Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Buckingham and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,219 in Buckingham, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

107

Cost of Living Index in Buckingham
Learn more

Buckingham Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
Learn more

Nosara Living Index

Jump to prices

Buckingham

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,219

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,219 in Buckingham versus $1,839 in Nosara.

Buckingham $2,219
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,265 in Buckingham versus $2,828 in Nosara.

Buckingham $3,265
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,311 in Buckingham versus $3,818 in Nosara.

Buckingham $4,311
Nosara $3,818

Living in Buckingham is roughly 21% more expensive than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Buckingham 64% above, Nosara 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.03 £15.03

$12.35 ₡5,539

62.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$78.9 £59.2

$61.2 ₡27.4K

29.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.44 £7.83

$7.52 ₡3,373

38.83%

Cappuccino

$4.60 £3.45

$4.41 ₡1,978

4.31%

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

$2.05 £1.54

$1.74 ₡780

17.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.50 £1.12

$1.31 ₡587

14.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.45 £4.09

$3.28 ₡1,471

66.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.52 £3.39

$4.47 ₡2,004

1.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 £1.13

$1.56 ₡701

-3.21%

White Bread (500g)

$1.77 £1.33

$3.02 ₡1,355

-41.39%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.82 £2.11

$2.51 ₡1,125

12.35%

Eggs

$4.04 £3.03

$3.57 ₡1,603

13.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.09 £6.82

$7.43 ₡3,333

22.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.72 £5.79

$10.52 ₡4,717

-26.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.42 £12.32

$13.97 ₡6,265

17.54%

Apples (1kg)

$3.29 £2.47

$2.35 ₡1,052

40.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.54 £1.16

$1.61 ₡720

-4.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.80 £2.10

$4.80 ₡2,152

-41.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.20 £2.40

$1.61 ₡724

98.76%

Potato (1kg)

$1.16 £0.87

$3.80 ₡1,703

-69.47%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 £1.30

$3.69 ₡1,657

-53.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.29 £0.97

$1.13 ₡507

14.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.35 £1.01

$2.66 ₡1,191

-49.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.66 £17.75

$5.18 ₡2,321

356.76%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.10 £7.57

$19.88 ₡8,916

-49.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.14 £2.36

$2.90 ₡1,300

8.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 £1.71

$3.63 ₡1,626

-37.19%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.38 £2.53

$1.12 ₡504

201.79%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$94.7 £71.1

$72.6 ₡32.6K

30.41%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.18 £3.14

$2.14 ₡958

95.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.69 £2.02

$1.57 ₡703

71.34%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.36 £24.28

$8.52 ₡3,823

279.81%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 £1.53

$1.52 ₡682

34.21%

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

$38.4K £28.8K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

77.60%

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

$41.3K £31.0K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

19.60%

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

$200 £150

$96.3 ₡43.2K

107.67%

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

$17.46 £13.10

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-51.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.68 £32.77

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-18.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.77 £34.34

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-36.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$13.38 £10.04

$7.89 ₡3,539

69.58%

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

$1,464 £1,099

$494 ₡221.6K

196.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.0K £16.5K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

85.68%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.3 £63.2

$53.9 ₡24.2K

56.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.33 £23.50

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-43.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.7 £55.3

$77.9 ₡34.9K

-5.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.2 £72.9

$79.6 ₡35.7K

22.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,462 £1,097

$788 ₡353.4K

85.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,036 £777

$794 ₡356.2K

30.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,105 £1,579

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-46.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,659 £1,244

$1,419 ₡636.5K

16.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,081 £3,812

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-26.48%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,819 £2,865

$1,224 ₡549.0K

211.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,447 £3,336

$864 ₡387.3K

414.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.06

8.62

-41.30%

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

Last update for Buckingham: October 10, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Buckingham

$1K 46.7%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 23.3% $242

Eating Out

Buckingham

$297 13.4%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 28.7% $85

Groceries & Markets

Buckingham

$297 13.4%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 18.6% $55

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Buckingham

$261 11.8%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 28.9% $75

Clothing & Footwear

Buckingham

$129 5.8%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 6.8% $8.8

Getting Around

Buckingham

$126 5.7%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 30.8% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Buckingham

$73 3.3%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 20.4% $15

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,462 in Buckingham and $788 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Buckingham pays 415% 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: $79.0 in Buckingham vs $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries flip the comparison at $297 vs $352, with Buckingham cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Buckingham

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

07:22 7:22 AM

00:22 12:22 AM

7 h behind Buckingham

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

12,890

4,912

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 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).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Buckingham Nosara 8,770 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Buckingham
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

Buckingham vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Buckingham and Nosara differ by about 21% in total monthly costs ($2,219 vs $1,839 including rent). Nosara is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 415% higher in Buckingham, 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: $1,462 in Buckingham versus $788 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,219 per month in Buckingham versus $1,839 in Nosara – a 21% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Nosara runs roughly 30% less than in Buckingham. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,839 in Nosara versus $2,219 in Buckingham, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Nosara but tight or insufficient in Buckingham. 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, Buckingham 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 21% less than in Buckingham. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.