Cost of living comparison

compared to

Sofia vs. Panama City Cost of Living Summary

Sofia is 2.3% cheaper than Panama City.

Restaurants: pay 9.5% more in Sofia
Groceries: pay 16.7% less in Sofia
Transportation: pay 23.2% more in Sofia
Housing: pay 31.1% less in Sofia
Childcare: pay 3.0% less in Sofia
Entertainment and Sports: pay 6.9% less in Sofia
Clothing: pay 8.7% more in Sofia

The cost of transportation, restaurants, and clothing in Sofia are more expensive than in Panama City. Expenses including housing, groceries, entertainment and sports, and childcare are lower in Sofia.

Sofia vs. Panama City Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Sofia instead of Panama City, you would:

Display currency: USD

pay 9.5% more for restaurants

	Panama City	Sofia
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant	$10.00 PAB10.00	$11.94 BGN20.12	+19.4%
Fast food combo meal McDonalds, or similar	$8.00 PAB8.00	$9.40 BGN15.85	+17.5%
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz)	$1.70 PAB1.70	$1.69 BGN2.86	-0.2%
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz)	$1.33 PAB1.33	$1.35 BGN2.28	+1.5%
Average			+9.5%

Panama City vs. Sofia - Cost of restaurants

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pay 16.7% less for groceries

	Panama City	Sofia
Bread 1 loaf	$2.56 PAB2.56	$1.27 BGN2.14	-50.5%
Local cheese (8 oz)	$5.81 PAB5.81	$6.03 BGN10.16	+3.8%
Milk (1 gallon)	$6.82 PAB6.82	$7.17 BGN12.09	+5.1%
Eggs 1 dozen	$2.84 PAB2.84	$3.89 BGN6.56	+36.8%
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb)	$3.29 PAB3.29	$3.74 BGN6.30	+13.5%
Apples (1 lb)	$1.65 PAB1.65	$0.86 BGN1.45	-47.9%
Bananas (1 lb)	$0.70 PAB0.70	$0.88 BGN1.49	+25.3%
Oranges (1 lb)	$1.40 PAB1.40	$0.87 BGN1.46	-38.0%
Tomatoes (1 lb)	$1.46 PAB1.46	$1.26 BGN2.12	-14.1%
Potatoes (1 lb)	$1.00 PAB1.00	$0.50 BGN0.85	-49.6%
Onions (1 lb)	$1.37 PAB1.37	$0.43 BGN0.73	-68.3%
Average			-16.7%

Panama City vs. Sofia - Cost of groceries

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pay 23.2% more for transportation

	Panama City	Sofia
Gasoline (1 gallon)	$3.44 PAB3.44	$5.82 BGN9.81	+69.0%
Monthly public transit pass	$22.50 PAB22.50	$29.84 BGN50.31	+32.6%
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition)	$19,750.00 PAB19,750.00	$30,917.07 BGN52,118.45	+56.5%
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles)	$26.50 PAB26.50	$9.19 BGN15.49	-65.3%
Average			+23.2%

Panama City vs. Sofia - Cost of transportation

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pay 31.1% less for housing

	Panama City	Sofia
Internet connection 50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl	$49.20 PAB49.20	$14.81 BGN24.97	-69.9%
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area	$1,164.71 PAB1,164.71	$730.45 BGN1,231.35	-37.3%
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center	$953.85 PAB953.85	$549.13 BGN925.69	-42.4%
Utilities for two (700 sq ft apartment) including electric, gas, water, heating	$95.90 PAB95.90	$120.21 BGN202.65	+25.3%
Average			-31.1%

Panama City vs. Sofia - Cost of housing

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pay 3.0% less for childcare

	Panama City	Sofia
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly	$476.00 PAB476.00	$641.00 BGN1,080.57	+34.7%
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters	$15,733.33 PAB15,733.33	$9,323.50 BGN15,717.08	-40.7%
Average			-3.0%

Panama City vs. Sofia - Cost of childcare

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pay 6.9% less for entertainment and sports

	Panama City	Sofia
Domestic/local beer (1 pint)	$3.00 PAB3.00	$2.98 BGN5.03	-0.5%
Cappuccino in mid-range area	$3.61 PAB3.61	$2.61 BGN4.41	-27.6%
Pack of cigarettes Marlboro or similar	$5.92 PAB5.92	$3.88 BGN6.54	-34.5%
Monthly membership at local gym	$43.86 PAB43.86	$44.47 BGN74.96	+1.4%
Movie ticket to theater/cinema	$8.00 PAB8.00	$10.15 BGN17.10	+26.8%
Average			-6.9%

Panama City vs. Sofia - Cost of entertainment and sports

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pay 8.7% more for clothing

	Panama City	Sofia
Regular jeans Levi's brand	$50.00 PAB50.00	$71.40 BGN120.37	+42.8%
Regular dress from H&M or similar store	$47.50 PAB47.50	$36.83 BGN62.09	-22.5%
Running shoes Nike or Adidas	$89.55 PAB89.55	$109.77 BGN185.05	+22.6%
Men's business shoes (leather)	$126.88 PAB126.88	$116.74 BGN196.79	-8.0%
Average			+8.7%

Panama City vs. Sofia - Cost of clothing

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The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you. We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025

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