City comparison
Cost of living in Sofia vs Bucharest
One person needs about €1,050 a month in Sofia and €1,095 in Bucharest, rent included — Sofia is 4% cheaper overall.
Salary you'd need to keep the same lifestyle
Enter your current net monthly pay. We scale it by the full cost basket — rent, groceries, transport, utilities, eating out and internet.
To live in Bucharest the way you live in Sofia on €3,000, you need
€3,129/ month net
4% more than today (+€129)
- Sofia today
- Basket €1,050 · left over €1,950 (65%)
- Bucharest at the matched salary
- Basket €1,095 · left over €2,034 (65%)
Local pay context: average tech net pay covers the basket 237% over in Bucharest (very strong) vs 210% in Sofia. Purchasing power index · How we calculate this
🇧🇬 Sofia
Flat 10% income tax, mountains at the tram terminus, and very low fixed costs.
Monthly budget: €1,050
Sources: Eurostat, Harmonised price indices (2025) · 0 community reports
🇷🇴 Bucharest
Europe's fastest internet and lowest utility bills, with a booming IT sector.
Monthly budget: €1,095
Sources: Eurostat, Harmonised price indices (2025) · 0 community reports
Should you move to Sofia or Bucharest?
On salary, Bucharest pays more for tech roles (€2,600 versus €2,200 a month), so the money left over after costs is €1,505 in Bucharest at the top end.
Rent drives most of the gap: €600 in Sofia against €650 in Bucharest. Groceries, transport and utilities move far less between the two.
For remote workers, the nomad index scores Sofia at 76 and Bucharest at 77 — see the full nomad index and our data methodology.