Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Derby and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,318 in Derby, rent and utilities included – about $5,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

121

Cost of Living Index in Derby
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Derby Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Derby

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,318

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,318 in Derby versus $1,839 in Nosara.

Derby $2,318
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,507 in Derby versus $2,828 in Nosara.

Derby $3,507
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,696 in Derby versus $3,818 in Nosara.

Derby $4,696
Nosara $3,818

Living in Derby is roughly 26% more expensive than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Derby 72% above, Nosara 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.32 A$26.25

$12.35 ₡5,556

48.34%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$77.8 A$111

$61.2 ₡27.5K

27.12%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.79 A$15.45

$7.52 ₡3,383

43.48%

Cappuccino

$3.96 A$5.67

$4.41 ₡1,984

-10.20%

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

$3.03 A$4.35

$1.74 ₡782

74.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.91 A$2.74

$1.31 ₡589

45.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.31 A$10.47

$3.28 ₡1,475

122.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.47 A$10.71

$4.47 ₡2,010

67.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.75 A$2.50

$1.56 ₡703

12.18%

White Bread (500g)

$2.86 A$4.10

$3.02 ₡1,359

-5.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.08 A$2.98

$2.51 ₡1,129

-17.13%

Eggs

$4.62 A$6.62

$3.57 ₡1,608

29.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.77 A$13.99

$7.43 ₡3,344

31.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.94 A$12.80

$10.52 ₡4,732

-15.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.60 A$19.48

$13.97 ₡6,284

-2.65%

Apples (1kg)

$3.48 A$4.98

$2.35 ₡1,055

48.09%

Banana (1kg)

$2.98 A$4.28

$1.61 ₡722

85.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.36 A$4.81

$4.80 ₡2,159

-30.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.69 A$6.72

$1.61 ₡726

191.30%

Potato (1kg)

$2.48 A$3.56

$3.80 ₡1,708

-34.74%

Onion (1kg)

$2.46 A$3.53

$3.69 ₡1,662

-33.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.35 A$3.37

$1.13 ₡508

107.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.73 A$2.48

$2.66 ₡1,195

-34.96%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$40.51 A$58.0

$5.18 ₡2,328

682.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.55 A$22.27

$19.88 ₡8,944

-21.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.83 A$6.93

$2.90 ₡1,304

66.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.65 A$8.09

$3.63 ₡1,631

55.65%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.54 A$3.64

$1.12 ₡506

126.79%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$87.6 A$125

$72.6 ₡32.7K

20.54%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.03 A$4.35

$2.14 ₡961

41.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.55 A$2.22

$1.57 ₡706

-1.27%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$37.67 A$54.0

$8.52 ₡3,835

342.14%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.16 A$1.67

$1.52 ₡684

-23.68%

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

$24.0K A$34.4K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

11.04%

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

$30.8K A$44.1K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-10.91%

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

$177 A$253

$96.3 ₡43.3K

83.66%

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

$24.66 A$35.32

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-31.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$59.9 A$85.9

$53.6 ₡24.1K

11.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.44 A$69.4

$71.6 ₡32.2K

-32.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.35 A$21.98

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-56.03%

Cinema Ticket

$13.46 A$19.27

$7.89 ₡3,550

70.60%

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

$2,070 A$2,965

$494 ₡222.3K

318.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.4K A$26.4K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

55.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$67.0 A$96.0

$53.9 ₡24.3K

24.23%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$62.2 A$89.1

$55.4 ₡24.9K

12.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.0 A$130

$77.9 ₡35.1K

16.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 A$188

$79.6 ₡35.8K

65.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,518 A$2,174

$788 ₡354.5K

92.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,048 A$1,501

$794 ₡357.3K

31.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,154 A$3,086

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-45.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,853 A$2,654

$1,419 ₡638.4K

30.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,285 A$7,571

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-23.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,699 A$6,731

$1,224 ₡550.7K

283.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡388.5K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

8.62

-32.25%

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

Last update for Derby: 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

Derby

$1K 45.2%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 24.2% $254

Groceries & Markets

Derby

$369 15.9%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 4.5% $17

Eating Out

Derby

$298 12.8%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 28.8% $86

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Derby

$261 11.3%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 28.9% $76

Clothing & Footwear

Derby

$158 6.8%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 24.1% $38

Getting Around

Derby

$109 4.7%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 19.7% $21

Sport & Entertainment

Derby

$75 3.3%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 16% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,518 in Derby and $788 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $78.0 in Derby vs $61.0 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $369 vs $352 per month, with Nosara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Derby

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

02:08 2:08 AM

12:08 12:08 PM

14 h behind Derby

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,300

4,912

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.698 USD

1 AUD = 0.625 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.698 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.625 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 450 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 502 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Derby Nosara 16,750 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Derby
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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

Derby vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Derby and Nosara differ by about 26% in total monthly costs ($2,318 vs $1,839 including rent). Nosara is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $3,477 in Derby and $2,758 in Nosara 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: $1,518 in Derby versus $788 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 5% higher in Derby. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Nosara – a meal for two runs $61.0 versus $78.0 in Derby. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,839 in Nosara versus $2,318 in Derby, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Nosara but tight or insufficient in Derby. The gap between the two cities makes Nosara 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, Derby 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 Nosara gentler on the wallet – expenses run 26% less than in Derby. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.