Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Al-jahra' and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Al-jahra': $1,239 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

64

Cost of Living Index in Al-jahra'
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Al-jahra' Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Al-jahra'

🇰🇼 Kuwait

$1,239

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,239 per month in Al-jahra' vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Al-jahra' $1,239
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $2,292 per month in Al-jahra' vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Al-jahra' $2,292
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $3,344 per month in Al-jahra' vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Al-jahra' $3,344
Nosara $3,818

Al-jahra' is about 33% cheaper than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Al-jahra' sits 8% below the global median, while Nosara is 36% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.85 KWD 3.96

$12.35 ₡5,539

4.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$63.9 KWD 19.69

$61.2 ₡27.4K

4.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.99 KWD 2.77

$7.52 ₡3,373

19.55%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.14 KWD 0.97

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.92 KWD 1.51

Cappuccino

$5.33 KWD 1.64

$4.41 ₡1,978

20.86%

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

$0.74 KWD 0.23

$1.74 ₡780

-57.47%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.31 KWD 0.10

$1.31 ₡587

-76.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.28 ₡1,471

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.47 ₡2,004

Milk (1 liter)

$1.63 KWD 0.50

$1.56 ₡701

4.49%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 KWD 0.45

$3.02 ₡1,355

-51.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.96 KWD 0.60

$2.51 ₡1,125

-21.91%

Eggs

$2.11 KWD 0.65

$3.57 ₡1,603

-40.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.24 KWD 1.31

$7.43 ₡3,333

-42.93%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.79 KWD 2.09

$10.52 ₡4,717

-35.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.00 KWD 3.08

$13.97 ₡6,265

-28.42%

Apples (1kg)

$2.42 KWD 0.75

$2.35 ₡1,052

2.98%

Banana (1kg)

$1.93 KWD 0.59

$1.61 ₡720

19.88%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.85 KWD 0.57

$4.80 ₡2,152

-61.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.55 KWD 0.48

$1.61 ₡724

-3.73%

Potato (1kg)

$1.31 KWD 0.40

$3.80 ₡1,703

-65.53%

Onion (1kg)

$1.41 KWD 0.44

$3.69 ₡1,657

-61.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.37 KWD 0.73

$1.13 ₡507

109.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 KWD 0.18

$2.66 ₡1,191

-78.20%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$3.19 KWD 0.98

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.05 KWD 0.32

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.37 KWD 0.42

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.69 KWD 0.83

$5.18 ₡2,321

-48.07%

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)

$0.76 KWD 0.23

$1.12 ₡504

-32.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.79 KWD 1.47

$2.14 ₡958

123.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.17 KWD 0.98

$1.57 ₡703

101.91%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.36 KWD 5.04

$8.52 ₡3,823

92.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.33 KWD 0.10

$1.52 ₡682

-78.29%

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

$21.3K KWD 6,548

$21.6K ₡9.7M

-1.64%

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

$20.6K KWD 6,335

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-40.43%

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

$20.20 KWD 6.22

$96.3 ₡43.2K

-79.02%

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

$22.31 KWD 6.87

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-37.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.02 KWD 9.25

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-43.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$98.2 KWD 30.25

$71.6 ₡32.1K

37.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$11.08 KWD 3.41

$7.89 ₡3,539

40.43%

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

$296 KWD 91.1

$494 ₡221.6K

-40.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,351 KWD 2,881

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-21.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$37.34 KWD 11.51

$53.9 ₡24.2K

-30.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.13 KWD 12.05

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-29.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.5 KWD 29.43

$77.9 ₡34.9K

22.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$87.1 KWD 26.84

$79.6 ₡35.7K

9.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$771 KWD 237

$788 ₡353.4K

-2.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$522 KWD 161

$794 ₡356.2K

-34.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,693 KWD 522

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-57.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,520 KWD 468

$1,419 ₡636.5K

7.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,909 KWD 896

$864 ₡387.3K

236.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.53

8.62

-24.25%

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

Last update for Al-jahra': October 11, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Al-jahra'

$522 42.2%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 52.1% $272

Eating Out

Al-jahra'

$198 16%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 7% $14

Groceries & Markets

Al-jahra'

$186 15%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 89.5% $166

Sport & Entertainment

Al-jahra'

$120 9.7%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 27.4% $33

Clothing & Footwear

Al-jahra'

$117 9.4%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 3% $3.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Al-jahra'

$73 5.9%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 156% $113

Getting Around

Al-jahra'

$24 * 1.9%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 268% $63

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $771 in Al-jahra' versus $788 in Nosara. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 237% higher in Al-jahra', which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $64.0 in Al-jahra' versus $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries tell a different story – $186 in Al-jahra' vs $352 in Nosara – so Al-jahra' wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇰🇼 Al-jahra'

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

20:39 8:39 PM

11:39 11:39 AM

9 h behind Al-jahra'

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

393,432

4,912

💱 Currency

Kuwaiti Dinar KWD د.ك

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 KWD = 3.25 USD

1 KWD = 2.89 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to KWD – Kuwaiti Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇼 Kuwaiti Dinar (د.ك)

Kuwaiti Dinar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.308 KWD (1 KWD = 3.25 USD). 1 EUR = 0.346 KWD (1 KWD = 2.89 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to KWD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Al-jahra' Nosara 13,370 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Al-jahra'
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-jahra' vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Nosara is pricier by about 48%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,859 per month in Al-jahra' and $2,758 in Nosara. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Al-jahra', especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $64.0 in Al-jahra' and $61.0 in Nosara. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 89% more in Nosara, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Al-jahra', where all-in costs run around $1,239, than in Nosara at $1,839. In Al-jahra' it covers expenses comfortably, while in Nosara it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Al-jahra' – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Al-jahra'. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Nosara makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.