Bulgaria for Digital Nomads: A Good, Cheap Option?

If you are a digital nomad you will be probably considering cheaper destinations first on your list, so let’s check how bulgaria for digital nomads can be a good option or not.

Bulgaria is, according to statistics, the cheapest country in the European Union in terms of cost of living, and that’s one of the main reasons why it attracts as much foreign visitors per year as countries like Brazil, which is multiple times bigger than Bulgaria.

Digital nomads are normally looking for two types of locations: a cheap place with low taxes to set up their base, or a place to hang out for some time, while enjoying extreme good value for the money treats. Bulgaria ticks all the boxes for both type of digital nomads as it’s extremely cheap compared to other EU countries and it also has one of the lowest tax burden in the region, with a flat 10% rate for both corporate and personal income tax.

Bulgaria has a relatively good geographical location, and it’s very well served by the low cost carrier Wizz Air, so you can travel to virtually anywhere in Europe and as far as Dubai on the cheap, which improves the attractiveness of Bulgaria.

Bulgaria for Digital Nomads: Pros

The costs are the most appealing factor involving Bulgaria, you can easily rent a decent flat in central Sofia for as low as 200 euros, you can check it on this Bulgarian real estate website. The food in Bulgaria is excellent, just like pretty much everywhere in the Balkan region, especially if are a meat lover, you can easily eat out every day on a budget of 5 euros per meal in relatively posh restaurants. You can check Happy Bar and Grill in Sofia, it will certainly leave with you with an excellent first impression.

Bulgaria for Digital Nomads: Cons

The biggest issue you might find in Bulgaria is the internet, not only speeds are not that excellent, but also mobile packages are quite expensive and expect to pay 1 dollar / euro per GB in optimal conditions, this can be problematic if you are in a place where fast internet is not arranged there. Other than that, there are not much travel options for weekend trips as you will be probably required to fly if you want to visit any other European capital apart from Skopje or Belgrade.

Veredict

In my opinion Bulgaria is an excellent choice for digital nomads willing to stay in a decent affordable place for a while, if you are Australian, American or Canadian, it’s also an excellent choice since its not part of Schengen and you can have some good time there without spending your 90 in each 180 days that you get in the Schengen area.

If you want to set up your base in Bulgaria it can be only a good option if you have a very specific profile, if you like Skiing, or if you are a Russian citizen (it’s easier to get papers to stay in Bulgaria than almost all other countries of the EU).