Sofia eSIM
In Sofia you connect to A1 or Yettel, whichever is performing better where you are standing. The typical speed across the country is 72 Mbps. Your data starts working the moment you land, before you reach the immigration hall.
- Networks
- A1 and Yettel
- Typical speed in Bulgaria
- 72 Mbps typical, 19 Mbps at busy times
- 5G
- yes, non standalone
- Throttle
- None on metered plans
- Tethering
- Allowed on every plan
Plans that cover Sofia
| Data | Validity | Price per GB | Price | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 GB | Never expires | $5.89 | $5.89 | |
| 3 GB | Never expires | $2.63 | $7.89 | |
| 5 GBMost travellers | Never expires | $1.98 | $9.89 | |
| 10 GB | Never expires | $1.49 | $14.89 | |
| 20 GB | Never expires | $1.39 | $27.89 | |
| 50 GB | Never expires | $1.16 | $57.89 |
How Bulgaria compares across Europe
- Regional typical speed
- 71 Mbps
- Upstream networks
- 2, A1, Yettel
- 5G
- Yes, non standalone
- Next fastest nearby
- Slovenia, 74 Mbps
- Next slowest nearby
- France, 71 Mbps
- Cities with their own page
- 3: Sofia, Varna, Plovdiv
Landing at Vasil Levski Sofia Airport (SOF)
- Airport
- SOF / LBSF
- Distance
- 10 km from the centre of Sofia
Getting into Sofia
- Sofia Metro line M4 from Sofia Airport station (Terminal 2) to the city centre (SOF). Runs through tunnels, where a signal drops
- Bus route 84 from both terminals to central Sofia (SOF)
- Free inter-terminal shuttle between Terminal 1 and Terminal 2, running around the clock (SOF)
- Official airport taxi (Yellow!) (SOF)
Underground and on the metro
Sofia Metro runs 4 lines. It opened in 1998. The operator does not publish whether the tunnels carry a mobile signal, so we do not claim either way.
Worth knowing about Sofia
- Sofia is one of the few European capitals where a metro line runs directly into the airport: Sofia Airport station is the terminus of line M4.
- Bus route 84 is the option that serves both terminals, unlike the metro.
- There is a railway station at Iskarsko shose, but it is about 2.5 km from Terminal 2 and reached via the metro rather than directly from the terminal.
- The metro gets you from Sofia Airport station to the city centre in about 20 minutes, and road traffic never touches the journey. The station sits at the eastern end of Terminal 2, directly beside the terminal building.
- Metro gates take a contactless bank card, phone or watch as the ticket. There is no registration and nothing to buy beforehand; wait for the reader to confirm the payment before you walk through.
- For a short stay, the station ticket office sells a 24-hour pass for €3.00 and a 72-hour pass for €7.60. Both cover the metro, daytime buses, trams, trolleybuses and night buses.
- Continuing by rail? Iskarsko Shose, the second metro stop after the airport, connects with trains on the Sofia to Plovdiv and Sofia to Karlovo routes. For Central Railway Station or Central Bus Station, change to line M2 at Serdika.
- Bus 84 runs from both terminals to General Gurko Street in the centre roughly every 12 minutes, via Hristofor Kolumb and Tsarigradsko Shose boulevards. The ride takes around 45 minutes on weekdays and 35 at weekends.
- On bus 84, tap a contactless card on the blue reader as you board. The €0.80 30 Plus fare allows transfers for 30 minutes, and daytime fares on the same card stop at €2.00 a day as long as you tap every time.
- For late arrivals, night bus N4 calls at both terminals and crosses central Sofia between Druzhba 2 and Gotse Delchev, hourly from midnight to 04:00 every night. A €1.00 night pass covers all night routes, and 24 and 72-hour passes already include them.
- The free shuttle between Terminal 1 and Terminal 2 runs around the clock, every 20 minutes at busy times and every 40 minutes overnight, with no stops between the two terminals.
- SOF Connect, the airport concessionaire, contracts Yellow! as its taxi partner, with offices in the Arrivals halls of both terminals. The airport warns against rides offered away from that office or touted in front of the terminal.
- Two pieces of hand luggage ride free on Sofia public transport with a normal ticket; each extra piece needs a ticket of its own.
- Signal holds underground: since August 2016 every metro station and line then open has had 3G and 4G, fed by antennas in the stations and a radiating cable in the tunnels, and all three national operators share the system.
- Sofia Municipality runs free WiFi4EU Wi-Fi at 100 Mbit/s from 22 access points covering Vitoshka Street from St Nedelya Church to the National Palace of Culture and Lovers' Bridge. Accept the European Commission terms once and the phone rejoins WiFi4EU zones across Europe automatically.