Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sofia and Oskemen

For one person, living is cheaper in Oskemen: $900 a month against $1,585 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $8,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
Learn more

Sofia Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in Oskemen
Learn more

Oskemen Living Index

Jump to prices

Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,585

/mo nomad

Oskemen

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan

$900

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sofia and in Oskemen

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

A single person spends $1,585 per month in Sofia vs $900 in Oskemen, rent included.

Sofia $1,585
Oskemen $900

A couple spends around $2,486 per month in Sofia vs $1,514 in Oskemen, rent included.

Sofia $2,486
Oskemen $1,514

A family of three spends $3,387 per month in Sofia vs $2,128 in Oskemen, rent included.

Sofia $3,387
Oskemen $2,128

Sofia costs about 76% more than Oskemen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Sofia sits 17% above the global median, while Oskemen is 33% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.57 BGN 28.84

$13.09 ₸5,900

26.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.7 BGN 118

$26.48 ₸11.9K

155.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.68 BGN 20.33

$4.08 ₸1,837

186.27%

Cappuccino

$3.41 BGN 5.93

$3.34 ₸1,506

2.10%

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

$2.36 BGN 4.11

$0.98 ₸442

140.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.67 BGN 2.91

$0.56 ₸251

198.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.99 BGN 6.94

$1.51 ₸683

164.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 BGN 7.88

$1.62 ₸731

179.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.94 BGN 3.38

$1.45 ₸653

33.79%

White Bread (500g)

$1.55 BGN 2.70

$0.49 ₸223

216.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.35 BGN 4.09

$1.36 ₸615

72.79%

Eggs

$4.60 BGN 8.00

$1.79 ₸808

156.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.47 BGN 19.96

$10.37 ₸4,676

10.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.65 BGN 15.04

$5.95 ₸2,684

45.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.34 BGN 30.17

$8.07 ₸3,640

114.87%

Apples (1kg)

$2.15 BGN 3.73

$1.17 ₸528

83.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 BGN 3.45

$2.00 ₸900

-1.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.83 BGN 3.18

$2.68 ₸1,207

-31.72%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.27 BGN 7.43

$2.48 ₸1,119

72.18%

Potato (1kg)

$1.04 BGN 1.82

$0.91 ₸410

14.29%

Onion (1kg)

$0.89 BGN 1.54

$0.53 ₸238

67.92%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 BGN 2.06

$0.32 ₸144

271.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.83 BGN 1.45

$1.06 ₸478

-21.70%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.40 BGN 7.66

$2.26 ₸1,018

94.69%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.42 BGN 12.91

$4.93 ₸2,223

50.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 BGN 2.01

$1.46 ₸656

-20.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 BGN 3.30

$1.63 ₸734

16.56%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.92 BGN 1.60

$0.30 ₸137

206.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.11 BGN 48.91

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.67 BGN 2.90

$1.09 ₸491

53.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 BGN 1.49

$0.30 ₸133

183.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.59 BGN 28.87

$2.45 ₸1,106

577.14%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.74 BGN 3.03

$0.63 ₸286

176.19%

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

$29.9K BGN 52.1K

$31.9K ₸14.4M

-6.28%

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

$25.0K BGN 43.5K

$31.0K ₸14.0M

-19.20%

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

$158 BGN 275

$46.49 ₸21.0K

239.56%

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

$21.27 BGN 37.01

$11.55 ₸5,206

84.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.12 BGN 26.30

$22.42 ₸10.1K

-32.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.85 BGN 81.5

$26.09 ₸11.8K

79.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.82 BGN 48.41

$20.08 ₸9,050

38.55%

Cinema Ticket

$10.00 BGN 17.39

$5.00 ₸2,255

100.00%

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

$815 BGN 1,419

$66.8 ₸30.1K

1121.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.6K BGN 25.5K

$2,797 ₸1.3M

423.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.1 BGN 152

$115 ₸51.8K

-24.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.28 BGN 66.6

$81.5 ₸36.7K

-53.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 BGN 184

$98.5 ₸44.4K

7.23%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 BGN 187

$122 ₸55.0K

-12.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$769 BGN 1,338

$348 ₸156.7K

121.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$593 BGN 1,032

$222 ₸100.1K

167.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,530 BGN 2,662

$653 ₸294.4K

134.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,061 BGN 1,846

$566 ₸255.3K

87.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,526 BGN 7,875

$1,132 ₸510.2K

299.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,109 BGN 5,410

$831 ₸374.7K

274.08%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,780 BGN 3,098

$779 ₸351.4K

128.42%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.89

19.5

-85.18%

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

Last update for Sofia: November 1, 2026

Last update for Oskemen: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sofia

$593 37.4%

Oskemen

$222 24.7% 62.6% $371

Groceries & Markets

Sofia

$288 18.2%

Oskemen

$196 21.8% 31.8% $91

Eating Out

Sofia

$254 16%

Oskemen

$174 19.3% 31.4% $80

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sofia

$194 12.3%

Oskemen

$80 8.9% 58.6% $114

Clothing & Footwear

Sofia

$152 9.6%

Oskemen

$188 20.8% 23.3% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Sofia

$67 4.2%

Oskemen

$36 4% 46% $31

Getting Around

Sofia

$38 2.4%

Oskemen

$3.8 * 0.4% 90% $34

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $769 in Sofia versus $348 in Oskemen. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Sofia are about 2.3 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $68 in Sofia versus $26 in Oskemen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $288 vs $196 – making Oskemen the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Sofia

🇰🇿 Oskemen

🕒 Local time

05:49 5:49 AM

08:49 8:49 AM

3 h ahead of Sofia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,286,383 Capital

354,770

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Kazakhstani Tenge KZT ₸

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.512 EUR

1,000 KZT = 2.22 USD

1,000 KZT = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KZT, 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).

Kazakhstani Tenge exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 451 KZT (1,000 KZT = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 506 KZT (1,000 KZT = 1.98 EUR).

USD to BGN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Sofia Oskemen 4,500 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Sofia
Oskemen

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 Oskemen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,585 in Sofia, $900 in Oskemen – Oskemen comes out roughly 43% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,378 per month in Sofia and $1,350 in Oskemen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Oskemen, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $348 there versus $769 in Sofia.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,585 in Sofia and $900 in Oskemen. That makes Oskemen about 43% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $815 per month in Sofia and $67 in Oskemen. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Oskemen, where all-in costs run around $900, than in Sofia at $1,585. In Oskemen it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sofia it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Oskemen – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Oskemen. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Sofia makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.