Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Birzebbuga and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Birzebbuga: $1,666 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $2,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

81

Cost of Living Index in Birzebbuga
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Birzebbuga Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
Learn more

Nosara Living Index

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Birzebbuga

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,666

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,666 in Birzebbuga versus $1,839 in Nosara.

Birzebbuga $1,666
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,645 in Birzebbuga versus $2,828 in Nosara.

Birzebbuga $2,645
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,625 in Birzebbuga versus $3,818 in Nosara.

Birzebbuga $3,625
Nosara $3,818

Living in Birzebbuga costs roughly 9% less than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Birzebbuga 23% above, Nosara 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.85 €13.21

$12.35 ₡5,539

20.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$87.8 €78.1

$61.2 ₡27.4K

43.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.82 €10.51

$7.52 ₡3,373

57.18%

Cappuccino

$2.61 €2.32

$4.41 ₡1,978

-40.82%

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

$2.07 €1.84

$1.74 ₡780

18.97%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.96 €1.74

$1.31 ₡587

49.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.24 €1.99

$3.28 ₡1,471

-31.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.38 €3.01

$4.47 ₡2,004

-24.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.24 €1.11

$1.56 ₡701

-20.51%

White Bread (500g)

$1.32 €1.17

$3.02 ₡1,355

-56.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.12 €2.78

$2.51 ₡1,125

24.30%

Eggs

$3.61 €3.21

$3.57 ₡1,603

1.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.45 €7.52

$7.43 ₡3,333

13.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.96 €8.86

$10.52 ₡4,717

-5.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.08 €16.08

$13.97 ₡6,265

29.42%

Apples (1kg)

$2.51 €2.23

$2.35 ₡1,052

6.81%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 €1.74

$1.61 ₡720

21.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.13 €2.79

$4.80 ₡2,152

-34.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.91 €2.59

$1.61 ₡724

80.75%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 €1.40

$3.80 ₡1,703

-58.68%

Onion (1kg)

$1.85 €1.65

$3.69 ₡1,657

-49.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 €1.31

$1.13 ₡507

30.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 €0.67

$2.66 ₡1,191

-71.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.31 €5.61

$5.18 ₡2,321

21.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.49 €5.78

$19.88 ₡8,916

-67.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.56 €1.39

$2.90 ₡1,300

-46.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.35 €2.09

$3.63 ₡1,626

-35.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.44 €2.17

$1.12 ₡504

117.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$14.57 €12.96

$72.6 ₡32.6K

-79.94%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.51 €4.90

$2.14 ₡958

157.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.17 €1.93

$1.57 ₡703

38.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.41 €23.49

$8.52 ₡3,823

209.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 €1.31

$1.52 ₡682

-2.63%

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

$29.8K €26.5K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

37.73%

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

$32.5K €28.9K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-5.88%

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

$95.2 €84.6

$96.3 ₡43.2K

-1.18%

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

$24.84 €22.10

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-30.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.98 €37.34

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-21.66%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.6 €49.45

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-22.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.03 €19.60

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-36.89%

Cinema Ticket

$9.98 €8.88

$7.89 ₡3,539

26.49%

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

$368 €328

$494 ₡221.6K

-25.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,911 €7,926

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-24.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$85.7 €76.2

$53.9 ₡24.2K

58.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.86 €34.57

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-29.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$88.9 €79.1

$77.9 ₡34.9K

14.08%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$77.0 €68.5

$79.6 ₡35.7K

-3.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,184 €1,053

$788 ₡353.4K

50.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$756 €672

$794 ₡356.2K

-4.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,729 €1,538

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-56.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,336 €1,189

$1,419 ₡636.5K

-5.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,932 €3,498

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-43.11%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,809 €2,498

$1,224 ₡549.0K

129.44%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,771 €1,575

$864 ₡387.3K

105.06%

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 Birzebbuga: 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

Birzebbuga

$756 45.4%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 5.1% $39

Groceries & Markets

Birzebbuga

$282 16.9%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 24.9% $70

Eating Out

Birzebbuga

$220 13.2%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 3.6% $7.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Birzebbuga

$162 9.7%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 14.7% $24

Clothing & Footwear

Birzebbuga

$131 7.8%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 8.1% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Birzebbuga

$76 4.5%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 15.6% $12

Getting Around

Birzebbuga

$41 2.4%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 114% $46

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,184 in Birzebbuga and $788 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Birzebbuga pays 105% 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 Birzebbuga vs $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries flip the comparison at $282 vs $352, with Birzebbuga cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇹 Birzebbuga

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

17:45 5:45 PM

09:45 9:45 AM

8 h behind Birzebbuga

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

10,000

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 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 19, 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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Between locations

Birzebbuga Nosara 10,260 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Birzebbuga
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

Birzebbuga vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Birzebbuga is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, leisure, and utilities. The 10% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 105% higher in Birzebbuga, 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: $1,184 in Birzebbuga versus $788 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Birzebbuga – a meal for two runs $88.0 versus $61.0 in Nosara. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,666 per month in Birzebbuga versus $1,839 in Nosara – a 10% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,666 in Birzebbuga versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Birzebbuga but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Birzebbuga the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Birzebbuga is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Nosara, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Birzebbuga 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 Birzebbuga gentler on the wallet – expenses run 10% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.