Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Arusha and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Arusha: $549 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $15,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

10

Cost of Living Index in Arusha
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Arusha Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Arusha

🇹🇿 Tanzania

$549

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $549 per month in Arusha vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Arusha $549
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $888 per month in Arusha vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Arusha $888
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $1,228 per month in Arusha vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Arusha $1,228
Nosara $3,818

Arusha is about 70% cheaper than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Arusha sits 59% below the global median, while Nosara is 36% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.33 TZS 8,723

$12.35 ₡5,539

-73.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$27.39 TZS 71.7K

$61.2 ₡27.4K

-55.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.12 TZS 23.9K

$7.52 ₡3,373

21.28%

Cappuccino

$1.70 TZS 4,443

$4.41 ₡1,978

-61.45%

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

$0.92 TZS 2,421

$1.74 ₡780

-47.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.32 TZS 851

$1.31 ₡587

-75.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.01 TZS 2,653

$3.28 ₡1,471

-69.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.80 TZS 7,336

$4.47 ₡2,004

-37.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.96 TZS 2,522

$1.56 ₡701

-38.46%

White Bread (500g)

$0.69 TZS 1,798

$3.02 ₡1,355

-77.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.74 TZS 4,554

$2.51 ₡1,125

-30.68%

Eggs

$1.75 TZS 4,573

$3.57 ₡1,603

-50.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.43 ₡3,333

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.52 ₡4,717

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.97 ₡6,265

Apples (1kg)

$2.22 TZS 5,802

$2.35 ₡1,052

-5.53%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 ₡720

Oranges (1kg)

$4.80 ₡2,152

Tomato (1kg)

$0.77 TZS 2,021

$1.61 ₡724

-52.17%

Potato (1kg)

$0.49 TZS 1,272

$3.80 ₡1,703

-87.11%

Onion (1kg)

$1.03 TZS 2,686

$3.69 ₡1,657

-72.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 ₡507

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.85 TZS 2,229

$2.66 ₡1,191

-68.05%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.53 TZS 4,015

$5.18 ₡2,321

-70.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.88 ₡8,916

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 TZS 2,444

$2.90 ₡1,300

-67.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.92 TZS 2,417

$3.63 ₡1,626

-74.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.19 TZS 503

$1.12 ₡504

-83.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₡958

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.57 ₡703

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.64 TZS 20.0K

$8.52 ₡3,823

-10.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.24 TZS 3,259

$1.52 ₡682

-18.42%

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

$21.6K ₡9.7M

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

$34.5K ₡15.5M

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

$28.61 TZS 74.9K

$96.3 ₡43.2K

-70.29%

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

$8.60 TZS 22.5K

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-76.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$46.62 TZS 122.1K

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-13.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$65.4 TZS 171.4K

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-8.59%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$4.69 TZS 12.3K

$7.89 ₡3,539

-40.56%

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

$494 ₡221.6K

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,710 TZS 20.2M

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-34.98%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 ₡24.2K

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 ₡24.8K

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.9 ₡34.9K

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$79.6 ₡35.7K

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$285 TZS 747.5K

$788 ₡353.4K

-63.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$234 TZS 611.7K

$794 ₡356.2K

-70.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$491 TZS 1.3M

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-87.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$525 TZS 1.4M

$1,419 ₡636.5K

-62.99%

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)

$864 ₡387.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

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

Last update for Arusha: October 12, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Arusha

$234 42.6%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 240% $561

Eating Out

Arusha

$90 16.4%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 135% $122

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Arusha

$84 15.3%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 122% $102

Sport & Entertainment

Arusha

$75 13.6%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 16.8% $13

Groceries & Markets

Arusha

$66 * 12%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 437% $287

Getting Around

Arusha

$0.8 * 0.1%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 11213% $86

Clothing & Footwear

Arusha

- * 0%

Nosara

$120 6.5%

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $285 in Arusha 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $27.00 in Arusha versus $61.0 in Nosara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $66.0 vs $352 – making Arusha the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇹🇿 Arusha

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

15:39 3:39 PM

06:39 6:39 AM

9 h behind Arusha

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

617,631

4,912

💱 Currency

Tanzanian Shilling TZS Sh

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 TZS = 3.82 USD

10,000 TZS = 3.4 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to TZS – Tanzanian Shilling Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇿 Tanzanian Shilling (Sh)

Tanzanian Shilling exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 2,619 TZS (10,000 TZS = 3.82 USD). 1 EUR = 2,945 TZS (10,000 TZS = 3.4 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 TZS in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Arusha Nosara 13,610 km ≈ 18 h nonstop flight

From you

Arusha
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

Arusha vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $549 in Arusha, $1,839 in Nosara – roughly 235% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $823 per month in Arusha 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 Arusha, 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 $27.00 in Arusha 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 $549 in Arusha and $1,839 in Nosara. That's a gap of about 235%.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Arusha, where all-in costs run around $549, than in Nosara at $1,839. In Arusha it covers expenses comfortably, while in Nosara it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Nosara has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $549 in Arusha to $1,839 in Nosara. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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 Arusha. 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.