Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Struga and Sofia

For one person, living is cheaper in Struga: $867 a month against $1,594 in Sofia, rent and utilities included – about $8,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

42

Cost of Living Index in Struga
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Struga Living Index
78

Cost of Living Index in Sofia
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Sofia Living Index

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Struga

🇲🇰 North Macedonia

$867

/mo nomad

Sofia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,594

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Struga and in Sofia

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Struga and in Sofia actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $867 per month in Struga vs $1,594 in Sofia, rent included.

Struga $867
Sofia $1,594

A couple spends around $1,319 per month in Struga vs $2,478 in Sofia, rent included.

Struga $1,319
Sofia $2,478

A family of three spends $1,771 per month in Struga vs $3,361 in Sofia, rent included.

Struga $1,771
Sofia $3,361

Struga is about 46% cheaper than Sofia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Struga sits 36% below the global median, while Sofia is 18% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.38 MKD 402

$16.87 BGN 29.35

-56.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.55 MKD 1,612

$65.8 BGN 115

-55.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.35 MKD 292

$11.32 BGN 19.69

-52.74%

Cappuccino

$1.50 MKD 81.9

$3.43 BGN 5.98

-56.27%

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

$1.79 MKD 97.7

$2.41 BGN 4.19

-25.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.17 MKD 63.7

$1.85 BGN 3.22

-36.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.73 MKD 149

$3.70 BGN 6.44

-26.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.04 MKD 166

$4.58 BGN 7.97

-33.62%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.26 MKD 68.9

$2.02 BGN 3.51

-37.62%

White Bread (500g)

$0.69 MKD 37.56

$1.56 BGN 2.72

-55.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 MKD 87.8

$2.33 BGN 4.05

-30.90%

Eggs

$1.97 MKD 107

$4.36 BGN 7.59

-54.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.78 MKD 424

$11.76 BGN 20.47

-33.84%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.37 MKD 348

$8.83 BGN 15.37

-27.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.59 MKD 687

$17.46 BGN 30.38

-27.89%

Apples (1kg)

$1.47 MKD 80.3

$2.15 BGN 3.74

-31.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.32 MKD 71.8

$1.98 BGN 3.44

-33.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.30 MKD 70.7

$1.93 BGN 3.37

-32.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.60 MKD 87.4

$4.24 BGN 7.37

-62.26%

Potato (1kg)

$0.87 MKD 47.52

$1.04 BGN 1.80

-16.35%

Onion (1kg)

$0.80 MKD 43.56

$0.85 BGN 1.48

-5.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.59 MKD 32.44

$1.15 BGN 2.00

-48.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 MKD 29.88

$0.89 BGN 1.56

-38.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.42 MKD 186

$4.21 BGN 7.33

-18.76%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.51 MKD 246

$7.46 BGN 12.98

-39.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.06 MKD 57.9

$1.15 BGN 2.01

-7.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.46 MKD 79.7

$1.85 BGN 3.23

-21.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.89 MKD 48.58

$0.87 BGN 1.51

2.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$53.6 MKD 2,924

$28.53 BGN 49.65

87.91%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.12 MKD 61.0

$1.68 BGN 2.93

-33.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.62 MKD 33.69

$0.94 BGN 1.63

-34.04%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.87 MKD 266

$15.35 BGN 26.70

-68.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.49 MKD 81.3

$1.69 BGN 2.94

-11.83%

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

$36.0K MKD 2.0M

$29.8K BGN 51.9K

20.86%

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

$27.3K MKD 1.5M

$26.1K BGN 45.5K

4.38%

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

$99.8 MKD 5,445

$156 BGN 272

-36.05%

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

$10.97 MKD 599

$21.56 BGN 37.52

-49.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.76 MKD 1,024

$15.24 BGN 26.51

23.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$19.98 MKD 1,090

$46.08 BGN 80.2

-56.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.68 MKD 637

$27.92 BGN 48.58

-58.17%

Cinema Ticket

$7.21 MKD 393

$10.18 BGN 17.72

-29.17%

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

$116 MKD 6,348

$774 BGN 1,347

-84.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,579 MKD 86.1K

$12.8K BGN 22.3K

-87.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$83.5 MKD 4,553

$89.9 BGN 157

-7.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.17 MKD 1,646

$41.29 BGN 71.8

-26.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.1 MKD 3,825

$105 BGN 183

-33.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$52.4 MKD 2,856

$107 BGN 186

-50.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$269 MKD 14.7K

$783 BGN 1,362

-65.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$225 MKD 12.3K

$597 BGN 1,038

-62.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$439 MKD 23.9K

$1,516 BGN 2,638

-71.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$355 MKD 19.4K

$1,030 BGN 1,792

-65.51%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,504 MKD 82.0K

$4,350 BGN 7,568

-65.43%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,328 MKD 72.4K

$3,177 BGN 5,528

-58.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$867 MKD 47.3K

$1,735 BGN 3,019

-50.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.75

2.89

29.76%

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

Last update for Struga: October 11, 2026

Last update for Sofia: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Struga

$225 25.9%

Sofia

$597 37.4% 166% $372

Groceries & Markets

Struga

$186 21.4%

Sofia

$290 18.2% 56.5% $105

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Struga

$130 15%

Sofia

$193 12.1% 48.9% $63

Eating Out

Struga

$125 14.4%

Sofia

$255 16% 104% $130

Clothing & Footwear

Struga

$106 12.3%

Sofia

$154 9.7% 45.3% $48

Getting Around

Struga

$61 7.1%

Sofia

$38 2.4% 37.5% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Struga

$34 4%

Sofia

$66 4.2% 93.1% $32

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $269 in Struga versus $783 in Sofia. 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 100% higher in Sofia, 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 $30.00 in Struga versus $66.0 in Sofia. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $186 vs $290 – making Struga the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇰 Struga

🇧🇬 Sofia

🕒 Local time

02:18 2:18 AM

03:18 3:18 AM

1 h ahead of Struga

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

33,000

1,286,383 Capital

💱 Currency

North Macedonian Denar MKD ден

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

100 MKD = 1.83 USD

100 MKD = 1.63 EUR

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BGN, USD, EUR to MKD – North Macedonian Denar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇰 North Macedonian Denar (ден)

North Macedonian Denar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 54.55 MKD (100 MKD = 1.83 USD). 1 EUR = 61.33 MKD (100 MKD = 1.63 EUR).

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BGN (1 BGN = 0.575 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.511 EUR).

USD to MKD in detail →

On the map

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Struga Sofia 280 km

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Struga
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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

Struga vs Sofia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $867 in Struga, $1,594 in Sofia – roughly 84% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,300 per month in Struga and $2,391 in Sofia. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Struga, 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 $867 in Struga and $1,594 in Sofia. That's a gap of about 84%.

Public transport costs about 88% less in Struga. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Struga, where all-in costs run around $867, than in Sofia at $1,594. In Struga 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 $867 in Struga to $1,594 in Sofia. 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 Struga. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Sofia makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.