Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cortona and Nosara

For one person, living costs are similar in Cortona and in Nosara: $1,782 and $1,839 a month, rent and utilities included.

87

Cost of Living Index in Cortona
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Cortona Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Cortona

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,782

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,782 per month in Cortona vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Cortona $1,782
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $2,699 per month in Cortona vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Cortona $2,699
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $3,616 per month in Cortona vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Cortona $3,616
Nosara $3,818

Cortona is about 3% cheaper than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Cortona and Nosara sit above the global median – Cortona by 32%, Nosara by 36%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.97 €17.76

$12.35 ₡5,539

61.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$80.3 €71.4

$61.2 ₡27.4K

31.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.47 €10.21

$7.52 ₡3,373

52.53%

Cappuccino

$1.99 €1.77

$4.41 ₡1,978

-54.88%

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

$3.37 €3.00

$1.74 ₡780

93.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$1.31 ₡587

7.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.61 €5.88

$3.28 ₡1,471

101.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.37 €3.89

$4.47 ₡2,004

-2.24%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 €1.51

$1.56 ₡701

8.97%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 €1.96

$3.02 ₡1,355

-27.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.11 €2.77

$2.51 ₡1,125

23.90%

Eggs

$5.20 €4.62

$3.57 ₡1,603

45.66%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$27.98 €24.89

$7.43 ₡3,333

276.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$16.13 €14.34

$10.52 ₡4,717

53.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$24.34 €21.65

$13.97 ₡6,265

74.23%

Apples (1kg)

$2.97 €2.64

$2.35 ₡1,052

26.38%

Banana (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$1.61 ₡720

34.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.29 €2.93

$4.80 ₡2,152

-31.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.25 €2.89

$1.61 ₡724

101.86%

Potato (1kg)

$3.12 €2.78

$3.80 ₡1,703

-17.89%

Onion (1kg)

$2.17 €1.93

$3.69 ₡1,657

-41.19%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.88 €1.68

$1.13 ₡507

66.37%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.83 €0.74

$2.66 ₡1,191

-68.80%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.66 €6.81

$5.18 ₡2,321

47.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.55 €7.61

$19.88 ₡8,916

-56.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.59 €2.30

$2.90 ₡1,300

-10.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.07 €3.62

$3.63 ₡1,626

12.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.55 €4.94

$2.14 ₡958

159.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.21 €1.97

$1.57 ₡703

40.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.50 €10.23

$8.52 ₡3,823

34.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.09 €1.86

$1.52 ₡682

37.50%

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

$36.5K €32.4K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

68.72%

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

$35.3K €31.4K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

2.27%

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

$339 €301

$96.3 ₡43.2K

251.71%

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

$12.19 €10.84

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-66.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.74 €38.02

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-20.25%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.43 €25.29

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-60.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.22 €9.98

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-67.86%

Cinema Ticket

$10.78 €9.59

$7.89 ₡3,539

36.63%

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

$634 €564

$494 ₡221.6K

28.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,834 €7,858

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-25.50%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.7 €88.7

$53.9 ₡24.2K

84.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$75.8 €67.4

$55.4 ₡24.8K

36.83%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.6 €78.0

$77.9 ₡34.9K

12.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$194 €172

$79.6 ₡35.7K

143.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$839 €746

$788 ₡353.4K

6.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$401 €357

$794 ₡356.2K

-49.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,487 €1,323

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-62.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$613 €546

$1,419 ₡636.5K

-56.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,234 €1,987

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-67.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,788 €2,480

$1,224 ₡549.0K

127.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,170 €2,820

$864 ₡387.3K

267.10%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.7

8.62

-57.08%

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

Last update for Cortona: October 10, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Cortona

$436 24.5%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 19.3% $84

Accommodation & Living

Cortona

$401 22.5%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 98% $393

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cortona

$394 22.1%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 52.8% $208

Eating Out

Cortona

$279 15.7%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 24.1% $67

Clothing & Footwear

Cortona

$206 11.5%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 41.6% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Cortona

$50 2.8%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 74.8% $37

Getting Around

Cortona

$17 * 0.9%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 424% $71

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $839 in Cortona 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 267% higher in Cortona, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $80.0 in Cortona versus $61.0 in Nosara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $436 vs $352 – making Nosara the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇮🇹 Cortona

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

03:12 3:12 AM

19:12 7:12 PM

8 h behind Cortona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

22,450

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 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

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 EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cortona Nosara 9,860 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cortona
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

Cortona vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,782 in Cortona, $1,839 in Nosara – roughly 3% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,674 per month in Cortona 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 Cortona, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,782 in Cortona and $1,839 in Nosara. That's a gap of about 3%.

Kindergarten costs $634 per month in Cortona and $494 in Nosara. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Cortona, where all-in costs run around $1,782, than in Nosara at $1,839. In Cortona it covers expenses comfortably, while in Nosara it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Nosara has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,782 in Cortona to $1,839 in Nosara. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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