Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sofia and Mardan

For one person, living is cheaper in Mardan: $502 a month against $1,585 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $13,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
Learn more

Sofia Living Index
24

Cost of Living Index in Mardan
Learn more

Mardan Living Index

Jump to prices

Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,585

/mo nomad

Mardan

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$502

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sofia and in Mardan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,585 in Sofia versus $502 in Mardan.

Sofia $1,585
Mardan $502

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,486 in Sofia versus $788 in Mardan.

Sofia $2,486
Mardan $788

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,387 in Sofia versus $1,075 in Mardan.

Sofia $3,387
Mardan $1,075

Living in Sofia is roughly 216% more expensive than in Mardan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Sofia is 17% above, Mardan is 63% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.57 BGN 28.84

$3.55 PKR 982

366.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.7 BGN 118

$24.04 PKR 6,649

181.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.68 BGN 20.33

$5.30 PKR 1,466

120.38%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.68 PKR 1,018

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.96 PKR 1,925

Cappuccino

$3.41 BGN 5.93

$2.65 PKR 732

28.68%

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

$2.36 BGN 4.11

$0.34 PKR 94.2

594.12%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.67 BGN 2.91

$0.22 PKR 60.6

659.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.99 BGN 6.94

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 BGN 7.88

Milk (1 liter)

$1.94 BGN 3.38

$0.89 PKR 245

117.98%

White Bread (500g)

$1.55 BGN 2.70

$0.74 PKR 205

109.46%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.35 BGN 4.09

$1.24 PKR 344

89.52%

Eggs

$4.60 BGN 8.00

$1.15 PKR 319

300.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.47 BGN 19.96

$2.88 PKR 796

298.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.65 BGN 15.04

$2.98 PKR 823

190.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.34 BGN 30.17

$3.74 PKR 1,034

363.64%

Apples (1kg)

$2.15 BGN 3.73

$0.91 PKR 253

136.26%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 BGN 3.45

$0.73 PKR 202

171.23%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.83 BGN 3.18

$1.03 PKR 286

77.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.27 BGN 7.43

$0.38 PKR 104

1023.68%

Potato (1kg)

$1.04 BGN 1.82

$0.30 PKR 83.4

246.67%

Onion (1kg)

$0.89 BGN 1.54

$0.37 PKR 101

140.54%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 BGN 2.06

$0.30 PKR 83.8

296.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.83 BGN 1.45

$0.34 PKR 95.4

144.12%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.80 PKR 497

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 PKR 332

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.41 PKR 667

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.40 BGN 7.66

$1.77 PKR 490

148.59%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.42 BGN 12.91

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 BGN 2.01

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 BGN 3.30

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.92 BGN 1.60

$0.16 PKR 45.48

475.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.11 BGN 48.91

$9.28 PKR 2,567

202.91%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.67 BGN 2.90

$1.24 PKR 344

34.68%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 BGN 1.49

$0.69 PKR 191

23.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.59 BGN 28.87

$1.65 PKR 457

905.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.74 BGN 3.03

$1.01 PKR 280

72.28%

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

$29.9K BGN 52.1K

$21.6K PKR 6.0M

38.74%

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

$25.0K BGN 43.5K

$23.1K PKR 6.4M

8.30%

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

$158 BGN 275

$102 PKR 28.3K

54.30%

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

$21.27 BGN 37.01

$5.95 PKR 1,647

257.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.12 BGN 26.30

$17.03 PKR 4,710

-11.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.85 BGN 81.5

$16.14 PKR 4,464

190.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.82 BGN 48.41

$7.66 PKR 2,120

263.19%

Cinema Ticket

$10.00 BGN 17.39

$5.02 PKR 1,389

99.20%

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

$815 BGN 1,419

$41.83 PKR 11.6K

1849.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.6K BGN 25.5K

$1,045 PKR 289.0K

1301.39%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.1 BGN 152

$25.92 PKR 7,169

236.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.28 BGN 66.6

$35.23 PKR 9,743

8.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 BGN 184

$96.2 PKR 26.6K

9.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 BGN 187

$40.90 PKR 11.3K

162.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$769 BGN 1,338

$138 PKR 38.1K

458.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$593 BGN 1,032

$85.4 PKR 23.6K

594.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,530 BGN 2,662

$265 PKR 73.3K

477.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,061 BGN 1,846

$179 PKR 49.6K

492.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,526 BGN 7,875

$896 PKR 247.7K

405.33%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,109 BGN 5,410

$432 PKR 119.5K

619.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,780 BGN 3,098

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.89

13.08

-77.91%

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

Last update for Sofia: November 1, 2026

Last update for Mardan: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sofia

$593 37.4%

Mardan

$85 17% 85.6% $508

Groceries & Markets

Sofia

$288 18.2%

Mardan

$83 16.5% 71.3% $205

Eating Out

Sofia

$254 16%

Mardan

$78 15.6% 69.1% $175

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sofia

$194 12.3%

Mardan

$125 25% 35.5% $69

Clothing & Footwear

Sofia

$152 9.6%

Mardan

$89 17.8% 41.4% $63

Sport & Entertainment

Sofia

$67 4.2%

Mardan

$26 5.2% 60.8% $41

Getting Around

Sofia

$38 2.4%

Mardan

$15 2.9% 61.2% $23

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $769 in Sofia and $138 in Mardan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $68 in Sofia vs $24 in Mardan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $288 vs $83 per month, with Mardan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Sofia

🇵🇰 Mardan

🕒 Local time

10:17 10:17 AM

13:17 1:17 PM

3 h ahead of Sofia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,286,383 Capital

358,604

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.512 EUR

1,000 PKR = 3.62 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PKR, USD, EUR to BGN – Bulgarian Lev Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇬 Bulgarian Lev (лв.)

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BGN (1 BGN = 0.575 USD). 1 EUR = 1.95 BGN (1 BGN = 0.512 EUR).

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.62 USD). 1 EUR = 311 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR).

USD to BGN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Sofia Mardan 4,290 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Sofia
Mardan

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 Mardan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mardan is about 68% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You’d need roughly $2,378 in Sofia and $752 in Mardan to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $769 in Sofia versus $138 in Mardan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $815 in Sofia versus $42 in Mardan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 249% higher in Sofia. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $502 in Mardan versus $1,585 in Sofia, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Mardan but tight or insufficient in Sofia. The gap between the two cities makes Mardan 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.

Expats usually find Mardan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 68% less than in Sofia. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.