Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sofia and Maykop

For one person, living is cheaper in Maykop: $1,077 a month against $1,609 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $6,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

77

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
Learn more

Sofia Living Index
52

Cost of Living Index in Maykop
Learn more

Maykop Living Index

Jump to prices

Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,609

/mo nomad

Maykop

🇷🇺 Russia

$1,077

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sofia and in Maykop

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,609 in Sofia versus $1,077 in Maykop.

Sofia $1,609
Maykop $1,077

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,495 in Sofia versus $1,637 in Maykop.

Sofia $2,495
Maykop $1,637

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,381 in Sofia versus $2,196 in Maykop.

Sofia $3,381
Maykop $2,196

Living in Sofia is roughly 49% more expensive than in Maykop, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Sofia is 18% above, Maykop is 21% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.88 BGN 29.70

$11.25 ₽908

50.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.5 BGN 117

$24.02 ₽1,937

176.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.59 BGN 20.40

$6.13 ₽494

89.07%

Cappuccino

$3.52 BGN 6.20

$2.25 ₽182

56.44%

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

$2.42 BGN 4.25

$0.69 ₽55.5

250.72%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.77 BGN 3.11

$0.29 ₽23.16

510.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.68 BGN 6.48

$1.44 ₽116

155.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.38 BGN 7.70

$2.82 ₽227

55.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.96 BGN 3.44

$1.01 ₽81.5

94.06%

White Bread (500g)

$1.51 BGN 2.65

$0.59 ₽47.76

155.93%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 BGN 3.87

$1.52 ₽122

44.74%

Eggs

$4.40 BGN 7.75

$1.32 ₽106

233.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.76 BGN 20.70

$13.09 ₽1,056

-10.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.68 BGN 15.28

$4.87 ₽393

78.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.37 BGN 30.57

$8.42 ₽679

106.29%

Apples (1kg)

$2.13 BGN 3.75

$1.70 ₽137

25.29%

Banana (1kg)

$2.05 BGN 3.61

$2.04 ₽165

0.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.93 BGN 3.40

$1.66 ₽134

16.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.17 BGN 7.34

$4.06 ₽328

2.71%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 BGN 1.90

$1.08 ₽87.1

Onion (1kg)

$0.91 BGN 1.60

$0.69 ₽55.3

31.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 BGN 2.08

$1.03 ₽83.3

14.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.84 BGN 1.47

$0.73 ₽59.1

15.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.18 BGN 7.36

$3.71 ₽299

12.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.68 BGN 13.51

$6.03 ₽486

27.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.17 BGN 2.06

$0.93 ₽74.9

25.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 BGN 3.17

$2.14 ₽173

-15.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 BGN 1.52

$0.57 ₽45.77

52.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.06 BGN 51.1

$27.40 ₽2,210

6.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.68 BGN 2.96

$3.77 ₽304

-55.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.87 BGN 1.54

$0.16 ₽13.25

443.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.76 BGN 27.74

$4.16 ₽335

278.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.73 BGN 3.04

$0.84 ₽67.6

105.95%

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

$29.7K BGN 52.2K

$53.9K ₽4.3M

-44.95%

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

$25.6K BGN 45.0K

$42.6K ₽3.4M

-39.97%

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

$161 BGN 283

$137 ₽11.0K

17.48%

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

$21.08 BGN 37.10

$9.86 ₽796

113.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.19 BGN 26.73

$9.20 ₽742

65.11%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.34 BGN 85.1

$37.57 ₽3,030

28.67%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.47 BGN 48.35

$22.42 ₽1,808

22.52%

Cinema Ticket

$10.16 BGN 17.88

$5.52 ₽446

84.06%

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

$785 BGN 1,382

$376 ₽30.4K

108.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.8K BGN 22.4K

$6,009 ₽484.6K

112.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.8 BGN 158

$57.5 ₽4,637

56.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.29 BGN 72.7

$45.50 ₽3,670

-9.25%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 BGN 189

$112 ₽9,034

-4.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$109 BGN 192

$134 ₽10.8K

-18.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$789 BGN 1,389

$486 ₽39.2K

62.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$604 BGN 1,063

$326 ₽26.3K

84.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,517 BGN 2,670

$936 ₽75.5K

61.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,037 BGN 1,825

$585 ₽47.2K

77.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,407 BGN 7,756

$1,934 ₽156.0K

127.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,137 BGN 5,521

$1,353 ₽109.1K

131.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,736 BGN 3,056

$531 ₽42.8K

226.98%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.89

19.83

-85.43%

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

Last update for Sofia: October 27, 2026

Last update for Maykop: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sofia

$604 37.5%

Maykop

$326 30.3% 45.9% $277

Groceries & Markets

Sofia

$288 17.9%

Maykop

$202 18.8% 29.7% $86

Eating Out

Sofia

$256 15.9%

Maykop

$152 14.1% 40.5% $104

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sofia

$197 12.3%

Maykop

$156 14.5% 20.9% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Sofia

$157 9.7%

Maykop

$157 14.6% 0.4% $0.6

Sport & Entertainment

Sofia

$69 4.3%

Maykop

$49 4.5% 29.2% $20

Getting Around

Sofia

$39 2.4%

Maykop

$34 3.2% 11.2% $4.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $789 in Sofia and $486 in Maykop. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sofia pays about 3.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $66 in Sofia vs $24 in Maykop for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $288 vs $202 per month, with Maykop cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Sofia

🇷🇺 Maykop

🕒 Local time

17:18 5:18 PM

18:18 6:18 PM

1 h ahead of Sofia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,286,383 Capital

139,084

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Russian Ruble RUB ₽

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.568 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 EUR

100 RUB = 1.24 USD

100 RUB = 1.11 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RUB, USD, EUR to BGN – Bulgarian Lev Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇬 Bulgarian Lev (лв.)

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1.76 BGN (1 BGN = 0.568 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.511 EUR).

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 80.65 RUB (100 RUB = 1.24 USD). 1 EUR = 89.76 RUB (100 RUB = 1.11 EUR).

USD to BGN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Sofia Maykop 1,360 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Sofia
Maykop

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 Maykop: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Maykop is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and leisure. The 49% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Sofia is about 3.3 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $789 in Sofia versus $486 in Maykop. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $785 in Sofia versus $376 in Maykop. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 42% higher in Sofia. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,077 in Maykop versus $1,609 in Sofia, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Maykop but tight or insufficient in Sofia. The gap between the two cities makes Maykop 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 Maykop 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 Maykop gentler on the wallet – expenses run 33% less than in Sofia. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.