Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Arun and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,835 a month against $2,629 in Arun, rent and utilities included – about $9,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

123

Cost of Living Index in Arun
Learn more

Arun Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
Learn more

Nosara Living Index

Jump to prices

Arun

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,629

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,835

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,629 per month in Arun vs $1,835 in Nosara, rent included.

Arun $2,629
Nosara $1,835

A couple spends around $3,863 per month in Arun vs $2,825 in Nosara, rent included.

Arun $3,863
Nosara $2,825

A family of three spends $5,097 per month in Arun vs $3,814 in Nosara, rent included.

Arun $5,097
Nosara $3,814

Arun costs about 43% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Arun and Nosara sit above the global median – Arun by 94%, Nosara by 35%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.34 £19.76

$12.34 ₡5,535

113.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$108 £81.3

$61.3 ₡27.5K

76.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.69 £8.02

$7.76 ₡3,481

37.76%

Cappuccino

$5.82 £4.37

$4.44 ₡1,992

31.08%

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

$3.02 £2.26

$1.79 ₡803

68.72%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.21 £1.65

$1.29 ₡580

71.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.08 £6.81

$3.24 ₡1,451

180.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.31 £6.24

$4.43 ₡1,985

87.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.89 £1.42

$1.55 ₡696

21.94%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 £1.52

$3.08 ₡1,380

-34.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.45 £1.84

$2.53 ₡1,133

-3.16%

Eggs

$5.09 £3.82

$3.45 ₡1,546

47.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.70 £3.52

$7.32 ₡3,284

-35.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.72 £8.04

$10.24 ₡4,594

4.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.19 £12.90

$14.10 ₡6,326

21.91%

Apples (1kg)

$3.08 £2.31

$2.29 ₡1,027

34.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.11 £0.83

$1.64 ₡737

-32.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.00 £2.25

$4.79 ₡2,149

-37.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.39 £2.55

$1.64 ₡735

106.71%

Potato (1kg)

$1.61 £1.21

$3.85 ₡1,727

-58.18%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 £1.35

$3.75 ₡1,681

-52.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 £1.09

$1.09 ₡488

33.03%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 £1.41

$2.59 ₡1,160

-27.41%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.67 £17.76

$5.12 ₡2,295

362.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.11 £9.84

$19.92 ₡8,931

-34.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.23 £2.42

$2.80 ₡1,255

15.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.49 £3.37

$3.52 ₡1,580

27.56%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.63 £2.72

$1.22 ₡549

197.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$99.1 £74.3

$73.9 ₡33.1K

34.10%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.72 £4.29

$2.17 ₡973

163.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.23 £2.42

$1.56 ₡698

107.05%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.16 £19.62

$8.67 ₡3,886

201.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.92 £1.44

$1.55 ₡697

23.87%

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

$38.8K £29.1K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

12.43%

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

$41.1K £30.8K

$38.7K ₡17.4M

5.95%

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

$370 £277

$94.8 ₡42.5K

289.83%

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

$17.94 £13.46

$36.15 ₡16.2K

-50.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.96 £29.98

$53.1 ₡23.8K

-24.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.1 £39.87

$73.8 ₡33.1K

-27.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.63 ₡16.0K

Cinema Ticket

$6.15 £4.61

$7.91 ₡3,548

-22.25%

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

$2,919 £2,190

$490 ₡219.9K

495.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.4K £27.3K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

206.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$117 £87.8

$54.8 ₡24.6K

113.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.30 £29.48

$55.9 ₡25.1K

-29.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$128 £96.2

$80.4 ₡36.0K

59.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$66.6 £49.94

$77.9 ₡34.9K

-14.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,164 £874

$801 ₡359.1K

45.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,119 £840

$790 ₡354.1K

41.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,254 £1,691

$4,005 ₡1.8M

-43.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,796 £1,347

$1,409 ₡632.0K

27.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,762 £3,572

$7,064 ₡3.2M

-32.59%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,150 £3,113

$1,236 ₡554.3K

235.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$887 ₡397.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.74

8.62

-45.01%

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

Last update for Arun: October 17, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Arun

$1.1K 42.6%

Nosara

$790 43% 29.4% $330

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Arun

$428 16.3%

Nosara

$184 10% 57% $244

Eating Out

Arun

$396 15.1%

Nosara

$213 11.6% 46.2% $183

Groceries & Markets

Arun

$328 12.5%

Nosara

$350 19.1% 6.7% $22

Clothing & Footwear

Arun

$158 6%

Nosara

$121 6.6% 23.4% $37

Getting Around

Arun

$135 5.2%

Nosara

$89 4.8% 34.5% $47

Sport & Entertainment

Arun

$65 2.5%

Nosara

$90 4.9% 36.9% $24

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,164 in Arun versus $801 in Nosara. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $108 in Arun versus $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries tell a different story – $328 in Arun vs $350 in Nosara – so Arun wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Arun

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

23:35 11:35 PM

16:35 4:35 PM

7 h behind Arun

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,285

4,912

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Arun Nosara 8,800 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Arun
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

Arun vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Arun costs about 43% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,943 per month in Arun and $2,753 in Nosara. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Nosara, 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 $108 in Arun and $61.0 in Nosara. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,629 in Arun and $1,835 in Nosara. That's a gap of about 43%.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Nosara, where all-in costs run around $1,835, than in Arun at $2,629. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Arun it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Nosara costs $1,835 versus $2,629 in Arun. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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 Nosara. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Arun makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.