Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between the United Kingdom and Bulgaria

Name: Bulgaria
Address: BG

For one person, living is cheaper in Bulgaria: $1,159 a month against $2,478 in the United Kingdom, rent and utilities included – about $15,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

119

Cost of Living Index in the United Kingdom
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United Kingdom Living Index
56

Cost of Living Index in Bulgaria
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Bulgaria Living Index

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🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,478

/mo nomad

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

$1,159

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in the United Kingdom and in Bulgaria

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,478 in the United Kingdom versus $1,159 in Bulgaria.

United Kingdom $2,478
Bulgaria $1,159

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,608 in the United Kingdom versus $1,775 in Bulgaria.

United Kingdom $3,608
Bulgaria $1,775

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,739 in the United Kingdom versus $2,390 in Bulgaria.

United Kingdom $4,739
Bulgaria $2,390

Internal cost variation is higher in the United Kingdom: monthly costs span $1,143 to $4,049, compared to $554–$1,600 in Bulgaria. City choice carries more weight in the United Kingdom.

Living in the United Kingdom is roughly 114% more expensive than in Bulgaria on average.

The United Kingdom (83% above) and Bulgaria (14% below) straddle the global median.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.61 £16.21

$11.41 BGN 19.86

89.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$87.7 £65.8

$45.05 BGN 78.4

94.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.82 £8.12

$10.38 BGN 18.06

4.24%

Cappuccino

$4.77 £3.58

$2.58 BGN 4.49

84.88%

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

$2.64 £1.98

$1.62 BGN 2.81

62.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.88 £1.41

$1.23 BGN 2.14

52.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.59 £4.94

$2.25 BGN 3.91

192.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.56 £4.92

$3.34 BGN 5.81

96.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.64 £1.23

$1.83 BGN 3.18

-10.38%

White Bread (500g)

$1.65 £1.23

$1.18 BGN 2.05

39.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 £1.68

$2.26 BGN 3.93

-1.33%

Eggs

$4.06 £3.05

$3.44 BGN 5.98

18.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.64 £7.23

$10.15 BGN 17.67

-5.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.14 £6.86

$7.99 BGN 13.91

14.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.77 £11.08

$13.01 BGN 22.63

13.53%

Apples (1kg)

$2.92 £2.19

$1.70 BGN 2.96

71.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.65 £1.24

$2.01 BGN 3.50

-17.91%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.80 £2.10

$1.83 BGN 3.19

53.01%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.32 £2.49

$2.67 BGN 4.65

24.34%

Potato (1kg)

$1.81 £1.36

$1.06 BGN 1.84

70.75%

Onion (1kg)

$1.56 £1.17

$1.03 BGN 1.79

51.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.24 £0.93

$1.06 BGN 1.85

16.98%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 £1.25

$0.71 BGN 1.24

133.80%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.79 £17.85

$3.80 BGN 6.62

526.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.46 £7.85

$6.68 BGN 11.63

56.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.94 £2.21

$1.07 BGN 1.86

174.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.39 £2.54

$1.76 BGN 3.06

92.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.51 £2.63

$0.87 BGN 1.52

303.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$104 £78.3

$27.69 BGN 48.18

276.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.42 £4.06

$1.52 BGN 2.64

256.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.40 £1.80

$0.73 BGN 1.27

228.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.06 £20.30

$12.25 BGN 21.31

120.90%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 £1.47

$1.61 BGN 2.79

21.74%

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

$38.7K £29.0K

$30.2K BGN 52.5K

28.31%

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

$41.2K £30.9K

$24.5K BGN 42.7K

68.13%

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

$323 £242

$126 BGN 220

156.01%

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

$18.55 £13.92

$18.70 BGN 32.54

-0.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.14 £31.61

$14.05 BGN 24.44

199.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.76 £35.08

$33.65 BGN 58.6

38.96%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.95 £13.47

$18.06 BGN 31.43

-0.61%

Cinema Ticket

$13.85 £10.39

$8.53 BGN 14.85

62.37%

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

$1,725 £1,294

$567 BGN 986

204.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.6K £16.9K

$9,482 BGN 16.5K

138.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$92.8 £69.6

$58.4 BGN 102

58.83%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.58 £34.94

$33.29 BGN 57.9

39.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 £76.5

$90.4 BGN 157

12.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 £76.6

$89.7 BGN 156

13.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,348 £1,011

$478 BGN 832

181.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,098 £824

$364 BGN 633

201.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,160 £1,620

$781 BGN 1,359

176.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,745 £1,309

$579 BGN 1,007

201.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,578 £4,184

$2,178 BGN 3,791

156.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,418 £3,315

$1,601 BGN 2,785

176.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,358 £2,519

$1,129 BGN 1,965

197.29%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.32

3.16

68.35%

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

Last update for the United Kingdom: October 20, 2026

Last update for Bulgaria: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

United Kingdom

$1.1K 44.3%

Bulgaria

$364 31.4% 66.8% $734

Monthly Utilities & Internet

United Kingdom

$384 15.5%

Bulgaria

$159 13.7% 58.6% $225

Eating Out

United Kingdom

$327 13.2%

Bulgaria

$183 15.8% 44.1% $144

Groceries & Markets

United Kingdom

$305 12.3%

Bulgaria

$244 21% 20.1% $61

Clothing & Footwear

United Kingdom

$155 6.2%

Bulgaria

$122 10.6% 20.9% $32

Getting Around

United Kingdom

$136 5.5%

Bulgaria

$36 3.1% 73.2% $99

Sport & Entertainment

United Kingdom

$74 3%

Bulgaria

$51 4.4% 31.9% $24

Cost Breakdown

National rent averages: $1,265 in the United Kingdom, $328 in Bulgaria. Capital cities: $2,852 in London vs $770 in Sofia.

National salary averages: $3,250 in the United Kingdom, $1,044 in Bulgaria. Higher pay doesn't always mean more spending money – weigh income against local costs.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 286% higher in the United Kingdom.

Dining out costs 113% more in the United Kingdom.

Public transport is 300% more expensive in the United Kingdom.

Salaries are 211% higher in the United Kingdom, and purchasing power comes out stronger in the United Kingdom.

Good to know

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

🇧🇬 Bulgaria

🕒 Local time

02:05 2:05 AM

04:05 4:05 AM

2 h ahead of the United Kingdom

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

67,326,569

6,795,803

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Bulgarian Lev BGN лв.

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1 BGN = 0.575 USD

1 BGN = 0.511 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BGN, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 24, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Bulgarian Lev exchange rates as of October 24, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BGN (1 BGN = 0.575 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BGN (1 BGN = 0.511 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

United Kingdom Bulgaria 2,010 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

United Kingdom
Bulgaria

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

United Kingdom vs Bulgaria: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

At $1,159 per month in Bulgaria and $2,478 in the United Kingdom, there's a 114% gap. Keep in mind it varies by city – the difference can be bigger or smaller depending on where you settle within each country.

Day-to-day life is cheaper in Bulgaria: lower grocery prices, cheaper commutes, and more affordable meals out. Over time, those daily savings make a real difference to your monthly budget and ability to put money away.

Rent for a central one-bedroom averages $1,265 in the United Kingdom and $328 in Bulgaria. Rents vary a lot between cities, so the gap depends on where you settle.

In Bulgaria, $2,000 covers most cities easily; in the United Kingdom it stretches only to regional areas and falls short in the capital – you'll need to make trade-offs on housing or lifestyle.

It depends on what you're after: Bulgaria wins on affordability; the United Kingdom may offer higher salaries, better infrastructure, and different cultural perks. Both attract large expat communities for different reasons.