Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Caen and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Caen: $1,669 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

81

Cost of Living Index in Caen
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Caen Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Caen

🇫🇷 France

$1,669

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,669 in Caen versus $1,839 in Nosara.

Caen $1,669
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,558 in Caen versus $2,828 in Nosara.

Caen $2,558
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,447 in Caen versus $3,818 in Nosara.

Caen $3,447
Nosara $3,818

Living in Caen costs roughly 9% less than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Caen 24% above, Nosara 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.49 €14.67

$12.35 ₡5,539

33.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.1 €49.04

$61.2 ₡27.4K

-9.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.17 €11.72

$7.52 ₡3,373

75.13%

Cappuccino

$2.82 €2.51

$4.41 ₡1,978

-36.05%

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

$3.10 €2.76

$1.74 ₡780

78.16%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.90

$1.31 ₡587

63.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.56 €7.61

$3.28 ₡1,471

160.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.73 €5.10

$4.47 ₡2,004

28.19%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 €1.18

$1.56 ₡701

-15.38%

White Bread (500g)

$1.78 €1.58

$3.02 ₡1,355

-41.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 €1.72

$2.51 ₡1,125

-22.71%

Eggs

$3.75 €3.33

$3.57 ₡1,603

5.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.04 €8.93

$7.43 ₡3,333

35.13%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.49 €10.22

$10.52 ₡4,717

9.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.98 €14.21

$13.97 ₡6,265

14.39%

Apples (1kg)

$2.97 €2.64

$2.35 ₡1,052

26.38%

Banana (1kg)

$3.08 €2.74

$1.61 ₡720

91.30%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.44 €1.28

$4.80 ₡2,152

-70.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.25 €3.78

$1.61 ₡724

163.98%

Potato (1kg)

$1.78 €1.58

$3.80 ₡1,703

-53.16%

Onion (1kg)

$1.95 €1.74

$3.69 ₡1,657

-47.15%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.63 €1.45

$1.13 ₡507

44.25%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.13 €0.11

$2.66 ₡1,191

-95.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.58 €11.19

$5.18 ₡2,321

142.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.67 €5.04

$19.88 ₡8,916

-71.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 €1.26

$2.90 ₡1,300

-51.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.59 €1.42

$3.63 ₡1,626

-56.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.75 €1.56

$1.12 ₡504

56.25%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.77 €43.38

$72.6 ₡32.6K

-32.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.30 €2.04

$2.14 ₡958

7.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.11 €0.99

$1.57 ₡703

-29.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.86 €29.23

$8.52 ₡3,823

285.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.52 ₡682

41.45%

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

$34.6K €30.8K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

60.04%

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

$32.1K €28.6K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-6.89%

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

$138 €123

$96.3 ₡43.2K

43.22%

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

$32.99 €29.34

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-8.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.71 €28.20

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-40.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.67 €29.06

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-54.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.06 €19.62

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-36.81%

Cinema Ticket

$8.98 €7.98

$7.89 ₡3,539

13.81%

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

$903 €803

$494 ₡221.6K

82.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K ₡5.3M

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$107 €95.5

$53.9 ₡24.2K

98.98%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.27 €34.04

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-30.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 €90.3

$77.9 ₡34.9K

30.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$148 €132

$79.6 ₡35.7K

86.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$769 €684

$788 ₡353.4K

-2.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$605 €539

$794 ₡356.2K

-23.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,501 €1,335

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-61.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,041 €926

$1,419 ₡636.5K

-26.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,428 €3,939

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-35.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,484 €2,210

$1,224 ₡549.0K

102.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,373 €2,111

$864 ₡387.3K

174.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.79

8.62

-56.03%

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

Last update for Caen: 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

Caen

$606 36.3%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 31.2% $189

Groceries & Markets

Caen

$289 17.3%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 22.1% $64

Eating Out

Caen

$281 16.8%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 24.5% $69

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Caen

$203 12.1%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 8.3% $17

Clothing & Footwear

Caen

$178 10.7%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 32.5% $58

Getting Around

Caen

$64 3.8%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 36.9% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Caen

$51 3%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 72.6% $37

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $769 in Caen and $788 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Caen pays 175% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $55.0 in Caen vs $61.0 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $289 vs $352 per month, with Caen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇫🇷 Caen

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

16:38 4:38 PM

08:38 8:38 AM

8 h behind Caen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

108,200

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 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 17, 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

Caen Nosara 8,830 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Caen
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

Caen vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Caen and Nosara differ by about 10% in total monthly costs ($1,669 vs $1,839 including rent). Caen is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 175% higher in Caen, 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: $769 in Caen versus $788 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Caen runs roughly 49% less than in Nosara. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $903 in Caen versus $494 in Nosara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $1,669 in Caen versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Caen but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Caen 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, Caen 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 Caen 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.