Sofia City. Photo: Deensel, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Regions and Locations

Twenty-Eight Provinces. One Country to Compare.

Population, output and jobs for every province from Eurostat, the companies based there, and guides to the coast, the mountains and Bulgaria's heritage.

Compare the Provinces 100 National Tourist Sites

Provinces · Oblasti

The 28 Provinces

Bulgaria is divided into 28 provinces (oblasti), each named after its main town. Every province page has current figures from Eurostat, a short profile and the companies based there.

116 companies
Blagoevgrad
Bulgaria's mountainous south-west, bordering Greece and North Macedonia, with the Rila and Pirin ranges, the Struma valley and the country's best-known ski town.
385 companies
Burgas
The largest province by area, on the southern Black Sea coast, built around Bulgaria's fourth city, a major port, an airport and the busiest resort strip in the country.
49 companies
Dobrich
Southern Dobruja in the north-east: a flat, fertile grain belt between the Black Sea and the Romanian border, with the resorts of Albena, Balchik and Kavarna on its coast.
64 companies
Gabrovo
A small province at the geographical centre of Bulgaria, on the northern slopes of the Balkan Mountains, known for manufacturing, crafts and National Revival towns.
39 companies
Haskovo
South-eastern Thrace, where Bulgaria meets Greece and Turkey: a crossroads province on the Maritsa river and the main road and rail routes to Istanbul.
7 companies
Kardzhali
Bulgaria's southernmost province, in the Eastern Rhodopes on the Greek border, with large reservoirs, the rock sanctuary of Perperikon and a growing services economy.
23 companies
Kyustendil
Bulgaria's far west, on the borders with Serbia and North Macedonia: the fruit-growing valley of Kyustendil, mineral springs and the Rila Monastery.
30 companies
Lovech
North-central Bulgaria between the Danube plain and the highest part of the Balkan Mountains, with Lovech, Troyan and Teteven and a manufacturing base.
7 companies
Montana
The north-west between the Danube and the Balkan Mountains, bordering Serbia and Romania, with the river port of Lom and the spa and resort town of Berkovitsa.
50 companies
Pazardzhik
Southern Bulgaria between the Thracian plain and the western Rhodopes, with farming on the Maritsa, copper and optics in Panagyurishte, and the spa town of Velingrad.
14 companies
Pernik
Western Bulgaria next to Sofia and the Serbian border: a former coal and steel town turning into a commuter and logistics base for the capital.
40 companies
Pleven
Central northern Bulgaria on the Danube, around the largest economic centre of the north-west, known for medicine, food and machinery industries.
435 companies
Plovdiv
Bulgaria's second city and its biggest regional economy outside Sofia, with the Trakia Economic Zone, universities, wine country and Europe's oldest continuously inhabited city.
12 companies
Razgrad
North-eastern Bulgaria in the Ludogorie region, with a strong pharmaceutical and food industry and the UNESCO-listed Thracian Tomb of Sveshtari.
142 companies
Ruse
Bulgaria's main Danube port and gateway to Romania, with the Danube Bridge to Giurgiu, a university and a manufacturing base just over an hour from Bucharest.
41 companies
Shumen
North-eastern Bulgaria at the heart of the first Bulgarian state, with Pliska, Veliki Preslav and the Madara Rider, and road and rail links to Varna.
15 companies
Silistra
The north-east corner of Bulgaria on the Danube, where the river leaves the Romanian border, known for apricots, wetlands and the UNESCO Srebarna reserve.
33 companies
Sliven
South-eastern Bulgaria at the foot of the Balkan Mountains, birthplace of Bulgarian industry, with textiles, engineering and the Blue Rocks nature park.
19 companies
Smolyan
The central Rhodope Mountains on the Greek border: ski resorts at Pamporovo and Chepelare, caves and gorges, and quiet mountain villages.
3,261 companies
Sofia City
The capital: Bulgaria's economic centre, home to most major Bulgarian and international companies, the central bank, the stock exchange and the fastest-growing tech sector in the region.
80 companies
Sofia Province
The province that surrounds the capital, from the Balkan Mountains to Rila, with industrial towns, logistics parks, mining, and the resorts of Borovets and Koprivshtitsa.
115 companies
Stara Zagora
South-central Bulgaria with the country's main energy complex, a strong industrial base, the Rose Valley and the UNESCO Thracian Tomb of Kazanlak.
12 companies
Targovishte
North-eastern Bulgaria, an old market town between the Balkan foothills and the Danube plain, with a glass industry and good access to Varna.
575 companies
Varna
Bulgaria's maritime capital on the northern Black Sea coast: the third-largest city, a major port, an airport and the resorts of Golden Sands and St. Constantine and Helena.
99 companies
Veliko Tarnovo
North-central Bulgaria around the medieval capital of the Second Bulgarian Empire, with universities, the Gorna Oryahovitsa airport and rail hub, and Danube access at Svishtov.
8 companies
Vidin
The far north-west of Bulgaria on the Danube, linked to Romania by the Vidin–Calafat bridge, with wine country, the Baba Vida fortress and the Belogradchik Rocks.
16 companies
Vratsa
North-western Bulgaria from the Danube to the Balkan Mountains, with the Kozloduy nuclear power plant, chemicals and the dramatic Vrachanski Balkan.
33 companies
Yambol
South-eastern Bulgaria on the Tundzha river and the Turkish border: farmland, food processing and the ancient Thracian town of Kabile.

Black Sea · 24

Black Sea Resorts

From Durankulak in the north to Rezovo on the Turkish border, the Bulgarian coast runs for about 380 km. These are its main resorts and seaside towns, north to south.

Click a province or a numbered place. Map: Natural Earth

See all 24

Ski resorts · 9

Ski and Mountain Resorts

Rila, Pirin, the Rhodopes, Vitosha and the Balkan Mountains: Bulgaria's ski areas, from the large resorts of Bansko and Borovets to small slopes near Sofia.