Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Al-hawiyah and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Al-hawiyah: $1,081 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $9,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

53

Cost of Living Index in Al-hawiyah
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Al-hawiyah Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Al-hawiyah

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,081

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Al-hawiyah 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 Al-hawiyah and in Nosara actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,081 in Al-hawiyah versus $1,839 in Nosara.

Al-hawiyah $1,081
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,603 in Al-hawiyah versus $2,828 in Nosara.

Al-hawiyah $1,603
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,125 in Al-hawiyah versus $3,818 in Nosara.

Al-hawiyah $2,125
Nosara $3,818

Living in Al-hawiyah costs roughly 41% less than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Al-hawiyah is 20% below, Nosara is 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.44 SAR 16.67

$12.35 ₡5,539

-64.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$26.52 SAR 99.5

$61.2 ₡27.4K

-56.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.91 SAR 25.93

$7.52 ₡3,373

-8.11%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.58 SAR 5.91

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.50 SAR 5.64

Cappuccino

$2.63 SAR 9.88

$4.41 ₡1,978

-40.36%

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

$0.70 SAR 2.63

$1.74 ₡780

-59.77%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.25 SAR 0.94

$1.31 ₡587

-80.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

Milk (1 liter)

$1.83 SAR 6.85

$1.56 ₡701

17.31%

White Bread (500g)

$0.96 SAR 3.60

$3.02 ₡1,355

-68.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 SAR 8.25

$2.51 ₡1,125

-12.35%

Eggs

$2.68 SAR 10.04

$3.57 ₡1,603

-24.93%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.85 SAR 21.94

$7.43 ₡3,333

-21.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.70 SAR 43.90

$10.52 ₡4,717

11.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.12 SAR 49.22

$13.97 ₡6,265

-6.08%

Apples (1kg)

$2.04 SAR 7.64

$2.35 ₡1,052

-13.19%

Banana (1kg)

$1.58 SAR 5.92

$1.61 ₡720

-1.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.83 SAR 6.88

$4.80 ₡2,152

-61.88%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.49 SAR 5.60

$1.61 ₡724

-7.45%

Potato (1kg)

$1.30 SAR 4.87

$3.80 ₡1,703

-65.79%

Onion (1kg)

$1.50 SAR 5.63

$3.69 ₡1,657

-59.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 SAR 4.09

$1.13 ₡507

-3.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.74 SAR 2.77

$2.66 ₡1,191

-72.18%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$2.99 SAR 11.21

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.10 SAR 7.87

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 SAR 5.88

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.00 SAR 30.02

$5.18 ₡2,321

54.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.90 ₡1,300

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.63 ₡1,626

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.10 SAR 4.13

$1.12 ₡504

-1.79%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$36.82 SAR 138

$72.6 ₡32.6K

-49.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.44 SAR 9.15

$2.14 ₡958

14.02%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.69 SAR 10.10

$1.57 ₡703

71.34%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.24 SAR 49.67

$8.52 ₡3,823

55.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.59 SAR 2.23

$1.52 ₡682

-61.18%

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

$43.9K SAR 164.7K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

103.05%

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

$21.5K SAR 80.8K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-37.60%

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

$67.1 SAR 252

$96.3 ₡43.2K

-30.33%

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

$35.32 SAR 133

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-1.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$62.5 SAR 235

$53.6 ₡24.0K

16.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$80.6 SAR 302

$71.6 ₡32.1K

12.53%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 SAR 56.6

$7.89 ₡3,539

91.25%

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

$423 SAR 1,586

$494 ₡221.6K

-14.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,864 SAR 29.5K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-33.68%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$13.09 SAR 49.11

$53.9 ₡24.2K

-75.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.8 SAR 209

$55.4 ₡24.8K

0.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$40.45 SAR 152

$77.9 ₡34.9K

-48.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$52.5 SAR 197

$79.6 ₡35.7K

-34.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$576 SAR 2,162

$788 ₡353.4K

-26.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$366 SAR 1,375

$794 ₡356.2K

-53.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$826 SAR 3,098

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-79.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$577 SAR 2,166

$1,419 ₡636.5K

-59.34%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,404 SAR 9,023

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-65.21%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,375 SAR 5,158

$1,224 ₡549.0K

12.29%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.25

8.62

-39.10%

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

Last update for Al-hawiyah: October 10, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Al-hawiyah

$366 33.9%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 117% $428

Groceries & Markets

Al-hawiyah

$217 20.1%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 62.1% $135

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Al-hawiyah

$165 15.3%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 12.6% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Al-hawiyah

$111 10.2%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 21.1% $23

Eating Out

Al-hawiyah

$92 8.5%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 131% $120

Clothing & Footwear

Al-hawiyah

$73 6.7%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 65% $47

Getting Around

Al-hawiyah

$57 5.3%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 52.5% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $576 in Al-hawiyah and $788 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $27.00 in Al-hawiyah vs $61.0 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $217 vs $352 per month, with Al-hawiyah cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Al-hawiyah

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

04:31 4:31 AM

19:31 7:31 PM

9 h behind Al-hawiyah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

148,151

4,912

💱 Currency

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to SAR – Saudi Riyal Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇦 Saudi Riyal (ر.س)

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.22 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to SAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Al-hawiyah Nosara 13,180 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Al-hawiyah
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

Al-hawiyah vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Al-hawiyah and Nosara differ by about 70% in total monthly costs ($1,081 vs $1,839 including rent). Al-hawiyah is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,621 in Al-hawiyah and $2,758 in Nosara to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $576 in Al-hawiyah versus $788 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Al-hawiyah – a meal for two runs $27.00 versus $61.0 in Nosara. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,081 per month in Al-hawiyah versus $1,839 in Nosara – a 70% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,081 in Al-hawiyah versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Al-hawiyah but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Al-hawiyah the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Al-hawiyah 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 Al-hawiyah gentler on the wallet – expenses run 70% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.