Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sofia and Rapperswil

For one person, living is cheaper in Sofia: $1,609 a month against $3,330 in Rapperswil, rent and utilities included – about $20,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

77

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
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Sofia Living Index
161

Cost of Living Index in Rapperswil
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Rapperswil Living Index

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Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,609

/mo nomad

Rapperswil

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,330

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sofia and in Rapperswil

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,609 in Sofia versus $3,330 in Rapperswil.

Sofia $1,609
Rapperswil $3,330

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,495 in Sofia versus $5,029 in Rapperswil.

Sofia $2,495
Rapperswil $5,029

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,381 in Sofia versus $6,729 in Rapperswil.

Sofia $3,381
Rapperswil $6,729

Living in Sofia costs roughly 52% less than in Rapperswil, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Sofia 18% above, Rapperswil 145% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.88 BGN 29.70

$23.80 CHF 19.74

-29.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.5 BGN 117

$95.5 CHF 79.3

-30.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.59 BGN 20.40

$16.02 CHF 13.29

-27.65%

Cappuccino

$3.52 BGN 6.20

$6.08 CHF 5.04

-42.11%

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

$2.42 BGN 4.25

$4.70 CHF 3.90

-48.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.77 BGN 3.11

$4.82 CHF 4.00

-63.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.68 BGN 6.48

$8.65 CHF 7.17

-57.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.38 BGN 7.70

$6.00 CHF 4.98

-27.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.96 BGN 3.44

$2.14 CHF 1.78

-8.41%

White Bread (500g)

$1.51 BGN 2.65

$3.39 CHF 2.81

-55.46%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 BGN 3.87

$4.35 CHF 3.61

-49.43%

Eggs

$4.40 BGN 7.75

$7.80 CHF 6.47

-43.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.76 BGN 20.70

$26.76 CHF 22.20

-56.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.68 BGN 15.28

$26.19 CHF 21.73

-66.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.37 BGN 30.57

$40.71 CHF 33.77

-57.33%

Apples (1kg)

$2.13 BGN 3.75

$3.60 CHF 2.99

-40.83%

Banana (1kg)

$2.05 BGN 3.61

$2.15 CHF 1.79

-4.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.93 BGN 3.40

$2.62 CHF 2.17

-26.34%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.17 BGN 7.34

$4.81 CHF 3.99

-13.31%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 BGN 1.90

$2.04 CHF 1.69

-47.06%

Onion (1kg)

$0.91 BGN 1.60

$2.19 CHF 1.82

-58.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 BGN 2.08

$2.32 CHF 1.92

-49.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.84 BGN 1.47

$1.37 CHF 1.14

-38.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.18 BGN 7.36

$10.74 CHF 8.91

-61.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.68 BGN 13.51

$13.18 CHF 10.94

-41.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.17 BGN 2.06

$2.25 CHF 1.87

-48.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 BGN 3.17

$3.44 CHF 2.86

-47.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 BGN 1.52

$4.37 CHF 3.62

-80.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.06 BGN 51.1

$100.0 CHF 82.9

-70.93%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.68 BGN 2.96

$7.56 CHF 6.27

-77.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.87 BGN 1.54

$4.97 CHF 4.13

-82.49%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.76 BGN 27.74

$88.3 CHF 73.3

-82.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.73 BGN 3.04

$2.17 CHF 1.80

-20.28%

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

$29.7K BGN 52.2K

$39.6K CHF 32.8K

-25.01%

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

$25.6K BGN 45.0K

$38.9K CHF 32.3K

-34.20%

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

$161 BGN 283

$237 CHF 196

-32.00%

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

$21.08 BGN 37.10

$31.70 CHF 26.30

-33.50%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.19 BGN 26.73

$65.1 CHF 54.0

-76.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.34 BGN 85.1

$88.7 CHF 73.6

-45.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.47 BGN 48.35

$45.22 CHF 37.52

-39.25%

Cinema Ticket

$10.16 BGN 17.88

$21.76 CHF 18.05

-53.31%

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

$785 BGN 1,382

$2,879 CHF 2,389

-72.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.8K BGN 22.4K

$43.7K CHF 36.3K

-70.81%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.8 BGN 158

$141 CHF 117

-36.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.29 BGN 72.7

$88.1 CHF 73.0

-53.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 BGN 189

$149 CHF 124

-27.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$109 BGN 192

$174 CHF 144

-37.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$789 BGN 1,389

$1,769 CHF 1,468

-55.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$604 BGN 1,063

$1,478 CHF 1,226

-59.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,517 BGN 2,670

$2,984 CHF 2,475

-49.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,037 BGN 1,825

$2,524 CHF 2,094

-58.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,407 BGN 7,756

$16.6K CHF 13.7K

-73.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,137 BGN 5,521

$12.6K CHF 10.5K

-75.16%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,736 BGN 3,056

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.89

1.72

68.02%

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

Last update for Sofia: October 27, 2026

Last update for Rapperswil: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sofia

$604 37.5%

Rapperswil

$1.5K 44.4% 145% $874

Groceries & Markets

Sofia

$288 17.9%

Rapperswil

$583 17.5% 103% $295

Eating Out

Sofia

$256 15.9%

Rapperswil

$405 12.2% 58.1% $149

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sofia

$197 12.3%

Rapperswil

$333 10% 69.1% $136

Clothing & Footwear

Sofia

$157 9.7%

Rapperswil

$248 7.5% 58.6% $92

Sport & Entertainment

Sofia

$69 4.3%

Rapperswil

$132 4% 92.5% $64

Getting Around

Sofia

$39 2.4%

Rapperswil

$150 4.5% 289% $111

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $789 in Sofia and $1,769 in Rapperswil. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $66 in Sofia vs $96 in Rapperswil for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $288 vs $583 per month, with Sofia cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Sofia

🇨🇭 Rapperswil

🕒 Local time

17:37 5:37 PM

16:37 4:37 PM

1 h behind Sofia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,286,383 Capital

26,354

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.568 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 EUR

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CHF, 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).

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.83 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.923 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

USD to BGN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Sofia Rapperswil 1,240 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Sofia
Rapperswil

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 Rapperswil: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sofia and Rapperswil differ by about 107% in total monthly costs ($1,609 vs $3,330 including rent). Sofia is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,413 in Sofia and $4,995 in Rapperswil 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: $789 in Sofia versus $1,769 in Rapperswil. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,609 per month in Sofia versus $3,330 in Rapperswil – a 107% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Sofia runs roughly 71% less than in Rapperswil. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your budget.

At $1,609 in Sofia versus $3,330 in Rapperswil, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Sofia but tight or insufficient in Rapperswil. The gap between the two cities makes Sofia 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 Rapperswil 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 52% less than in Rapperswil. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.