Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sofia and Usak

For one person, living is cheaper in Usak: $1,051 a month against $1,585 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $6,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

76

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
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Sofia Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Usak
Learn more

Usak Living Index

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Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,585

/mo nomad

Usak

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,051

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sofia and in Usak

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

A single person spends $1,585 per month in Sofia vs $1,051 in Usak, rent included.

Sofia $1,585
Usak $1,051

A couple spends around $2,486 per month in Sofia vs $1,635 in Usak, rent included.

Sofia $2,486
Usak $1,635

A family of three spends $3,387 per month in Sofia vs $2,219 in Usak, rent included.

Sofia $3,387
Usak $2,219

Sofia costs about 51% more than Usak, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sofia sits 17% above the global median, while Usak is 22% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.57 BGN 28.84

$10.06 ₺503

64.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.7 BGN 118

$43.08 ₺2,156

57.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.68 BGN 20.33

$9.01 ₺451

29.63%

Cappuccino

$3.41 BGN 5.93

$4.27 ₺214

-20.14%

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

$2.36 BGN 4.11

$1.94 ₺97.0

21.65%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.67 BGN 2.91

$0.54 ₺26.99

209.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.99 BGN 6.94

$3.66 ₺183

9.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 BGN 7.88

$4.98 ₺249

-9.04%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.94 BGN 3.38

$1.04 ₺52.2

86.54%

White Bread (500g)

$1.55 BGN 2.70

$1.03 ₺51.7

50.49%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.35 BGN 4.09

$1.98 ₺99.3

18.69%

Eggs

$4.60 BGN 8.00

$2.52 ₺126

82.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.47 BGN 19.96

$9.30 ₺465

23.33%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.65 BGN 15.04

$4.92 ₺246

75.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.34 BGN 30.17

$19.76 ₺989

-12.25%

Apples (1kg)

$2.15 BGN 3.73

$1.72 ₺85.9

25.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 BGN 3.45

$1.80 ₺90.0

10.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.83 BGN 3.18

$0.96 ₺48.05

90.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.27 BGN 7.43

$1.40 ₺70.0

205.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.04 BGN 1.82

$0.61 ₺30.47

70.49%

Onion (1kg)

$0.89 BGN 1.54

$0.56 ₺28.04

58.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 BGN 2.06

$0.85 ₺42.52

40.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.83 BGN 1.45

$0.68 ₺34.05

22.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.40 BGN 7.66

$2.22 ₺111

98.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.42 BGN 12.91

$9.98 ₺500

-25.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 BGN 2.01

$2.17 ₺109

-46.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 BGN 3.30

$3.00 ₺150

-36.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.92 BGN 1.60

$0.67 ₺33.32

37.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.11 BGN 48.91

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.67 BGN 2.90

$0.77 ₺38.46

116.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 BGN 1.49

$1.01 ₺50.6

-15.84%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.59 BGN 28.87

$4.93 ₺247

236.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.74 BGN 3.03

$1.43 ₺71.6

21.68%

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

$29.9K BGN 52.1K

$47.4K ₺2.4M

-36.87%

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

$25.0K BGN 43.5K

$40.3K ₺2.0M

-37.90%

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

$158 BGN 275

$70.2 ₺3,513

124.90%

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

$21.27 BGN 37.01

$11.34 ₺567

87.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.12 BGN 26.30

$15.64 ₺783

-3.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.85 BGN 81.5

$54.3 ₺2,718

-13.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.82 BGN 48.41

Cinema Ticket

$10.00 BGN 17.39

$7.08 ₺354

41.24%

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

$815 BGN 1,419

$698 ₺35.0K

16.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.6K BGN 25.5K

$17.8K ₺888.6K

-17.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.1 BGN 152

$47.35 ₺2,369

83.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.28 BGN 66.6

$32.50 ₺1,626

17.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 BGN 184

$99.3 ₺4,969

6.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 BGN 187

$81.3 ₺4,066

31.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$769 BGN 1,338

$430 ₺21.5K

78.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$593 BGN 1,032

$331 ₺16.6K

79.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,530 BGN 2,662

$780 ₺39.0K

96.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,061 BGN 1,846

$550 ₺27.5K

92.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,526 BGN 7,875

$1,158 ₺57.9K

290.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,109 BGN 5,410

$1,061 ₺53.1K

193.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,780 BGN 3,098

$874 ₺43.7K

103.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.89

-92.77%

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

Last update for Sofia: November 1, 2026

Last update for Usak: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sofia

$593 37.4%

Usak

$331 31.5% 44.2% $262

Groceries & Markets

Sofia

$288 18.2%

Usak

$232 22.1% 19.3% $56

Eating Out

Sofia

$254 16%

Usak

$197 18.7% 22.4% $57

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sofia

$194 12.3%

Usak

$97 9.3% 50% $97

Clothing & Footwear

Sofia

$152 9.6%

Usak

$117 11.2% 23% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Sofia

$67 4.2%

Usak

$68 6.5% 2.4% $1.6

Getting Around

Sofia

$38 2.4%

Usak

$8.5 * 0.8% 77.5% $29

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 $430 in Usak. 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 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $68 in Sofia versus $43 in Usak. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $288 vs $232 – making Usak the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Sofia

🇹🇷 Usak

🕒 Local time

20:20 8:20 PM

21:20 9:20 PM

1 h ahead of Sofia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,286,383 Capital

377,001

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 EUR

100 TRY = 2 USD

100 TRY = 1.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD, EUR to BGN – Bulgarian Lev Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇬 Bulgarian Lev (лв.)

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BGN (1 BGN = 0.575 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.511 EUR).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 50.04 TRY (100 TRY = 2 USD). 1 EUR = 56.23 TRY (100 TRY = 1.78 EUR).

USD to BGN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Sofia Usak 680 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Sofia
Usak

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 Usak: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,585 in Sofia, $1,051 in Usak – Usak comes out roughly 34% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,378 per month in Sofia and $1,577 in Usak. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Usak, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $430 there versus $769 in Sofia.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $68 in Sofia and $43 in Usak. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 24% more in Sofia, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Usak, where all-in costs run around $1,051, than in Sofia at $1,585. In Usak it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sofia it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

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