Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sofia and Ulm

For one person, living is cheaper in Sofia: $1,589 a month against $2,139 in Ulm, rent and utilities included – about $6,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
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Sofia Living Index
104

Cost of Living Index in Ulm
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Ulm Living Index

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Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,589

/mo nomad

Ulm

🇩🇪 Germany

$2,139

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sofia and in Ulm

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

A single person spends $1,589 per month in Sofia vs $2,139 in Ulm, rent included.

Sofia $1,589
Ulm $2,139

A couple spends around $2,456 per month in Sofia vs $3,265 in Ulm, rent included.

Sofia $2,456
Ulm $3,265

A family of three spends $3,324 per month in Sofia vs $4,390 in Ulm, rent included.

Sofia $3,324
Ulm $4,390

Sofia is about 26% cheaper than Ulm, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Sofia and Ulm sit above the global median – Sofia by 19%, Ulm by 60%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.10 BGN 29.93

$16.64 €14.85

2.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.9 BGN 117

$66.4 €59.3

0.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.77 BGN 20.59

$13.29 €11.86

-11.44%

Cappuccino

$3.42 BGN 5.99

$3.80 €3.39

-10.00%

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

$2.42 BGN 4.23

$4.67 €4.16

-48.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.86 BGN 3.26

$1.93 €1.73

-3.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.33 BGN 5.83

$4.67 €4.17

-28.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 BGN 7.92

$4.42 €3.95

2.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 BGN 3.36

$1.45 €1.30

32.41%

White Bread (500g)

$1.51 BGN 2.64

$1.98 €1.76

-23.74%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.21 BGN 3.88

$4.18 €3.73

-47.13%

Eggs

$4.40 BGN 7.69

$3.61 €3.22

21.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.56 BGN 20.22

$14.40 €12.85

-19.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.79 BGN 15.38

$10.23 €9.13

-14.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.97 BGN 29.71

$25.47 €22.73

-33.37%

Apples (1kg)

$2.17 BGN 3.79

$3.48 €3.11

-37.64%

Banana (1kg)

$2.04 BGN 3.57

$2.25 €2.01

-9.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.84 BGN 3.22

$1.98 €1.77

-7.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.29 BGN 7.51

$3.89 €3.47

10.28%

Potato (1kg)

$1.03 BGN 1.80

$1.04 €0.93

-0.96%

Onion (1kg)

$0.93 BGN 1.62

$1.13 €1.01

-17.70%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.20 BGN 2.11

$1.68 €1.50

-28.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.92 BGN 1.62

$1.21 €1.08

-23.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.30 BGN 7.53

$9.97 €8.89

-56.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.33 BGN 12.83

$5.64 €5.03

29.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 BGN 2.06

$1.15 €1.02

2.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 BGN 3.28

$1.49 €1.33

25.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 BGN 1.52

$3.19 €2.84

-72.73%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.14 BGN 49.24

$64.6 €57.7

-56.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.74 BGN 3.04

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.96 BGN 1.68

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.54 BGN 27.19

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 BGN 3.14

$2.11 €1.88

-15.17%

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

$30.0K BGN 52.5K

$32.7K €29.2K

-8.33%

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

$26.4K BGN 46.1K

$38.6K €34.5K

-31.73%

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

$156 BGN 273

$384 €342

-59.36%

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

$21.21 BGN 37.11

$34.18 €30.50

-37.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.64 BGN 27.37

$52.8 €47.12

-70.38%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.76 BGN 81.8

$33.91 €30.26

37.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.74 BGN 48.54

$22.47 €20.05

23.45%

Cinema Ticket

$10.02 BGN 17.53

$13.50 €12.05

-25.78%

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

$766 BGN 1,341

$451 €402

70.10%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.8K BGN 22.4K

$12.9K €11.5K

-0.97%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.7 BGN 157

$90.7 €80.9

-1.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.88 BGN 71.5

$55.3 €49.37

-26.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 BGN 186

$92.4 €82.5

14.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 BGN 183

$150 €134

-30.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$796 BGN 1,393

$958 €855

-16.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$607 BGN 1,063

$756 €674

-19.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,563 BGN 2,735

$1,887 €1,684

-17.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,060 BGN 1,855

$1,515 €1,352

-30.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,357 BGN 7,626

$5,993 €5,349

-27.30%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,250 BGN 5,688

$3,946 €3,522

-17.63%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,740 BGN 3,044

$3,754 €3,350

-53.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.89

3.97

-27.20%

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

Last update for Sofia: October 3, 2026

Last update for Ulm: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sofia

$607 37.9%

Ulm

$756 35% 24.4% $148

Groceries & Markets

Sofia

$287 17.9%

Ulm

$341 15.8% 18.7% $54

Eating Out

Sofia

$256 16%

Ulm

$277 12.9% 8.3% $21

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sofia

$193 12%

Ulm

$471 21.8% 144% $278

Clothing & Footwear

Sofia

$154 9.6%

Ulm

$175 8.1% 13.8% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Sofia

$67 4.2%

Ulm

$61 2.8% 8.8% $5.9

Getting Around

Sofia

$38 2.4%

Ulm

$77 * 3.6% 103% $39

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $796 in Sofia versus $958 in Ulm. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 116% higher in Ulm, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $67.0 in Sofia versus $66.0 in Ulm. Groceries tell a different story – $287 in Sofia vs $341 in Ulm – so Sofia wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Sofia

🇩🇪 Ulm

🕒 Local time

08:17 8:17 AM

07:17 7:17 AM

1 h behind Sofia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,286,383 Capital

121,648

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.571 USD

1 BGN = 0.509 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to BGN – Bulgarian Lev Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇬 Bulgarian Lev (лв.)

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.75 BGN (1 BGN = 0.571 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.509 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to BGN in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Sofia Ulm 1,210 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Sofia
Ulm

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 Ulm: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,589 in Sofia, $2,139 in Ulm – roughly 35% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,384 per month in Sofia and $3,208 in Ulm. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Sofia, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,589 in Sofia and $2,139 in Ulm. That's a gap of about 35%.

Public transport costs about 130% less in Sofia. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Sofia, where all-in costs run around $1,589, than in Ulm at $2,139. In Sofia it covers expenses comfortably, while in Ulm it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Sofia has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,589 in Sofia to $2,139 in Ulm. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

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