Bulgaria
Quick notes before you compare the numbers.
Identity
Formal name: Republic of Bulgaria.
CIA 2026
Identity
Name origin: named after the Bulgar tribes who settled the lower Balkan region in the 7th century A.D.
CIA 2026
Matchup file
Bulgaria vs Romania
129 shared metrics.
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Romania leads by 3 metrics. Use the same instinct in a quick real-data brawl.
Country briefing
What matters for both sides
Short real-world notes so the comparison reads like more than a stat strip.
Romania
Quick notes before you compare the numbers.
Identity
Name origin: the name derives from the Latin Romani, meaning "people from Rome.
CIA 2026
Analysis
Romania leads in 66 of 129 shared metrics, while Bulgaria leads in 63.
Bulgaria's Capital Elevation is 7.0x that of Romania (560 m vs 70 m).
Bulgaria's GDP Growth Rate is 2.7x that of Romania (3.4% vs 0.92%).
Bulgaria's EV Chargers per 100,000 People is 2.4x that of Romania (11.16 per 100k people vs 3.3 per 100k people).
Bulgaria's Researchers is 1.6x that of Romania (2.6K per 1M vs 998.73 per 1M).
Bulgaria's Spirits Consumption is 1.2x that of Romania (4.8 L/person/yr vs 2.1 L/person/yr).
Key Comparisons
Capital ElevationBulgaria leads
Bulgaria
560 m
Romania
70 m
GDP Growth RateBulgaria leads
Bulgaria
3.4%
Romania
0.92%
EV Chargers per 100,000 PeopleBulgaria leads
Bulgaria
11.16 per 100k people
Romania
3.3 per 100k people
ResearchersBulgaria leads
Bulgaria
2.6K per 1M
Romania
998.73 per 1M
Spirits ConsumptionBulgaria leads
Bulgaria
4.8 L/person/yr
Romania
2.1 L/person/yr
Nuclear Electricity ShareBulgaria leads
Bulgaria
40.3%
Romania
18.9%
All Metrics
Capital Elevation
BulgariaBulgaria
560 m
Romania
70 m
700% higher
GDP Growth Rate
BulgariaBulgaria
3.4%
Romania
0.92%
270% higher
EV Chargers per 100,000 People
BulgariaBulgaria
11.16 per 100k people
Romania
3.3 per 100k people
236% higher
Researchers
BulgariaBulgaria
2.6K per 1M
Romania
998.73 per 1M
156% higher
Spirits Consumption
BulgariaBulgaria
4.8 L/person/yr
Romania
2.1 L/person/yr
123% higher
Nuclear Electricity Share
BulgariaBulgaria
40.3%
Romania
18.9%
113% higher
Electricity Use (Per Capita)
BulgariaBulgaria
5.4K kWh/person
Romania
2.6K kWh/person
107% higher
Foreign Patents
RomaniaBulgaria
6.0
Romania
45
87% lower
Solar Electricity Share
BulgariaBulgaria
18.15%
Romania
9.8%
85% higher
Irrigated Land
RomaniaBulgaria
929 km²
Romania
5.3K km²
82% lower
Protected Land (%)
BulgariaBulgaria
44.3%
Romania
24.6%
80% higher
Domestic Patents
RomaniaBulgaria
165
Romania
772
79% lower
Air Passengers
RomaniaBulgaria
723.8K
Romania
2.81M
74% lower
Wind Electricity Share
RomaniaBulgaria
3.5%
Romania
11.99%
71% lower
Armed Forces Personnel
RomaniaBulgaria
37.0K
Romania
128.0K
71% lower
Informal Employment Share
BulgariaBulgaria
4.1% of employed people
Romania
2.4% of employed people
71% higher
GDP (Nominal)
RomaniaBulgaria
$113,343,355,779.99
Romania
$382,564,217,988.87
70% lower
Coal Electricity Share
BulgariaBulgaria
22.52%
Romania
13.41%
68% higher
Shipping Traffic
RomaniaBulgaria
254.9K
Romania
772.0K
67% lower
Firms Asked for Bribes
RomaniaBulgaria
0.92% of firms
Romania
2.7% of firms
66% lower
R&D Spending (% GDP)
BulgariaBulgaria
0.75% of GDP
Romania
0.46% of GDP
64% higher
Vehicles per 1,000 People
BulgariaBulgaria
584.81 per 1k people
Romania
356.03 per 1k people
64% higher
FDI Inflows (% GDP)
BulgariaBulgaria
3.1% of GDP
Romania
1.9% of GDP
64% higher
Population
RomaniaBulgaria
6.74M
Romania
18.15M
63% lower
Railway Network
RomaniaBulgaria
4.0K km
Romania
10.8K km
63% lower
Energy Use (Per Capita)
BulgariaBulgaria
2.6K kg oil eq/person
Romania
1.6K kg oil eq/person
63% higher
Railway Length
RomaniaBulgaria
4.0K km
Romania
10.6K km
62% lower
Firms Making Informal Payments
RomaniaBulgaria
0.72% of firms
Romania
1.9% of firms
62% lower
Scientific Publications
RomaniaBulgaria
4.8K
Romania
11.7K
59% lower
Youth Unemployment Rate
RomaniaBulgaria
10.15% of youth labor force
Romania
24.54% of youth labor force
59% lower
Inflation Rate
RomaniaBulgaria
2.4%
Romania
5.7%
58% lower
Exports (% GDP)
BulgariaBulgaria
56.37% of GDP
Romania
35.6% of GDP
58% higher
Coastline Length
BulgariaBulgaria
354 km
Romania
225 km
57% higher
Political Corruption Index
BulgariaBulgaria
0.64
Romania
0.42
53% higher
Land Area
RomaniaBulgaria
108.6K km²
Romania
230.1K km²
53% lower
Total CO2 Emissions
RomaniaBulgaria
34.19 Mt CO2e
Romania
70.88 Mt CO2e
52% lower
Food Waste per Person
RomaniaBulgaria
95 kg/person/yr
Romania
181 kg/person/yr
48% lower
University Enrollment Rate
BulgariaBulgaria
79.85%
Romania
55.17%
45% higher
ATMs per 100,000 Adults
BulgariaBulgaria
92.7 per 100k
Romania
63.78 per 100k
45% higher
Forest Area
RomaniaBulgaria
39.3K km²
Romania
69.3K km²
43% lower
Credit Card Ownership
RomaniaBulgaria
12.59% of adults
Romania
22.19% of adults
43% lower
Nurses & Midwives
RomaniaBulgaria
4.7 per 1k
Romania
8.1 per 1k
42% lower
Urban Population (%)
BulgariaBulgaria
73.95%
Romania
52.17%
42% higher
Government Debt (% GDP)
RomaniaBulgaria
30.1% of GDP
Romania
50.9% of GDP
41% lower
Merchant Fleet Size
RomaniaBulgaria
78
Romania
127
39% lower
Obesity Rate
RomaniaBulgaria
24.25%
Romania
38.24%
37% lower
Education Spending (% GDP)
BulgariaBulgaria
4.5% of GDP
Romania
3.3% of GDP
37% higher
Land Border Length
RomaniaBulgaria
1.8K km
Romania
2.8K km
36% lower
Milk Consumption per Person
RomaniaBulgaria
155.71 kg/person/yr
Romania
238.33 kg/person/yr
35% lower
Water Stress (%)
BulgariaBulgaria
25.92%
Romania
19.23%
35% higher
Electric Generating Capacity
RomaniaBulgaria
12.94M kW
Romania
19.75M kW
34% lower
Inequality (Gini)
BulgariaBulgaria
39.5
Romania
29.8
33% higher
Water Withdrawal
RomaniaBulgaria
5.4 B m³
Romania
8.2 B m³
33% lower
Health Spending (% GDP)
BulgariaBulgaria
7.7% of GDP
Romania
5.7% of GDP
33% higher
Nobel Laureates Born per Million People
RomaniaBulgaria
0.15 per 1M people
Romania
0.22 per 1M people
33% lower
Firms Hit by Power Outages
RomaniaBulgaria
20.19% of firms
Romania
29.99% of firms
33% lower
Smoking Rate
BulgariaBulgaria
39.5%
Romania
30%
32% higher
Tobacco Use Prevalence
BulgariaBulgaria
38.7% of adults
Romania
29.5% of adults
31% higher
Alcohol Consumption
RomaniaBulgaria
11.62 L/adult/yr
Romania
16.8 L/adult/yr
31% lower
CO2 Per Capita
BulgariaBulgaria
4.7 t/person/yr
Romania
3.6 t/person/yr
30% higher
Electricity Generation
RomaniaBulgaria
37.13 TWh
Romania
52.86 TWh
30% lower
Imports (% GDP)
BulgariaBulgaria
53.86% of GDP
Romania
41.61% of GDP
29% higher
Population Density
RomaniaBulgaria
59.38 /km²
Romania
82.85 /km²
28% lower
Tax Revenue (% GDP)
BulgariaBulgaria
20.51% of GDP
Romania
16.21% of GDP
27% higher
Unemployment Rate
RomaniaBulgaria
4.1%
Romania
5.4%
24% lower
Firms with Female Top Manager
BulgariaBulgaria
23.5% of firms
Romania
19.04% of firms
23% higher
Digital Payments Used
BulgariaBulgaria
77.6% of adults
Romania
63.61% of adults
22% higher
Forest Coverage (%)
BulgariaBulgaria
36.22%
Romania
30.12%
20% higher
Doctors (per 1,000)
BulgariaBulgaria
4.3 per 1k
Romania
3.6 per 1k
19% higher
Agricultural Land (%)
RomaniaBulgaria
46.09%
Romania
55.26%
17% lower
Safe Drinking Water (%)
BulgariaBulgaria
96.21%
Romania
82.18%
17% higher
Insufficient Physical Activity
BulgariaBulgaria
30.99% of adults
Romania
26.38% of adults
17% higher
Teen Birth Rate
BulgariaBulgaria
39.1 per 1k
Romania
33.75 per 1k
16% higher
Air Pollution (PM2.5)
BulgariaBulgaria
17.15 µg/m³
Romania
14.85 µg/m³
15% higher
GDP Per Capita (PPP)
RomaniaBulgaria
$41,519.54
Romania
$48,731.32
15% lower
Highest Elevation
BulgariaBulgaria
2.9K m
Romania
2.5K m
15% higher
Renewable Energy (%)
RomaniaBulgaria
20.4%
Romania
23.6%
14% lower
Life Evaluation Score
RomaniaBulgaria
5.7 pts
Romania
6.6 pts
14% lower
Renewable Energy (%)
RomaniaBulgaria
16.42%
Romania
19.11%
14% lower
Beer Consumption
RomaniaBulgaria
4.4 L/person/yr
Romania
5.1 L/person/yr
13% lower
GNI Per Capita
RomaniaBulgaria
$15,370
Romania
$17,600
13% lower
Women in Senior Management
BulgariaBulgaria
39.13% of managers
Romania
34.66% of managers
13% higher
Health Spending Per Capita
BulgariaBulgaria
$1,011.09
Romania
$902.27
12% higher
Road Traffic Death Rate
RomaniaBulgaria
8.4 per 100k
Romania
9.6 per 100k
12% lower
Corruption Perceptions Index
RomaniaBulgaria
40 pts
Romania
45 pts
11% lower
Seafood Consumption per Person
RomaniaBulgaria
7.3 kg/person/yr
Romania
8.2 kg/person/yr
11% lower
Tourism Revenue
BulgariaBulgaria
$1,792,000,000
Romania
$1,611,000,000
11% higher
Internet Users (%)
RomaniaBulgaria
82.44%
Romania
91.29%
10% lower
Hospital Beds (per 1,000)
BulgariaBulgaria
7.8 per 1k
Romania
7.1 per 1k
10% higher
Elderly Population (%)
BulgariaBulgaria
22.03%
Romania
19.98%
10% higher
Electricity Carbon Intensity
BulgariaBulgaria
275.55 gCO2/kWh
Romania
250.75 gCO2/kWh
10% higher
Meat Consumption per Person
RomaniaBulgaria
58.32 kg/person/yr
Romania
63.92 kg/person/yr
9% lower
UNESCO World Heritage Sites
RomaniaBulgaria
10 sites
Romania
11 sites
9% lower
McDonald's Outlets per Million People
RomaniaBulgaria
5.3 per 1M people
Romania
5.8 per 1M people
9% lower
Child Mortality
RomaniaBulgaria
6.1 per 1k births
Romania
6.6 per 1k births
8% lower
Liberal Democracy Index
BulgariaBulgaria
0.50
Romania
0.46
8% higher
Women in Parliament (%)
BulgariaBulgaria
20.83%
Romania
19.21%
8% higher
Youth Population (%)
RomaniaBulgaria
14.47%
Romania
15.72%
8% lower
Birth Rate
RomaniaBulgaria
7.9 per 1k
Romania
8.4 per 1k
7% lower
Infant Mortality
RomaniaBulgaria
5.0 per 1k births
Romania
5.4 per 1k births
7% lower
Fertility Rate
RomaniaBulgaria
1.5 children/woman
Romania
1.6 children/woman
7% lower
Military Spending
RomaniaBulgaria
2.1% of GDP
Romania
2.3% of GDP
6% lower
Hypertension Prevalence
RomaniaBulgaria
45.2% of adults
Romania
47.8% of adults
5% lower
Sanitation Access (%)
RomaniaBulgaria
86.08%
Romania
90.54%
5% lower
Dependency Ratio
BulgariaBulgaria
57.49% of working-age pop.
Romania
55.51% of working-age pop.
4% higher
Women's Political Empowerment
BulgariaBulgaria
0.91
Romania
0.87
4% higher
Median Age
BulgariaBulgaria
44.3 years
Romania
42.6 years
4% higher
Mobile Subscriptions (%)
RomaniaBulgaria
118 per 100 people
Romania
123.25 per 100 people
4% lower
Broadband Access (%)
BulgariaBulgaria
36 per 100 people
Romania
35 per 100 people
3% higher
Freedom of Expression Index
RomaniaBulgaria
0.75
Romania
0.78
3% lower
Skilled Birth Attendance (%)
BulgariaBulgaria
94.5%
Romania
93%
2% higher
Homicide Rate
RomaniaBulgaria
1.1 per 100k
Romania
1.1 per 100k
2% lower
Can Raise Emergency Money
BulgariaBulgaria
87.88% of adults
Romania
86.27% of adults
2% higher
Tourist Arrivals
RomaniaBulgaria
4.97M
Romania
5.02M
1% lower
Average Weekly Work Hours
BulgariaBulgaria
38.6 hrs/week
Romania
38.2 hrs/week
1% higher
Suicide Rate
RomaniaBulgaria
9.5 per 100k
Romania
9.6 per 100k
1% lower
Death Rate
RomaniaBulgaria
14.18 per 1k
Romania
14.28 per 1k
1% lower
Life Expectancy
RomaniaBulgaria
75.7 years
Romania
76.6 years
1% lower
Electoral Democracy Index
RomaniaBulgaria
0.60
Romania
0.60
1% lower
Airports
BulgariaBulgaria
109
Romania
108
1% higher
Human Development Index
BulgariaBulgaria
0.84
Romania
0.84
equal
Time Zones Count
BulgariaBulgaria
1.0 time zones
Romania
1.0 time zones
equal
Minimum Paid Vacation Days
BulgariaBulgaria
20 days/yr
Romania
20 days/yr
equal
Electricity Access (%)
BulgariaBulgaria
100%
Romania
100%
equal
High-Tech Exports (%)
RomaniaBulgaria
13.43%
Romania
13.45%
equal
Lowest Elevation
BulgariaBulgaria
0 m
Romania
0 m
ranked higher
Official Languages Count
BulgariaBulgaria
1.0
Romania
1.0
equal
Current Account Balance (% of GDP)
BulgariaBulgaria
-5.9% of GDP
Romania
-8% of GDP
ranked higher
Border Neighbors
BulgariaBulgaria
5.0
Romania
5.0
equal
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