Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Abidjan and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Abidjan: $1,222 a month against $1,837 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $7,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Abidjan
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Abidjan Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Abidjan

🇨🇮 Ivory Coast

$1,222

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,837

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Abidjan and in Nosara

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Abidjan and in Nosara actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,222 in Abidjan versus $1,837 in Nosara.

Abidjan $1,222
Nosara $1,837

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,090 in Abidjan versus $2,775 in Nosara.

Abidjan $2,090
Nosara $2,775

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,957 in Abidjan versus $3,712 in Nosara.

Abidjan $2,957
Nosara $3,712

Living in Abidjan costs roughly 33% less than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Abidjan is 9% below, Nosara is 37% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.59 F CFA 1,512

$12.22 ₡5,509

-78.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.8 F CFA 39.6K

$60.2 ₡27.1K

12.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.46 F CFA 6,113

$7.54 ₡3,399

38.73%

Cappuccino

$1.85 F CFA 1,079

$4.31 ₡1,941

-57.08%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.72 F CFA 419

$1.72 ₡773

-58.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.76 F CFA 446

$1.35 ₡608

-43.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.04 F CFA 610

$3.24 ₡1,459

-67.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.66 F CFA 970

$4.48 ₡2,018

-62.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.10 F CFA 1,229

$1.57 ₡707

33.76%

White Bread (500g)

$0.49 F CFA 289

$3.17 ₡1,429

-84.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.14 F CFA 666

$2.42 ₡1,091

-52.89%

Eggs

$2.29 F CFA 1,339

$3.57 ₡1,609

-35.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$25.21 F CFA 14.7K

$7.43 ₡3,349

239.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.73 F CFA 3,348

$10.42 ₡4,697

-45.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.00 F CFA 3,508

$13.66 ₡6,156

-56.08%

Apples (1kg)

$3.91 F CFA 2,285

$2.32 ₡1,044

68.53%

Banana (1kg)

$1.04 F CFA 607

$1.61 ₡728

-35.40%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.09 F CFA 1,221

$4.74 ₡2,138

-55.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.39 F CFA 1,396

$1.66 ₡747

43.98%

Potato (1kg)

$1.76 F CFA 1,031

$3.72 ₡1,679

-52.69%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 F CFA 932

$3.57 ₡1,611

-55.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.59 F CFA 345

$1.10 ₡497

-46.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.86 F CFA 502

$2.55 ₡1,149

-66.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.75 F CFA 1,021

$4.95 ₡2,232

-64.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.22 F CFA 3,049

$20.01 ₡9,020

-73.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.06 F CFA 618

$2.79 ₡1,256

-62.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.16 F CFA 678

$3.53 ₡1,589

-67.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.92 F CFA 535

$1.19 ₡537

-22.69%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$42.81 F CFA 25.0K

$72.1 ₡32.5K

-40.60%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.67 F CFA 976

$2.24 ₡1,011

-25.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.72 F CFA 1,007

$1.55 ₡701

10.97%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$25.89 F CFA 15.1K

$8.86 ₡3,993

192.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 F CFA 883

$1.57 ₡708

-3.82%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$28.1K F CFA 16.4M

$21.8K ₡9.8M

29.07%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$27.0K F CFA 15.8M

$34.6K ₡15.6M

-21.94%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$163 F CFA 95.4K

$93.5 ₡42.1K

74.60%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$24.63 F CFA 14.4K

$35.11 ₡15.8K

-29.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.38 F CFA 20.7K

$51.5 ₡23.2K

-31.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$70.0 F CFA 40.9K

$71.4 ₡32.2K

-1.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.29 F CFA 12.4K

$35.44 ₡16.0K

-39.93%

Cinema Ticket

$8.65 F CFA 5,058

$7.84 ₡3,535

10.33%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$367 F CFA 214.6K

$490 ₡220.7K

-25.01%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,608 F CFA 2.7M

$11.9K ₡5.4M

-61.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$91.0 F CFA 53.2K

$53.5 ₡24.1K

69.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.71 F CFA 21.5K

$55.8 ₡25.1K

-34.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.2 F CFA 44.5K

$79.3 ₡35.7K

-3.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$137 F CFA 80.2K

$78.9 ₡35.6K

74.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$679 F CFA 396.9K

$786 ₡354.3K

-13.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$342 F CFA 200.1K

$780 ₡351.6K

-56.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,604 F CFA 1.5M

$3,860 ₡1.7M

-32.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,010 F CFA 590.4K

$1,407 ₡634.4K

-28.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,189 F CFA 1.3M

$6,972 ₡3.1M

-68.61%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$675 F CFA 394.8K

$1,201 ₡541.3K

-43.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$215 F CFA 126.0K

$876 ₡395.0K

-75.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

15.75

8.62

82.71%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Abidjan: October 6, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Abidjan

$342 28.6%

Nosara

$780 43% 128% $438

Groceries & Markets

Abidjan

$247 20.6%

Nosara

$350 19.3% 41.4% $102

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Abidjan

$223 18.6%

Nosara

$180 9.9% 19.3% $43

Clothing & Footwear

Abidjan

$154 12.8%

Nosara

$120 6.6% 21.6% $33

Eating Out

Abidjan

$89 7.4%

Nosara

$209 11.6% 136% $121

Sport & Entertainment

Abidjan

$87 7.3%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 0.3% $0.2

Getting Around

Abidjan

$57 4.7%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 53% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $679 in Abidjan and $786 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nosara pays 307% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $68.0 in Abidjan vs $60.0 in Nosara. Groceries flip the comparison at $247 vs $350, with Abidjan cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇮 Abidjan

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

07:11 7:11 AM

01:11 1:11 AM

6 h behind Abidjan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

7,567,409

4,912

💱 Currency

West African CFA Franc XOF Fr

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 XOF = 1.71 USD

1,000 XOF = 1.53 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to XOF – West African CFA Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🌐 West African CFA Franc (Fr)

West African CFA Franc exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 585 XOF (1,000 XOF = 1.71 USD). 1 EUR = 656 XOF (1,000 XOF = 1.53 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 506 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to XOF in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Abidjan Nosara 8,990 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Abidjan
Nosara

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Abidjan vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Abidjan is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and utilities. The 50% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 307% lower in Nosara. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $679 in Abidjan versus $786 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Abidjan – a meal for two runs $68.0 versus $60.0 in Nosara. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,222 per month in Abidjan versus $1,837 in Nosara – a 50% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,222 in Abidjan versus $1,837 in Nosara, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Abidjan but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Abidjan the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Abidjan is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Nosara, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Abidjan and Nosara are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Abidjan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 50% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.