Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Drangsnes and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Drangsnes: $1,712 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $1,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Nosara outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

84

Cost of Living Index in Drangsnes
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Drangsnes Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
Learn more

Nosara Living Index

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Drangsnes

🇮🇸 Iceland

$1,712

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,712 in Drangsnes versus $1,839 in Nosara.

Drangsnes $1,712
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,910 in Drangsnes versus $2,828 in Nosara.

Drangsnes $2,910
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,109 in Drangsnes versus $3,818 in Nosara.

Drangsnes $4,109
Nosara $3,818

Living in Drangsnes costs roughly 7% less than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Drangsnes 27% above, Nosara 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$30.53 ISK 3,703

$12.35 ₡5,539

147.21%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$122 ISK 14.8K

$61.2 ₡27.4K

98.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$27.37 ISK 3,320

$7.52 ₡3,373

263.96%

Cappuccino

$6.65 ISK 806

$4.41 ₡1,978

50.79%

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

$3.40 ISK 412

$1.74 ₡780

95.40%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.02 ISK 366

$1.31 ₡587

130.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$14.04 ISK 1,703

$3.28 ₡1,471

328.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$12.40 ISK 1,504

$4.47 ₡2,004

177.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.10 ISK 255

$1.56 ₡701

34.62%

White Bread (500g)

$4.32 ISK 523

$3.02 ₡1,355

43.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.65 ISK 443

$2.51 ₡1,125

45.42%

Eggs

$6.97 ISK 845

$3.57 ₡1,603

95.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$21.84 ISK 2,649

$7.43 ₡3,333

193.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$24.20 ISK 2,935

$10.52 ₡4,717

130.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$41.38 ISK 5,019

$13.97 ₡6,265

196.21%

Apples (1kg)

$3.35 ISK 406

$2.35 ₡1,052

42.55%

Banana (1kg)

$2.78 ISK 337

$1.61 ₡720

72.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.27 ISK 397

$4.80 ₡2,152

-31.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.43 ISK 780

$1.61 ₡724

299.38%

Potato (1kg)

$3.81 ISK 462

$3.80 ₡1,703

0.26%

Onion (1kg)

$1.63 ISK 198

$3.69 ₡1,657

-55.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.82 ISK 463

$1.13 ₡507

238.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.81 ISK 219

$2.66 ₡1,191

-31.95%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.12 ISK 1,713

$5.18 ₡2,321

172.59%

Wine (Bottle)

$23.60 ISK 2,862

$19.88 ₡8,916

18.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.69 ISK 447

$2.90 ₡1,300

27.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.33 ISK 403

$3.63 ₡1,626

-8.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 ₡504

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$72.6 ₡32.6K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.66 ISK 808

$2.14 ₡958

211.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.91 ISK 353

$1.57 ₡703

85.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$80.9 ISK 9,806

$8.52 ₡3,823

848.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.12 ISK 257

$1.52 ₡682

39.47%

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

$50.3K ISK 6.1M

$21.6K ₡9.7M

132.82%

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

$53.0K ISK 6.4M

$34.5K ₡15.5M

53.43%

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

$95.5 ISK 11.6K

$96.3 ₡43.2K

-0.86%

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

$32.50 ISK 3,942

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-9.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$85.5 ISK 10.4K

$53.6 ₡24.0K

59.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$71.6 ₡32.1K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$19.83 ISK 2,405

$7.89 ₡3,539

151.33%

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

$1,173 ISK 142.3K

$494 ₡221.6K

137.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$26.3K ISK 3.2M

$11.9K ₡5.3M

121.77%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$150 ISK 18.1K

$53.9 ₡24.2K

177.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$66.2 ISK 8,034

$55.4 ₡24.8K

19.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$180 ISK 21.9K

$77.9 ₡34.9K

131.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$250 ISK 30.4K

$79.6 ₡35.7K

214.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$788 ₡353.4K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 ₡356.2K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,939 ₡1.8M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,419 ₡636.5K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.0K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,197 ISK 751.6K

$864 ₡387.3K

617.63%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.81

8.62

2.20%

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

Last update for Drangsnes: 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

Drangsnes

$620 36.2%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 43.2% $268

Eating Out

Drangsnes

$527 30.8%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 59.8% $315

Clothing & Footwear

Drangsnes

$291 17%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 58.7% $171

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Drangsnes

$213 12.5%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 13% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Drangsnes

$40 * 2.3%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 120% $48

Getting Around

Drangsnes

$21 * 1.2%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 311% $66

Accommodation & Living

Drangsnes

- * 0%

Nosara

$794 43.2%

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

Cost Breakdown

Drangsnes pays 618% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $122 in Drangsnes vs $61.0 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $620 vs $352 per month, with Nosara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇸 Drangsnes

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

01:38 1:38 AM

19:38 7:38 PM

6 h behind Drangsnes

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

100

4,912

💱 Currency

Icelandic Króna ISK kr

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 ISK = 8.24 USD

1,000 ISK = 7.33 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to ISK – Icelandic Króna Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇸 Icelandic Króna (kr)

Icelandic Króna exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 121 ISK (1,000 ISK = 8.24 USD). 1 EUR = 136 ISK (1,000 ISK = 7.33 EUR).

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).

USD to ISK in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Drangsnes Nosara 7,840 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Drangsnes
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

Drangsnes vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Drangsnes wins on cost – living expenses run 7% lower than in Nosara. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Drangsnes the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 618% higher in Drangsnes, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Childcare runs $1,173 in Drangsnes versus $494 in Nosara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Drangsnes – a meal for two runs $122 versus $61.0 in Nosara. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,712 in Drangsnes versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Drangsnes but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes Drangsnes the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Drangsnes delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,712 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Drangsnes hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Drangsnes 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 Drangsnes gentler on the wallet – expenses run 7% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.