Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bristol and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,837 a month against $2,891 in Bristol, rent and utilities included – about $12,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

138

Cost of Living Index in Bristol
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Bristol Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Bristol

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,891

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,837

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,891 in Bristol versus $1,837 in Nosara.

Bristol $2,891
Nosara $1,837

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,132 in Bristol versus $2,775 in Nosara.

Bristol $4,132
Nosara $2,775

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,373 in Bristol versus $3,712 in Nosara.

Bristol $5,373
Nosara $3,712

Living in Bristol is roughly 57% more expensive than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Bristol 116% above, Nosara 37% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.56 £16.29

$12.22 ₡5,509

76.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$113 £85.1

$60.2 ₡27.1K

87.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.42 £7.87

$7.54 ₡3,399

38.20%

Cappuccino

$5.03 £3.80

$4.31 ₡1,941

16.71%

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

$2.61 £1.97

$1.72 ₡773

51.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 £1.39

$1.35 ₡608

35.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.76 £5.86

$3.24 ₡1,459

139.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.72 £5.08

$4.48 ₡2,018

50.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.55 £1.17

$1.57 ₡707

-1.27%

White Bread (500g)

$1.66 £1.25

$3.17 ₡1,429

-47.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.00 £1.51

$2.42 ₡1,091

-17.36%

Eggs

$4.25 £3.21

$3.57 ₡1,609

19.05%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.46 £6.39

$7.43 ₡3,349

13.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.72 £7.35

$10.42 ₡4,697

-6.72%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.75 £9.64

$13.66 ₡6,156

-6.66%

Apples (1kg)

$3.19 £2.41

$2.32 ₡1,044

37.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.72 £1.30

$1.61 ₡728

6.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.68 £2.02

$4.74 ₡2,138

-43.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.00 £3.03

$1.66 ₡747

140.96%

Potato (1kg)

$2.08 £1.57

$3.72 ₡1,679

-44.09%

Onion (1kg)

$1.45 £1.09

$3.57 ₡1,611

-59.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.22 £0.92

$1.10 ₡497

10.91%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.01 £1.52

$2.55 ₡1,149

-21.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.96 £17.35

$4.95 ₡2,232

363.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.76 £8.13

$20.01 ₡9,020

-46.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.78 £2.10

$2.79 ₡1,256

-0.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.51 £2.65

$3.53 ₡1,589

-0.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.34 £2.53

$1.19 ₡537

180.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$119 £89.8

$72.1 ₡32.5K

64.78%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.36 £2.54

$2.24 ₡1,011

50.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.63 £1.23

$1.55 ₡701

5.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.73 £20.20

$8.86 ₡3,993

201.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.15 £1.62

$1.57 ₡708

36.94%

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

$37.7K £28.5K

$21.8K ₡9.8M

72.74%

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

$41.1K £31.1K

$34.6K ₡15.6M

18.66%

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

$317 £240

$93.5 ₡42.1K

239.51%

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

$17.38 £13.13

$35.11 ₡15.8K

-50.50%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$38.91 £29.40

$51.5 ₡23.2K

-24.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.01 £37.03

$71.4 ₡32.2K

-31.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.69 £8.83

$35.44 ₡16.0K

-67.01%

Cinema Ticket

$14.11 £10.66

$7.84 ₡3,535

79.97%

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

$2,237 £1,690

$490 ₡220.7K

356.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.0K £18.9K

$11.9K ₡5.4M

110.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$100 £75.7

$53.5 ₡24.1K

87.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.31 £35.75

$55.8 ₡25.1K

-15.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 £79.1

$79.3 ₡35.7K

32.05%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.5 £73.7

$78.9 ₡35.6K

23.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,894 £1,431

$786 ₡354.3K

140.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,471 £1,112

$780 ₡351.6K

88.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,100 £2,343

$3,860 ₡1.7M

-19.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,300 £1,738

$1,407 ₡634.4K

63.47%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,784 £5,126

$6,972 ₡3.1M

-2.70%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,111 £3,862

$1,201 ₡541.3K

325.64%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,803 £2,874

$876 ₡395.0K

333.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.87

8.62

-43.50%

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

Last update for Bristol: October 4, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bristol

$1.5K 51.4%

Nosara

$780 43% 47% $691

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bristol

$374 13%

Nosara

$180 9.9% 51.8% $194

Eating Out

Bristol

$334 11.7%

Nosara

$209 11.6% 37.3% $125

Groceries & Markets

Bristol

$307 10.7%

Nosara

$350 19.3% 13.9% $43

Clothing & Footwear

Bristol

$157 5.5%

Nosara

$120 6.6% 23.5% $37

Getting Around

Bristol

$144 5%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 39.5% $57

Sport & Entertainment

Bristol

$77 2.7%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 12.8% $9.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,894 in Bristol and $786 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bristol pays 334% 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: $113 in Bristol vs $60.0 in Nosara. Groceries flip the comparison at $307 vs $350, with Bristol cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Bristol

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

06:09 6:09 AM

23:09 11:09 PM

7 h behind Bristol

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

463,400

4,912

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 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 GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bristol Nosara 8,660 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Bristol
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

Bristol vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bristol and Nosara differ by about 57% in total monthly costs ($2,891 vs $1,837 including rent). Nosara is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 334% higher in Bristol, 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: $1,894 in Bristol versus $786 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Bristol pay roughly 14% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Dining out is cheaper in Nosara – a meal for two runs $60.0 versus $113 in Bristol. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,837 in Nosara versus $2,891 in Bristol, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Nosara but tight or insufficient in Bristol. The gap between the two cities makes Nosara the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Bristol 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 Nosara gentler on the wallet – expenses run 57% less than in Bristol. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.