Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sofia and Veliky Novgorod

For one person, living is cheaper in Veliky Novgorod: $807 a month against $1,585 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $9,300 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
39

Cost of Living Index in Veliky Novgorod
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Veliky Novgorod Living Index

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Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,585

/mo nomad

Veliky Novgorod

🇷🇺 Russia

$807

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sofia and in Veliky Novgorod

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

A single person spends $1,585 per month in Sofia vs $807 in Veliky Novgorod, rent included.

Sofia $1,585
Veliky Novgorod $807

A couple spends around $2,486 per month in Sofia vs $1,308 in Veliky Novgorod, rent included.

Sofia $2,486
Veliky Novgorod $1,308

A family of three spends $3,387 per month in Sofia vs $1,810 in Veliky Novgorod, rent included.

Sofia $3,387
Veliky Novgorod $1,810

Sofia costs about 97% more than Veliky Novgorod, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sofia sits 17% above the global median, while Veliky Novgorod is 40% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.57 BGN 28.84

$12.26 ₽1,000

35.15%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.7 BGN 118

$43.49 ₽3,547

55.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.68 BGN 20.33

$6.85 ₽558

70.51%

Cappuccino

$3.41 BGN 5.93

$3.20 ₽261

6.56%

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

$2.36 BGN 4.11

$1.71 ₽139

38.01%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.67 BGN 2.91

$0.75 ₽60.8

122.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.99 BGN 6.94

$2.42 ₽197

64.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 BGN 7.88

$3.78 ₽309

19.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.94 BGN 3.38

$1.12 ₽91.4

73.21%

White Bread (500g)

$1.55 BGN 2.70

$0.97 ₽79.4

59.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.35 BGN 4.09

$1.73 ₽141

35.84%

Eggs

$4.60 BGN 8.00

$1.69 ₽138

172.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.47 BGN 19.96

$12.94 ₽1,055

-11.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.65 BGN 15.04

$6.79 ₽554

27.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.34 BGN 30.17

$12.68 ₽1,034

36.75%

Apples (1kg)

$2.15 BGN 3.73

$1.75 ₽143

22.86%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 BGN 3.45

$1.62 ₽132

22.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.83 BGN 3.18

$1.71 ₽140

7.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.27 BGN 7.43

$3.19 ₽260

33.86%

Potato (1kg)

$1.04 BGN 1.82

$0.82 ₽66.7

26.83%

Onion (1kg)

$0.89 BGN 1.54

$0.68 ₽55.3

30.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 BGN 2.06

$1.37 ₽112

-13.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.83 BGN 1.45

$0.77 ₽62.7

7.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.40 BGN 7.66

$3.11 ₽254

41.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.42 BGN 12.91

$9.24 ₽754

-19.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 BGN 2.01

$1.26 ₽103

-7.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 BGN 3.30

$2.14 ₽175

-11.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.92 BGN 1.60

$0.58 ₽46.91

58.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.11 BGN 48.91

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.67 BGN 2.90

$3.16 ₽258

-47.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.85 BGN 1.49

$0.60 ₽49.03

41.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.59 BGN 28.87

$8.64 ₽705

92.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.74 BGN 3.03

$0.88 ₽71.6

97.73%

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

$29.9K BGN 52.1K

$43.5K ₽3.5M

-31.12%

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

$25.0K BGN 43.5K

$37.8K ₽3.1M

-33.86%

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

$158 BGN 275

$158 ₽12.8K

0.21%

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

$21.27 BGN 37.01

$7.93 ₽647

168.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$15.12 BGN 26.30

$8.99 ₽733

68.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.85 BGN 81.5

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.82 BGN 48.41

$22.79 ₽1,859

22.07%

Cinema Ticket

$10.00 BGN 17.39

$7.57 ₽618

32.10%

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

$815 BGN 1,419

$669 ₽54.5K

21.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.6K BGN 25.5K

$23.1K ₽1.9M

-36.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.1 BGN 152

$97.4 ₽7,940

-10.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.28 BGN 66.6

$55.0 ₽4,488

-30.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 BGN 184

$139 ₽11.4K

-24.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 BGN 187

$126 ₽10.3K

-14.77%

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

$1,831 ₽149.4K

147.12%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,109 BGN 5,410

$1,253 ₽102.2K

148.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,780 BGN 3,098

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 Veliky Novgorod: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sofia

$593 37.4%

Veliky Novgorod

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Sofia

$288 18.2%

Veliky Novgorod

$234 29.1% 18.6% $53

Eating Out

Sofia

$254 16%

Veliky Novgorod

$186 23.1% 26.5% $67

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sofia

$194 12.3%

Veliky Novgorod

$174 21.6% 10.2% $20

Clothing & Footwear

Sofia

$152 9.6%

Veliky Novgorod

$188 23.3% 23.5% $36

Sport & Entertainment

Sofia

$67 4.2%

Veliky Novgorod

$15 * 1.9% 77.3% $52

Getting Around

Sofia

$38 2.4%

Veliky Novgorod

$8.5 * 1.1% 77.5% $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 Veliky Novgorod. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $288 vs $234 – making Veliky Novgorod the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇬 Sofia

🇷🇺 Veliky Novgorod

🕒 Local time

12:01 12:01 PM

13:01 1:01 PM

1 h ahead of Sofia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,286,383 Capital

223,191

💱 Currency

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

Russian Ruble RUB ₽

📈 Exchange rate

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.512 EUR

100 RUB = 1.23 USD

100 RUB = 1.09 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RUB, 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).

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 81.56 RUB (100 RUB = 1.23 USD). 1 EUR = 91.6 RUB (100 RUB = 1.09 EUR).

USD to BGN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Sofia Veliky Novgorod 1,840 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Sofia
Veliky Novgorod

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 Veliky Novgorod: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,585 in Sofia, $807 in Veliky Novgorod – Veliky Novgorod comes out roughly 49% 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 $1,210 in Veliky Novgorod. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Groceries cost about 23% more in Sofia, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Veliky Novgorod, where all-in costs run around $807, than in Sofia at $1,585. In Veliky Novgorod it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sofia 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 $807 in Veliky Novgorod to $1,585 in Sofia. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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