Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Burnaby and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,738 in Burnaby, rent and utilities included – about $10,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

133

Cost of Living Index in Burnaby
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Burnaby Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Burnaby

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,738

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,738 in Burnaby versus $1,839 in Nosara.

Burnaby $2,738
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,928 in Burnaby versus $2,828 in Nosara.

Burnaby $3,928
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,117 in Burnaby versus $3,818 in Nosara.

Burnaby $5,117
Nosara $3,818

Living in Burnaby is roughly 49% more expensive than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Burnaby 103% above, Nosara 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.18 CA$29.94

$12.35 ₡5,539

71.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$83.7 CA$118

$61.2 ₡27.4K

36.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.94 CA$12.64

$7.52 ₡3,373

18.88%

Cappuccino

$4.66 CA$6.59

$4.41 ₡1,978

5.67%

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

$2.30 CA$3.26

$1.74 ₡780

32.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 CA$2.38

$1.31 ₡587

28.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.45 CA$11.95

$3.28 ₡1,471

157.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.81 CA$8.21

$4.47 ₡2,004

29.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.30 CA$3.25

$1.56 ₡701

47.44%

White Bread (500g)

$2.71 CA$3.83

$3.02 ₡1,355

-10.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.53 CA$4.99

$2.51 ₡1,125

40.64%

Eggs

$3.08 CA$4.36

$3.57 ₡1,603

-13.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.50 CA$19.08

$7.43 ₡3,333

81.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.49 CA$19.08

$10.52 ₡4,717

28.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$25.16 CA$35.57

$13.97 ₡6,265

80.10%

Apples (1kg)

$4.46 CA$6.30

$2.35 ₡1,052

89.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.30 CA$1.84

$1.61 ₡720

-19.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.52 CA$6.38

$4.80 ₡2,152

-5.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.63 CA$6.54

$1.61 ₡724

187.58%

Potato (1kg)

$2.81 CA$3.97

$3.80 ₡1,703

-26.05%

Onion (1kg)

$3.47 CA$4.90

$3.69 ₡1,657

-5.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.68 CA$3.79

$1.13 ₡507

137.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.11 CA$2.99

$2.66 ₡1,191

-20.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.99 CA$19.78

$5.18 ₡2,321

170.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.46 CA$19.03

$19.88 ₡8,916

-32.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.08 CA$2.94

$2.90 ₡1,300

-28.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 CA$3.22

$3.63 ₡1,626

-37.19%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.32 CA$3.28

$1.12 ₡504

107.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$79.5 CA$112

$72.6 ₡32.6K

9.46%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.87 CA$4.05

$2.14 ₡958

34.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.50 CA$2.13

$1.57 ₡703

-4.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.37 CA$37.27

$8.52 ₡3,823

209.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 CA$1.84

$1.52 ₡682

-14.47%

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

$27.6K CA$39.0K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

27.66%

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

$18.7K CA$26.4K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-45.94%

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

$120 CA$170

$96.3 ₡43.2K

25.02%

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

$43.55 CA$61.6

$35.89 ₡16.1K

21.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.1 CA$75.1

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-0.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.72 CA$42.01

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-58.49%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.33 CA$14.61

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-70.41%

Cinema Ticket

$13.91 CA$19.67

$7.89 ₡3,539

76.30%

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

$634 CA$897

$494 ₡221.6K

28.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.7 CA$73.1

$53.9 ₡24.2K

-4.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.6 CA$73.0

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-6.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 CA$144

$77.9 ₡34.9K

30.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$77.4 CA$109

$79.6 ₡35.7K

-2.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,628 CA$2,302

$788 ₡353.4K

106.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,491 CA$2,108

$794 ₡356.2K

87.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,454 CA$3,469

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-37.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,187 CA$3,092

$1,419 ₡636.5K

54.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,588 CA$9,313

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-4.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,530 CA$7,817

$1,224 ₡549.0K

351.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,144 CA$4,445

$864 ₡387.3K

264.10%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.76

8.62

-44.78%

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

Last update for Burnaby: October 11, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Burnaby

$1.5K 54.4%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 46.7% $697

Groceries & Markets

Burnaby

$425 15.5%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 17% $72

Eating Out

Burnaby

$322 11.8%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 34.2% $110

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Burnaby

$217 7.9%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 14.4% $31

Clothing & Footwear

Burnaby

$127 4.6%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 5.5% $7

Getting Around

Burnaby

$99 3.6%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 12.2% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Burnaby

$58 2.1%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 51.8% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,628 in Burnaby and $788 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Burnaby pays 264% 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: $84.0 in Burnaby vs $61.0 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $425 vs $352 per month, with Nosara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Burnaby

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

13:14 1:14 PM

14:14 2:14 PM

1 h ahead of Burnaby

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

249,125

4,912

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

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 CAD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Burnaby Nosara 5,560 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Burnaby
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

Burnaby vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Burnaby and Nosara differ by about 49% in total monthly costs ($2,738 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 264% higher in Burnaby, 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: $1,628 in Burnaby versus $788 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $634 in Burnaby versus $494 in Nosara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 21% higher in Burnaby. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,839 in Nosara versus $2,738 in Burnaby, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Nosara but tight or insufficient in Burnaby. 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, Burnaby 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 49% less than in Burnaby. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.