Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sofia and Suran

For one person, living is cheaper in Suran: $645 a month against $1,585 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $11,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Sofia, Bulgaria
Suran, Syria
Sofia
🇧🇬 Bulgaria
$1,585
/mo nomad
Suran
🇸🇾 Syria
$645
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sofia and in Suran

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

A single person spends $1,585 per month in Sofia vs $645 in Suran, rent included.

  • Sofia $1,585
  • Suran $645

A couple spends around $2,486 per month in Sofia vs $1,022 in Suran, rent included.

  • Sofia $2,486
  • Suran $1,022

A family of three spends $3,387 per month in Sofia vs $1,398 in Suran, rent included.

  • Sofia $3,387
  • Suran $1,398

Sofia costs about 146% more than Suran, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Sofia sits 17% above the global median, while Suran is 52% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Sofia
Suran
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$16.57 BGN 28.84
$10.16 SYP 1,234
63.09%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$67.7 BGN 118
$42.86 SYP 5,208
57.91%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.68 BGN 20.33
$6.82 SYP 829
71.26%
Cappuccino
$3.41 BGN 5.93
$3.80 SYP 462
-10.26%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.36 BGN 4.11
$2.31 SYP 281
2.16%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.67 BGN 2.91
$0.81 SYP 98.9
106.17%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.99 BGN 6.94
$1.89 SYP 230
111.11%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.53 BGN 7.88
$3.98 SYP 484
13.82%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Sofia
Suran
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.94 BGN 3.38
$1.04 SYP 126
86.54%
White Bread (500g)
$1.55 BGN 2.70
$0.45 SYP 54.5
244.44%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.35 BGN 4.09
$1.63 SYP 198
44.17%
Eggs
$4.60 BGN 8.00
$1.58 SYP 192
191.14%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$11.47 BGN 19.96
$4.02 SYP 489
185.32%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.65 BGN 15.04
$5.81 SYP 706
48.88%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$17.34 BGN 30.17
$13.57 SYP 1,649
27.78%
Apples (1kg)
$2.15 BGN 3.73
$1.02 SYP 124
110.78%
Banana (1kg)
$1.98 BGN 3.45
$1.43 SYP 174
38.46%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.83 BGN 3.18
$1.09 SYP 133
67.89%
Tomato (1kg)
$4.27 BGN 7.43
$1.06 SYP 129
302.83%
Potato (1kg)
$1.04 BGN 1.82
$0.76 SYP 92.1
36.84%
Onion (1kg)
$0.89 BGN 1.54
$0.75 SYP 91.1
18.67%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.19 BGN 2.06
$0.43 SYP 52.5
176.74%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.83 BGN 1.45
$0.63 SYP 76.2
31.75%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.40 BGN 7.66
$2.68 SYP 326
64.18%
Wine (Bottle)
$7.42 BGN 12.91
$5.02 SYP 610
47.81%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.16 BGN 2.01
$1.10 SYP 134
5.45%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.90 BGN 3.30
$2.90 SYP 353
-34.48%
🚌 Getting Around
Sofia
Suran
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.92 BGN 1.60
-
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$28.11 BGN 48.91
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.67 BGN 2.90
$1.03 SYP 125
62.14%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.85 BGN 1.49
$1.50 SYP 183
-43.33%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$16.59 BGN 28.87
$7.66 SYP 931
116.58%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.74 BGN 3.03
$3.76 SYP 457
-53.72%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$29.9K BGN 52.1K
$14.8K SYP 1.8M
102.57%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$25.0K BGN 43.5K
$19.3K SYP 2.3M
29.61%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Sofia
Suran
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$158 BGN 275
$142 SYP 17.2K
11.48%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$21.27 BGN 37.01
$9.47 SYP 1,151
124.60%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$15.12 BGN 26.30
$45.97 SYP 5,586
-67.11%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Sofia
Suran
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$46.85 BGN 81.5
-
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$27.82 BGN 48.41
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$10.00 BGN 17.39
$5.44 SYP 661
83.82%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Sofia
Suran
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$815 BGN 1,419
$67.3 SYP 8,178
1111.58%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$14.6K BGN 25.5K
$1,813 SYP 220.3K
707.98%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Sofia
Suran
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$87.1 BGN 152
$28.11 SYP 3,416
209.82%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$38.28 BGN 66.6
$39.25 SYP 4,770
-2.47%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$106 BGN 184
$61.2 SYP 7,433
72.63%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$107 BGN 187
$58.8 SYP 7,148
82.22%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Sofia
Suran
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$769 BGN 1,338
-
-
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$593 BGN 1,032
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,530 BGN 2,662
-
-
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,061 BGN 1,846
-
-
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,526 BGN 7,875
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$3,109 BGN 5,410
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Sofia
Suran
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,780 BGN 3,098
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
2.89
14.25
-79.72%

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

Last update for Sofia: November 1, 2026

Last update for Suran: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Sofia
$593
Suran
- * 100%
Groceries & Markets
Sofia
$288
Suran
$167 41.9% $120
Eating Out
Sofia
$254
Suran
$177 30.1% $76
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Sofia
$194
Suran
$197 1.5% $2.8
Clothing & Footwear
Sofia
$152
Suran
$84 44.6% $68
Sport & Entertainment
Sofia
$67
Suran
$11 * 83.7% $56
Getting Around
Sofia
$38
Suran
$8.5 * 77.4% $29

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $68 in Sofia versus $43 in Suran. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $288 vs $167 – making Suran the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇧🇬 Sofia
🇸🇾 Suran
🕒 Local time
18:20 6:20 PM
19:20 7:20 PM
1 h ahead of Sofia
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
1,286,383 Capital
30,716
💱 Currency
Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.
Exchange rates and currency converter

SYP, USD, EUR to BGN – Bulgarian Lev Converter

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).

Syrian Pound exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 122 SYP (1,000 SYP = 8.23 USD). 1 EUR = 136 SYP (1,000 SYP = 7.33 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Sofia Suran 1,420 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Sofia
  • Suran

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 Suran: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
How do living costs in Sofia and in Suran compare overall?
Monthly costs with rent: $1,585 in Sofia, $645 in Suran – Suran comes out roughly 59% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.
What salary covers living expenses in Sofia compared to Suran?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,378 per month in Sofia and $968 in Suran. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has cheaper restaurants?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $68 in Sofia and $43 in Suran. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
Which city has cheaper grocery shopping?
Groceries cost about 72% more in Sofia, though the gap depends on what you buy.
Which city is more doable on $1,000 per month?
A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Suran, where all-in costs run around $645, than in Sofia at $1,585. In Suran it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sofia it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
How does quality of life compare between Sofia and Suran?
It depends on your priorities. Sofia has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $645 in Suran to $1,585 in Sofia. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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