Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Birgu and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Birgu: $1,731 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $1,300 less a year. The total is higher in Nosara despite lower rent and utilities.

85

Cost of Living Index in Birgu
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Birgu Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Birgu

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,731

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,731 in Birgu versus $1,839 in Nosara.

Birgu $1,731
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,817 in Birgu versus $2,828 in Nosara.

Birgu $2,817
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,902 in Birgu versus $3,818 in Nosara.

Birgu $3,902
Nosara $3,818

Living in Birgu costs roughly 6% less than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Birgu 28% above, Nosara 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.77 €17.58

$12.35 ₡5,539

60.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$87.6 €77.9

$61.2 ₡27.4K

43.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.87 €10.56

$7.52 ₡3,373

57.85%

Cappuccino

$2.64 €2.35

$4.41 ₡1,978

-40.14%

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

$2.29 €2.04

$1.74 ₡780

31.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.72 €1.53

$1.31 ₡587

31.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.48 €3.98

$3.28 ₡1,471

36.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.18 €4.61

$4.47 ₡2,004

15.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.36 €1.21

$1.56 ₡701

-12.82%

White Bread (500g)

$1.34 €1.19

$3.02 ₡1,355

-55.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.21 €3.74

$2.51 ₡1,125

67.73%

Eggs

$4.05 €3.60

$3.57 ₡1,603

13.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.31 €7.39

$7.43 ₡3,333

11.84%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.59 €7.64

$10.52 ₡4,717

-18.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.33 €13.63

$13.97 ₡6,265

9.74%

Apples (1kg)

$2.77 €2.46

$2.35 ₡1,052

17.87%

Banana (1kg)

$1.26 €1.12

$1.61 ₡720

-21.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.82 €2.51

$4.80 ₡2,152

-41.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.77 €2.46

$1.61 ₡724

72.05%

Potato (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$3.80 ₡1,703

-42.11%

Onion (1kg)

$1.69 €1.51

$3.69 ₡1,657

-54.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.30 €2.05

$1.13 ₡507

103.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.87 €0.77

$2.66 ₡1,191

-67.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.82 €6.06

$5.18 ₡2,321

31.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.32 €7.40

$19.88 ₡8,916

-58.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.59 €1.42

$2.90 ₡1,300

-45.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.44 €2.17

$3.63 ₡1,626

-32.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.34 €2.08

$1.12 ₡504

108.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$13.80 €12.27

$72.6 ₡32.6K

-81.00%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.42 €4.82

$2.14 ₡958

153.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.09 €0.97

$1.57 ₡703

-30.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.03 €24.04

$8.52 ₡3,823

217.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 €1.30

$1.52 ₡682

-3.95%

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

$26.0K €23.2K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

20.50%

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

$32.7K €29.1K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-5.37%

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

$103 €91.3

$96.3 ₡43.2K

6.64%

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

$25.53 €22.70

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-28.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.11 €29.45

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-38.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.55 €38.74

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-39.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$66.5 €59.2

$34.91 ₡15.7K

90.49%

Cinema Ticket

$9.89 €8.80

$7.89 ₡3,539

25.35%

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

$371 €330

$494 ₡221.6K

-24.83%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,023 €1,799

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-82.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$25.33 €22.53

$53.9 ₡24.2K

-53.04%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.87 €30.13

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-38.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100 €89.1

$77.9 ₡34.9K

28.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$110 €97.4

$79.6 ₡35.7K

37.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$980 €872

$788 ₡353.4K

24.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$798 €709

$794 ₡356.2K

0.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,785 €1,588

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-54.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,534 €1,365

$1,419 ₡636.5K

8.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,050 €3,603

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-41.40%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,820 €2,509

$1,224 ₡549.0K

130.39%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,873 €1,666

$864 ₡387.3K

116.90%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.9

8.62

-66.36%

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

Last update for Birgu: 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

Birgu

$798 46.1%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 0.4% $3.2

Groceries & Markets

Birgu

$279 16.2%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 26.1% $73

Eating Out

Birgu

$274 15.8%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 22.7% $62

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Birgu

$161 9.3%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 15.2% $24

Clothing & Footwear

Birgu

$121 7%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 0.8% $0.9

Sport & Entertainment

Birgu

$63 3.7%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 37.9% $24

Getting Around

Birgu

$34 2%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 156% $53

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $980 in Birgu and $788 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Birgu pays 117% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $88.0 in Birgu vs $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries flip the comparison at $279 vs $352, with Birgu cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇹 Birgu

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

11:27 11:27 AM

03:27 3:27 AM

8 h behind Birgu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,500

4,912

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Birgu Nosara 10,260 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Birgu
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

Birgu vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Birgu wins on cost – living expenses run 6% lower than in Nosara. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Birgu the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 117% higher in Birgu, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $980 in Birgu versus $788 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Birgu runs roughly 426% less than in Nosara. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $371 in Birgu versus $494 in Nosara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,731 in Birgu versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Birgu but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Birgu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Birgu delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,731 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Birgu hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Birgu 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 Birgu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 6% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.