Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Aracaju and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Aracaju: $746 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $13,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

36

Cost of Living Index in Aracaju
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Aracaju Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
Learn more

Nosara Living Index

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Aracaju

🇧🇷 Brazil

$746

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $746 in Aracaju versus $1,839 in Nosara.

Aracaju $746
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,168 in Aracaju versus $2,828 in Nosara.

Aracaju $1,168
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,590 in Aracaju versus $3,818 in Nosara.

Aracaju $1,590
Nosara $3,818

Living in Aracaju costs roughly 59% less than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Aracaju is 45% below, Nosara is 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.94 R$24.85

$12.35 ₡5,547

-60.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.53 R$123

$61.2 ₡27.5K

-59.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.17 R$31.02

$7.52 ₡3,377

-17.95%

Cappuccino

$1.74 R$8.73

$4.41 ₡1,981

-60.54%

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

$1.18 R$5.91

$1.74 ₡781

-32.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.67 R$3.36

$1.31 ₡588

-48.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.95 R$9.79

$3.28 ₡1,473

-40.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.82 R$14.20

$4.47 ₡2,007

-36.91%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.05 R$5.28

$1.56 ₡702

-32.69%

White Bread (500g)

$1.53 R$7.70

$3.02 ₡1,357

-49.34%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.21 R$6.10

$2.51 ₡1,127

-51.79%

Eggs

$1.68 R$8.46

$3.57 ₡1,605

-52.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.70 R$38.72

$7.43 ₡3,338

3.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.79 R$19.04

$10.52 ₡4,724

-63.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.42 R$37.30

$13.97 ₡6,274

-46.89%

Apples (1kg)

$2.15 R$10.79

$2.35 ₡1,054

-8.51%

Banana (1kg)

$1.31 R$6.60

$1.61 ₡721

-18.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.73 R$3.66

$4.80 ₡2,155

-84.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.02 R$5.14

$1.61 ₡725

-36.65%

Potato (1kg)

$0.97 R$4.90

$3.80 ₡1,706

-74.47%

Onion (1kg)

$0.91 R$4.59

$3.69 ₡1,659

-75.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.51 R$2.57

$1.13 ₡507

-54.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 R$3.81

$2.66 ₡1,193

-71.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.34 R$11.77

$5.18 ₡2,324

-54.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.12 R$30.76

$19.88 ₡8,929

-69.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 R$6.46

$2.90 ₡1,302

-55.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 R$10.22

$3.63 ₡1,628

-44.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.94 R$4.71

$1.12 ₡505

-16.07%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$42.85 R$215

$72.6 ₡32.6K

-41.01%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.68 R$8.46

$2.14 ₡959

-21.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.22 R$6.11

$1.57 ₡704

-22.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.92 R$34.76

$8.52 ₡3,828

-18.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.27 R$6.37

$1.52 ₡683

-16.45%

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

$23.4K R$117.7K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

8.35%

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

$34.2K R$171.7K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-1.05%

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

$96.5 R$485

$96.3 ₡43.2K

0.25%

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

$9.68 R$48.63

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-73.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.43 R$87.6

$53.6 ₡24.1K

-67.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$22.93 R$115

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-67.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.44 R$138

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-21.40%

Cinema Ticket

$6.45 R$32.41

$7.89 ₡3,544

-18.25%

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

$188 R$944

$494 ₡221.9K

-61.98%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,306 R$26.7K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-55.26%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$58.9 R$296

$53.9 ₡24.2K

9.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.28 R$177

$55.4 ₡24.9K

-36.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.6 R$440

$77.9 ₡35.0K

12.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$82.6 R$415

$79.6 ₡35.8K

3.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$313 R$1,573

$788 ₡353.9K

-60.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$145 R$727

$794 ₡356.7K

-81.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$639 R$3,210

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-83.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$277 R$1,392

$1,419 ₡637.4K

-80.49%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,301 R$6,537

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-81.18%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$903 R$4,539

$1,224 ₡549.8K

-26.23%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$453 R$2,279

$864 ₡387.8K

-47.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

16.01%

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

Last update for Aracaju: October 10, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Aracaju

$167 22.4%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 111% $185

Accommodation & Living

Aracaju

$145 19.4%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 449% $650

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Aracaju

$124 16.6%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 50.3% $62

Clothing & Footwear

Aracaju

$119 15.9%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 0.9% $1.1

Eating Out

Aracaju

$102 13.6%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 108% $110

Getting Around

Aracaju

$54 7.3%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 60.2% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Aracaju

$36 4.8%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 144% $52

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $313 in Aracaju and $788 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nosara pays 90% 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: $25.00 in Aracaju vs $61.0 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $167 vs $352 per month, with Aracaju cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Aracaju

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

09:02 9:02 AM

06:02 6:02 AM

3 h behind Aracaju

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

602,757

4,912

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.199 USD

1 BRL = 0.178 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 5.03 BRL (1 BRL = 0.199 USD). 1 EUR = 5.63 BRL (1 BRL = 0.178 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 449 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 503 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Aracaju Nosara 5,850 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Aracaju
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

Aracaju vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Aracaju and Nosara differ by about 146% in total monthly costs ($746 vs $1,839 including rent). Aracaju is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 90% 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: $313 in Aracaju versus $788 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $188 in Aracaju versus $494 in Nosara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 111% higher in Nosara. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $746 in Aracaju versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Aracaju but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Aracaju 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, Aracaju 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 Aracaju gentler on the wallet – expenses run 146% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.