Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cartago and Taipa

For one person, living is cheaper in Cartago: $1,713 a month against $2,021 in Taipa, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Taipa outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

80

Cost of Living Index in Cartago
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Cartago Living Index
99

Cost of Living Index in Taipa
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Taipa Living Index

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Cartago

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,713

/mo nomad

Taipa

🇲🇴 Macao (China)

$2,021

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cartago and in Taipa

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Cartago and in Taipa actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,713 in Cartago versus $2,021 in Taipa.

Cartago $1,713
Taipa $2,021

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,362 in Cartago versus $3,160 in Taipa.

Cartago $2,362
Taipa $3,160

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,011 in Cartago versus $4,299 in Taipa.

Cartago $3,011
Taipa $4,299

Living in Cartago costs roughly 15% less than in Taipa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Cartago 27% above, Taipa 50% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.64 ₡3,875

$6.00 MOP 48.48

44.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.53 ₡15.5K

$56.1 MOP 453

-38.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.92 ₡4,449

$5.92 MOP 47.82

67.57%

Cappuccino

$4.54 ₡2,036

$5.06 MOP 40.93

-10.28%

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

$2.13 ₡955

$0.71 MOP 5.74

200.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.36 ₡610

$0.38 MOP 3.09

257.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.15 ₡964

$5.78 MOP 46.75

-62.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.06 ₡1,820

$7.13 MOP 57.6

-43.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.39 ₡1,073

$3.14 MOP 25.40

-23.89%

White Bread (500g)

$2.37 ₡1,065

$1.74 MOP 14.05

36.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.47 ₡1,110

$1.64 MOP 13.29

50.61%

Eggs

$3.57 ₡1,601

$3.50 MOP 28.33

2.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.61 ₡3,860

$15.93 MOP 129

-45.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.38 ₡4,654

$19.63 MOP 159

-47.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.94 ₡6,252

$29.44 MOP 238

-52.65%

Apples (1kg)

$5.24 ₡2,351

$2.70 MOP 21.86

94.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.29 ₡579

$2.95 MOP 23.82

-56.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.49 ₡2,014

$1.88 MOP 15.22

138.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.91 ₡1,307

$2.42 MOP 19.56

20.25%

Potato (1kg)

$2.24 ₡1,004

$3.88 MOP 31.39

-42.27%

Onion (1kg)

$2.17 ₡972

$2.90 MOP 23.41

-25.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 ₡487

$0.67 MOP 5.42

62.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.18 ₡977

$1.14 MOP 9.20

91.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.07 ₡2,722

$6.79 MOP 54.9

-10.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.16 ₡6,797

$12.53 MOP 101

20.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.89 ₡1,296

$1.77 MOP 14.31

63.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 ₡912

$2.27 MOP 18.36

-10.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.37 ₡613

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$73.2 ₡32.8K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.33 ₡598

$2.58 MOP 20.88

-48.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 ₡702

$1.24 MOP 10.05

25.81%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.95 ₡4,015

$14.64 MOP 118

-38.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.51 ₡677

$1.79 MOP 14.50

-15.64%

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

$21.7K ₡9.7M

$31.4K MOP 254.1K

-30.99%

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

$35.1K ₡15.7M

$32.0K MOP 258.6K

9.78%

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

$52.4 ₡23.5K

$121 MOP 974

-56.51%

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

$35.12 ₡15.8K

$23.97 MOP 194

46.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$59.9 ₡26.8K

$37.43 MOP 303

59.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$73.8 ₡33.1K

$74.4 MOP 601

-0.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$77.8 ₡34.9K

$3.68 MOP 29.76

2013.04%

Cinema Ticket

$7.27 ₡3,262

$12.55 MOP 101

-42.07%

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

$549 ₡246.2K

$1,217 MOP 9,835

-54.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,878 ₡3.5M

$18.8K MOP 152.1K

-58.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$70.1 ₡31.5K

$68.7 MOP 555

2.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.5 ₡25.3K

$32.83 MOP 265

72.01%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 ₡54.4K

$93.0 MOP 752

30.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$87.7 ₡39.3K

$134 MOP 1,080

-34.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$923 ₡414.2K

$1,053 MOP 8,515

-12.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$704 ₡315.9K

$982 MOP 7,936

-28.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,869 ₡838.0K

$2,091 MOP 16.9K

-10.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$724 ₡324.7K

$1,906 MOP 15.4K

-62.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$16.1K MOP 129.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$13.5K MOP 109.3K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,344 ₡602.9K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

187.33%

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

Last update for Cartago: October 11, 2026

Last update for Taipa: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cartago

$704 41.1%

Taipa

$982 48.6% 39.4% $278

Groceries & Markets

Cartago

$348 20.3%

Taipa

$427 21.1% 22.5% $79

Eating Out

Cartago

$186 10.9%

Taipa

$174 8.6% 6.5% $12

Clothing & Footwear

Cartago

$151 8.8%

Taipa

$148 7.3% 2.2% $3.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cartago

$147 8.6%

Taipa

$182 9% 23.4% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Cartago

$88 5.2%

Taipa

$99 4.9% 12.6% $11

Getting Around

Cartago

$88 5.1%

Taipa

$8.8 * 0.4% 90% $79

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 $923 in Cartago and $1,053 in Taipa. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $35.00 in Cartago vs $56.0 in Taipa for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $348 vs $427 per month, with Cartago cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇷 Cartago

🇲🇴 Taipa

🕒 Local time

02:49 2:49 AM

16:49 4:49 PM

14 h ahead of Cartago

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

110,000

78,497

💱 Currency

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

Macanese Pataca MOP P

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

1 MOP = 0.124 USD

1 MOP = 0.11 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MOP, USD, EUR to CRC – Costa Rican Colón Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇷 Costa Rican Colón (₡)

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

Macanese Pataca exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 8.08 MOP (1 MOP = 0.124 USD). 1 EUR = 9.09 MOP (1 MOP = 0.11 EUR).

USD to CRC in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cartago Taipa 15,980 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Cartago
Taipa

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

Cartago vs Taipa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cartago is cheaper overall, especially in groceries and leisure. The 18% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $2,570 in Cartago and $3,031 in Taipa 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: $923 in Cartago versus $1,053 in Taipa. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 23% higher in Taipa. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,713 per month in Cartago versus $2,021 in Taipa – a 18% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,713 in Cartago versus $2,021 in Taipa, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Cartago but tight or insufficient in Taipa. The gap between the two cities makes Cartago 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, Cartago and Taipa 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 Cartago gentler on the wallet – expenses run 18% less than in Taipa. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.