USD, EUR to BGN – Bulgarian Lev Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇬 Bulgarian Lev (лв.)

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.75 BGN (1 BGN = 0.571 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.509 EUR).

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 9.99 SEK (1 SEK = 0.1 USD). 1 EUR = 11.21 SEK (100 SEK = 8.92 EUR).

USD to BGN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Sofia Lulea 2,550 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Sofia
Lulea

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 Lulea: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sofia wins on cost – living expenses run 15% lower than in Lulea. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Sofia the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 49% lower in Lulea. 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: $796 in Sofia versus $778 in Lulea. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 41% higher in Lulea. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Sofia – a meal for two runs $67.0 versus $96.0 in Lulea. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,589 in Sofia versus $1,823 in Lulea, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Sofia but tight or insufficient in Lulea. The gap between the two cities makes Sofia the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Sofia delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,589 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Sofia hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Sofia and Lulea 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 15% less than in Lulea. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.