Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Battambang and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Battambang: $650 a month against $1,837 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $14,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

32

Cost of Living Index in Battambang
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Battambang Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Battambang

🇰🇭 Cambodia

$650

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,837

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $650 in Battambang versus $1,837 in Nosara.

Battambang $650
Nosara $1,837

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,040 in Battambang versus $2,775 in Nosara.

Battambang $1,040
Nosara $2,775

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,429 in Battambang versus $3,712 in Nosara.

Battambang $1,429
Nosara $3,712

Living in Battambang costs roughly 65% less than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Battambang is 51% below, Nosara is 37% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.44 ៛9,889

$12.22 ₡5,509

-80.03%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$17.77 ៛72.0K

$60.2 ₡27.1K

-70.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.19 ៛25.1K

$7.54 ₡3,399

-17.90%

Cappuccino

$1.35 ៛5,456

$4.31 ₡1,941

-68.68%

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

$0.68 ៛2,744

$1.72 ₡773

-60.47%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.52 ៛2,112

$1.35 ₡608

-61.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.84 ៛3,418

$3.24 ₡1,459

-74.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 ៛9,321

$4.48 ₡2,018

-48.66%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.20 ៛8,915

$1.57 ₡707

40.13%

White Bread (500g)

$1.02 ៛4,123

$3.17 ₡1,429

-67.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.99 ៛4,006

$2.42 ₡1,091

-59.09%

Eggs

$1.68 ៛6,808

$3.57 ₡1,609

-52.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.88 ៛60.3K

$7.43 ₡3,349

100.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.44 ៛9,870

$10.42 ₡4,697

-76.58%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 ៛37.5K

$13.66 ₡6,156

-32.21%

Apples (1kg)

$3.96 ៛16.1K

$2.32 ₡1,044

70.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.28 ៛5,195

$1.61 ₡728

-20.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.19 ៛17.0K

$4.74 ₡2,138

-11.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.18 ៛8,847

$1.66 ₡747

31.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 ៛6,349

$3.72 ₡1,679

-57.80%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 ៛4,654

$3.57 ₡1,611

-67.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.73 ៛2,946

$1.10 ₡497

-33.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.74 ៛2,991

$2.55 ₡1,149

-70.98%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.87 ៛7,571

$4.95 ₡2,232

-62.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.16 ៛45.2K

$20.01 ₡9,020

-44.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.60 ៛2,438

$2.79 ₡1,256

-78.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 ៛3,981

$3.53 ₡1,589

-72.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.19 ₡537

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.1 ₡32.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.90 ៛3,652

$2.24 ₡1,011

-59.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.89 ៛3,617

$1.55 ₡701

-42.58%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.87 ៛19.7K

$8.86 ₡3,993

-45.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.25 ៛5,056

$1.57 ₡708

-20.38%

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

$34.8K ៛141.0M

$21.8K ₡9.8M

59.72%

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

$34.1K ៛138.0M

$34.6K ₡15.6M

-1.65%

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

$63.7 ៛258.0K

$93.5 ₡42.1K

-31.84%

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

$2.77 ៛11.2K

$35.11 ₡15.8K

-92.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.60 ៛99.6K

$51.5 ₡23.2K

-52.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$22.59 ៛91.5K

$71.4 ₡32.2K

-68.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.44 ₡16.0K

Cinema Ticket

$4.89 ៛19.8K

$7.84 ₡3,535

-37.63%

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

$91.1 ៛368.8K

$490 ₡220.7K

-81.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,931 ៛15.9M

$11.9K ₡5.4M

-66.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$20.04 ៛81.2K

$53.5 ₡24.1K

-62.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.47 ៛99.1K

$55.8 ₡25.1K

-56.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.2 ៛373.4K

$79.3 ₡35.7K

16.33%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$44.66 ៛180.9K

$78.9 ₡35.6K

-43.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$221 ៛893.6K

$786 ₡354.3K

-71.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$151 ៛612.8K

$780 ₡351.6K

-80.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$433 ៛1.8M

$3,860 ₡1.7M

-88.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$327 ៛1.3M

$1,407 ₡634.4K

-76.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,972 ₡3.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,201 ₡541.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$199 ៛806.4K

$876 ₡395.0K

-77.28%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.25

8.62

-15.89%

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

Last update for Battambang: October 6, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Battambang

$229 34.7%

Nosara

$350 19.3% 52.8% $121

Accommodation & Living

Battambang

$151 23%

Nosara

$780 43% 415% $629

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Battambang

$91 13.8%

Nosara

$180 9.9% 97.7% $89

Clothing & Footwear

Battambang

$82 12.4%

Nosara

$120 6.6% 47.5% $39

Eating Out

Battambang

$68 10.3%

Nosara

$209 11.6% 209% $142

Sport & Entertainment

Battambang

$32 4.9%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 169% $55

Getting Around

Battambang

$5.4 * 0.8%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 1517% $81

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $221 in Battambang and $786 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nosara pays 340% 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: $18.00 in Battambang vs $60.0 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $229 vs $350 per month, with Battambang cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇰🇭 Battambang

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

10:51 10:51 AM

21:51 9:51 PM

13 h behind Battambang

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

196,709

4,912

💱 Currency

Cambodian Riel KHR ៛

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 KHR = 2.47 USD

10,000 KHR = 2.2 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to KHR – Cambodian Riel Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇭 Cambodian Riel (៛)

Cambodian Riel exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4,050 KHR (10,000 KHR = 2.47 USD). 1 EUR = 4,542 KHR (10,000 KHR = 2.2 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 506 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to KHR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Battambang Nosara 17,270 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Battambang
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

Battambang vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Battambang wins on cost – living expenses run 183% lower than in Nosara. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Battambang the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 340% 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: $221 in Battambang versus $786 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $91.1 in Battambang versus $490 in Nosara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Battambang – a meal for two runs $18.00 versus $60.0 in Nosara. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $650 in Battambang versus $1,837 in Nosara, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Battambang but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Battambang the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Battambang delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $650 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Battambang hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Battambang 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 Battambang gentler on the wallet – expenses run 183% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.