Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Brookhaven, NY and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,835 a month against $2,722 in Brookhaven, NY, rent and utilities included – about $10,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

133

Cost of Living Index in Brookhaven, NY
Learn more

Brookhaven, NY Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
Learn more

Nosara Living Index

Jump to prices

Brookhaven, NY

🇺🇸 United States

$2,722

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,835

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,722 in Brookhaven, NY versus $1,835 in Nosara.

Brookhaven, NY $2,722
Nosara $1,835

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,065 in Brookhaven, NY versus $2,825 in Nosara.

Brookhaven, NY $4,065
Nosara $2,825

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,408 in Brookhaven, NY versus $3,814 in Nosara.

Brookhaven, NY $5,408
Nosara $3,814

Living in Brookhaven, NY is roughly 48% more expensive than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Brookhaven, NY 101% above, Nosara 35% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.74 $24.74

$12.34 ₡5,535

100.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$98.9 $98.9

$61.3 ₡27.5K

61.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.20 $11.20

$7.76 ₡3,481

44.33%

Cappuccino

$5.35 $5.35

$4.44 ₡1,992

20.50%

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

$2.24 $2.24

$1.79 ₡803

25.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.54 $1.54

$1.29 ₡580

19.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.01 $8.01

$3.24 ₡1,451

147.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.20 $8.20

$4.43 ₡1,985

85.10%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.26 $1.26

$1.55 ₡696

-18.71%

White Bread (500g)

$4.31 $4.31

$3.08 ₡1,380

39.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$7.76 $7.76

$2.53 ₡1,133

206.72%

Eggs

$5.75 $5.75

$3.45 ₡1,546

66.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.61 $12.61

$7.32 ₡3,284

72.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.62 $11.62

$10.24 ₡4,594

13.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.07 $17.07

$14.10 ₡6,326

21.06%

Apples (1kg)

$5.54 $5.54

$2.29 ₡1,027

141.92%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 $1.73

$1.64 ₡737

5.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.16 $6.16

$4.79 ₡2,149

28.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.14 $6.14

$1.64 ₡735

274.39%

Potato (1kg)

$5.47 $5.47

$3.85 ₡1,727

42.08%

Onion (1kg)

$3.77 $3.77

$3.75 ₡1,681

0.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.79 $2.79

$1.09 ₡488

155.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.94 $2.94

$2.59 ₡1,160

13.51%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.50 $11.50

$5.12 ₡2,295

124.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$24.08 $24.08

$19.92 ₡8,931

20.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.71 $1.71

$2.80 ₡1,255

-38.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.49 $5.49

$3.52 ₡1,580

55.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.86 $1.86

$1.22 ₡549

52.46%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.9 ₡33.1K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.93 $2.93

$2.17 ₡973

35.02%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.03 $2.03

$1.56 ₡698

30.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.54 $23.54

$8.67 ₡3,886

171.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 $1.10

$1.55 ₡697

-29.03%

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

$27.6K $27.6K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-20.17%

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

$26.7K $26.7K

$38.7K ₡17.4M

-31.07%

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

$211 $211

$94.8 ₡42.5K

122.29%

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

$75.6 $75.6

$36.15 ₡16.2K

109.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$64.3 $64.3

$53.1 ₡23.8K

21.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.96 $40.96

$73.8 ₡33.1K

-44.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.63 ₡16.0K

Cinema Ticket

$14.76 $14.76

$7.91 ₡3,548

86.60%

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

$2,237 $2,237

$490 ₡219.9K

356.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.6K $23.6K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

98.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$41.13 $41.13

$54.8 ₡24.6K

-24.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.5 $56.5

$55.9 ₡25.1K

1.13%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.1 $76.1

$80.4 ₡36.0K

-5.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$158 $158

$77.9 ₡34.9K

102.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,587 $1,587

$801 ₡359.1K

98.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,275 $1,275

$790 ₡354.1K

61.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,527 $2,527

$4,005 ₡1.8M

-36.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,118 $2,118

$1,409 ₡632.0K

50.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,099 $3,099

$7,064 ₡3.2M

-56.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,127 $2,127

$1,236 ₡554.3K

72.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$887 ₡397.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

8.62

-21.69%

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

Last update for Brookhaven, NY: October 18, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Brookhaven, NY

$1.3K 46.9%

Nosara

$790 43% 38.1% $485

Groceries & Markets

Brookhaven, NY

$489 18%

Nosara

$350 19.1% 28.4% $139

Eating Out

Brookhaven, NY

$367 13.5%

Nosara

$213 11.6% 42.1% $155

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Brookhaven, NY

$351 12.9%

Nosara

$184 10% 47.5% $167

Clothing & Footwear

Brookhaven, NY

$149 5.5%

Nosara

$121 6.6% 19% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Brookhaven, NY

$70 2.6%

Nosara

$90 4.9% 27.1% $19

Getting Around

Brookhaven, NY

$21 * 0.8%

Nosara

$89 4.8% 333% $68

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 $1,587 in Brookhaven, NY and $801 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $99.0 in Brookhaven, NY vs $61.0 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $489 vs $350 per month, with Nosara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Brookhaven, NY

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

15:57 3:57 PM

13:57 1:57 PM

2 h behind Brookhaven, NY

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

11,674

4,912

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

CRC to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Brookhaven, NY Nosara 3,650 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Brookhaven, NY
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

Brookhaven, NY vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 48% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $4,083 in Brookhaven, NY and $2,753 in Nosara to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,587 in Brookhaven, NY versus $801 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 40% higher in Brookhaven, NY. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,722 per month in Brookhaven, NY versus $1,835 in Nosara – a 48% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,835 in Nosara versus $2,722 in Brookhaven, NY, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Nosara but tight or insufficient in Brookhaven, NY. The gap between the two cities makes Nosara the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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

Safety-wise, Brookhaven, NY 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 48% less than in Brookhaven, NY. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.