Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chester and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,365 in Chester, rent and utilities included – about $6,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

115

Cost of Living Index in Chester
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Chester Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Chester

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,365

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,365 per month in Chester vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Chester $2,365
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $3,402 per month in Chester vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Chester $3,402
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $4,438 per month in Chester vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Chester $4,438
Nosara $3,818

Chester costs about 29% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Chester and Nosara sit above the global median – Chester by 75%, Nosara by 36%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.64 £14.74

$12.35 ₡5,539

59.03%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$87.2 £65.4

$61.2 ₡27.4K

42.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.43 £7.82

$7.52 ₡3,373

38.70%

Cappuccino

$4.92 £3.69

$4.41 ₡1,978

11.56%

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

$2.49 £1.87

$1.74 ₡780

43.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 £1.37

$1.31 ₡587

39.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.48 £4.86

$3.28 ₡1,471

97.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.55 £4.92

$4.47 ₡2,004

46.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.69 £1.27

$1.56 ₡701

8.33%

White Bread (500g)

$1.79 £1.34

$3.02 ₡1,355

-40.73%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.38 £1.78

$2.51 ₡1,125

-5.18%

Eggs

$3.98 £2.99

$3.57 ₡1,603

11.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.61 £6.46

$7.43 ₡3,333

15.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.21 £6.16

$10.52 ₡4,717

-21.96%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.77 £10.33

$13.97 ₡6,265

-1.43%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 £2.26

$2.35 ₡1,052

28.09%

Banana (1kg)

$1.68 £1.26

$1.61 ₡720

4.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.83 £2.12

$4.80 ₡2,152

-41.04%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.90 £2.18

$1.61 ₡724

80.12%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 £1.45

$3.80 ₡1,703

-48.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.45 £1.09

$3.69 ₡1,657

-60.70%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 £0.96

$1.13 ₡507

13.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 £1.16

$2.66 ₡1,191

-41.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.06 £17.30

$5.18 ₡2,321

345.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.14 £8.36

$19.88 ₡8,916

-43.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.84 £2.13

$2.90 ₡1,300

-2.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.25 £2.44

$3.63 ₡1,626

-10.47%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.61 £1.96

$1.12 ₡504

133.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$68.6 £51.5

$72.6 ₡32.6K

-5.55%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.33 £4.00

$2.14 ₡958

149.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.38 £1.04

$1.57 ₡703

-12.10%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$22.23 £16.68

$8.52 ₡3,823

160.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.06 £1.55

$1.52 ₡682

35.53%

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

$37.8K £28.4K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

75.02%

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

$40.4K £30.3K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

17.06%

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

$339 £254

$96.3 ₡43.2K

251.63%

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

$20.84 £15.64

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-41.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.75 £30.58

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-23.96%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.21 £36.17

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-32.66%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.02 £11.27

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-56.98%

Cinema Ticket

$13.28 £9.96

$7.89 ₡3,539

68.31%

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

$1,591 £1,194

$494 ₡221.6K

222.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.7K £11.8K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

32.44%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.8 £65.9

$53.9 ₡24.2K

62.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.24 £30.94

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-25.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.2 £74.4

$77.9 ₡34.9K

27.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.7 £66.5

$79.6 ₡35.7K

11.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,337 £1,003

$788 ₡353.4K

69.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,051 £789

$794 ₡356.2K

32.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,972 £1,479

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-49.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,610 £1,208

$1,419 ₡636.5K

13.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,847 £2,886

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-44.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,289 £2,467

$1,224 ₡549.0K

168.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,987 £2,991

$864 ₡387.3K

361.71%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.15

8.62

-40.26%

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

Last update for Chester: October 12, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chester

$1.1K 44.5%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 24.4% $257

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chester

$400 16.9%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 53.6% $214

Eating Out

Chester

$310 13.1%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 31.7% $98

Groceries & Markets

Chester

$295 12.5%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 19.5% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Chester

$143 6%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 15.8% $23

Getting Around

Chester

$91 3.9%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 4.6% $4.2

Sport & Entertainment

Chester

$75 3.2%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 16.9% $13

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,337 in Chester versus $788 in Nosara. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 362% higher in Chester, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $87.0 in Chester versus $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries tell a different story – $295 in Chester vs $352 in Nosara – so Chester wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Chester

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

04:23 4:23 AM

21:23 9:23 PM

7 h behind Chester

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

119,000

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 18, 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 18, 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

Chester Nosara 8,640 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Chester
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

Chester vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chester costs about 29% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,548 per month in Chester and $2,758 in Nosara. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Nosara, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $1,591 per month in Chester and $494 in Nosara. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 20% cheaper in Chester – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Nosara, where all-in costs run around $1,839, than in Chester at $2,365. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Chester it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Nosara costs $1,839 versus $2,365 in Chester. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Nosara. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Chester makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.