Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cuiaba and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Cuiaba: $1,081 a month against $1,837 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $9,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

53

Cost of Living Index in Cuiaba
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Cuiaba Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Cuiaba

🇧🇷 Brazil

$1,081

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,837

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,081 in Cuiaba versus $1,837 in Nosara.

Cuiaba $1,081
Nosara $1,837

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,618 in Cuiaba versus $2,775 in Nosara.

Cuiaba $1,618
Nosara $2,775

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,155 in Cuiaba versus $3,712 in Nosara.

Cuiaba $2,155
Nosara $3,712

Living in Cuiaba costs roughly 41% less than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cuiaba is 19% below, Nosara is 37% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.03 R$25.12

$12.22 ₡5,509

-58.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.60 R$178

$60.2 ₡27.1K

-40.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.90 R$39.43

$7.54 ₡3,399

4.77%

Cappuccino

$1.85 R$9.21

$4.31 ₡1,941

-57.08%

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

$1.48 R$7.37

$1.72 ₡773

-13.95%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.78 R$3.89

$1.35 ₡608

-42.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.03 R$10.15

$3.24 ₡1,459

-37.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.62 R$13.10

$4.48 ₡2,018

-41.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.23 R$6.14

$1.57 ₡707

-21.66%

White Bread (500g)

$1.60 R$7.98

$3.17 ₡1,429

-49.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.91 R$9.55

$2.42 ₡1,091

-21.07%

Eggs

$3.08 R$15.36

$3.57 ₡1,609

-13.73%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.15 R$85.6

$7.43 ₡3,349

130.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.82 R$24.04

$10.42 ₡4,697

-53.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.36 R$56.7

$13.66 ₡6,156

-16.84%

Apples (1kg)

$2.39 R$11.91

$2.32 ₡1,044

3.02%

Banana (1kg)

$2.40 R$12.00

$1.61 ₡728

49.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.50 R$12.49

$4.74 ₡2,138

-47.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.01 R$15.02

$1.66 ₡747

81.33%

Potato (1kg)

$2.55 R$12.72

$3.72 ₡1,679

-31.45%

Onion (1kg)

$2.11 R$10.51

$3.57 ₡1,611

-40.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.65 R$8.23

$1.10 ₡497

50.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.43 R$7.15

$2.55 ₡1,149

-43.92%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.29 R$11.45

$4.95 ₡2,232

-53.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.63 R$58.1

$20.01 ₡9,020

-41.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.07 R$10.31

$2.79 ₡1,256

-25.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.06 R$15.28

$3.53 ₡1,589

-13.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.02 R$5.11

$1.19 ₡537

-14.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$38.30 R$191

$72.1 ₡32.5K

-46.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.24 ₡1,011

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.55 ₡701

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.86 ₡3,993

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 R$6.53

$1.57 ₡708

-16.56%

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

$29.9K R$149.2K

$21.8K ₡9.8M

37.13%

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

$33.5K R$167.3K

$34.6K ₡15.6M

-3.23%

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

$178 R$888

$93.5 ₡42.1K

90.35%

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

$19.31 R$96.4

$35.11 ₡15.8K

-45.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.04 R$135

$51.5 ₡23.2K

-47.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.15 R$131

$71.4 ₡32.2K

-63.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.84 R$99.0

$35.44 ₡16.0K

-44.02%

Cinema Ticket

$6.17 R$30.80

$7.84 ₡3,535

-21.30%

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

$432 R$2,158

$490 ₡220.7K

-11.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,696 R$48.4K

$11.9K ₡5.4M

-18.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$76.8 R$383

$53.5 ₡24.1K

43.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.06 R$245

$55.8 ₡25.1K

-12.03%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$155 R$775

$79.3 ₡35.7K

95.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.2 R$356

$78.9 ₡35.6K

-9.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$336 R$1,679

$786 ₡354.3K

-57.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$233 R$1,163

$780 ₡351.6K

-70.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$660 R$3,295

$3,860 ₡1.7M

-82.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$370 R$1,848

$1,407 ₡634.4K

-73.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,370 R$6,838

$6,972 ₡3.1M

-80.35%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$793 R$3,958

$1,201 ₡541.3K

-33.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$399 R$1,992

$876 ₡395.0K

-54.45%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

16.1

8.62

86.77%

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

Last update for Cuiaba: October 5, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Cuiaba

$285 26.1%

Nosara

$350 19.3% 22.8% $65

Accommodation & Living

Cuiaba

$233 21.3%

Nosara

$780 43% 235% $547

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cuiaba

$224 20.5%

Nosara

$180 9.9% 19.7% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Cuiaba

$159 14.5%

Nosara

$120 6.6% 24.1% $38

Eating Out

Cuiaba

$111 10.1%

Nosara

$209 11.6% 89.5% $99

Getting Around

Cuiaba

$42 * 3.9%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 105% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Cuiaba

$38 3.5%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 126% $49

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 $336 in Cuiaba and $786 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nosara pays 120% 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: $36.00 in Cuiaba vs $60.0 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $285 vs $350 per month, with Cuiaba cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Cuiaba

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

01:24 1:24 AM

23:24 11:24 PM

2 h behind Cuiaba

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

650,877

4,912

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.2 USD

1 BRL = 0.179 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.99 BRL (1 BRL = 0.2 USD). 1 EUR = 5.6 BRL (1 BRL = 0.179 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 506 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cuiaba Nosara 4,320 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Cuiaba
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

Cuiaba vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cuiaba wins on cost – living expenses run 70% lower than in Nosara. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Cuiaba the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 120% lower in Nosara. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $336 in Cuiaba versus $786 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Cuiaba – a meal for two runs $36.00 versus $60.0 in Nosara. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,081 per month in Cuiaba versus $1,837 in Nosara – a 70% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,081 in Cuiaba versus $1,837 in Nosara, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Cuiaba but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Cuiaba the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Cuiaba delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,081 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Cuiaba hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Cuiaba 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 Cuiaba gentler on the wallet – expenses run 70% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.