Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dubrovnik and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $1,979 in Dubrovnik, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Dubrovnik outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

97

Cost of Living Index in Dubrovnik
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Dubrovnik Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Dubrovnik

🇭🇷 Croatia

$1,979

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,979 per month in Dubrovnik vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Dubrovnik $1,979
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $2,933 per month in Dubrovnik vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Dubrovnik $2,933
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $3,886 per month in Dubrovnik vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Dubrovnik $3,886
Nosara $3,818

Dubrovnik costs about 8% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Dubrovnik and Nosara sit above the global median – Dubrovnik by 47%, Nosara by 36%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.49 €17.34

$12.35 ₡5,539

57.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$77.3 €68.8

$61.2 ₡27.4K

26.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.71 €11.30

$7.52 ₡3,373

69.02%

Cappuccino

$4.21 €3.74

$4.41 ₡1,978

-4.54%

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

$4.50 €4.01

$1.74 ₡780

158.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.49 €3.99

$1.31 ₡587

242.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.45 €4.85

$3.28 ₡1,471

66.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.98 €7.10

$4.47 ₡2,004

78.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.08 €0.96

$1.56 ₡701

-30.77%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 €1.07

$3.02 ₡1,355

-59.93%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.30 €2.05

$2.51 ₡1,125

-8.37%

Eggs

$4.18 €3.72

$3.57 ₡1,603

17.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.90 €8.81

$7.43 ₡3,333

33.24%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.96 €7.97

$10.52 ₡4,717

-14.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.60 €8.54

$13.97 ₡6,265

-31.28%

Apples (1kg)

$1.77 €1.58

$2.35 ₡1,052

-24.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.36 €1.21

$1.61 ₡720

-15.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.70 €1.51

$4.80 ₡2,152

-64.58%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.74 €2.44

$1.61 ₡724

70.19%

Potato (1kg)

$0.86 €0.77

$3.80 ₡1,703

-77.37%

Onion (1kg)

$0.91 €0.81

$3.69 ₡1,657

-75.34%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.10 €0.98

$1.13 ₡507

-2.65%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 €1.11

$2.66 ₡1,191

-53.01%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.36 €4.76

$5.18 ₡2,321

3.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.41 €3.92

$19.88 ₡8,916

-77.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.32 €1.18

$2.90 ₡1,300

-54.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.88 €2.56

$3.63 ₡1,626

-20.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.83 €2.51

$1.12 ₡504

152.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.6 €48.53

$72.6 ₡32.6K

-24.89%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.41 €3.92

$2.14 ₡958

106.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.22 €1.08

$1.57 ₡703

-22.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.40 €6.58

$8.52 ₡3,823

-13.15%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.60

$1.52 ₡682

18.42%

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

$25.9K €23.0K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

19.88%

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

$25.5K €22.7K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-26.15%

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

$178 €158

$96.3 ₡43.2K

84.35%

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

$22.58 €20.09

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-37.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.34 €37.66

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-20.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$70.1 €62.4

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-2.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.39 €20.81

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-33.00%

Cinema Ticket

$8.00 €7.12

$7.89 ₡3,539

1.39%

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

$90.6 €80.6

$494 ₡221.6K

-81.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,922 €6,157

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-41.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$73.3 €65.2

$53.9 ₡24.2K

35.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.46 €24.43

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-50.44%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$66.3 €58.9

$77.9 ₡34.9K

-14.98%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.4 €69.7

$79.6 ₡35.7K

-1.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,442 €1,283

$788 ₡353.4K

83.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$906 €806

$794 ₡356.2K

14.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,964 €1,747

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-50.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,442 €1,283

$1,419 ₡636.5K

1.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,912 €7,038

$6,912 ₡3.1M

14.48%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,158 €3,698

$1,224 ₡549.0K

239.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,437 €1,279

$864 ₡387.3K

66.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.79

8.62

-56.03%

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

Last update for Dubrovnik: 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

Dubrovnik

$906 45.8%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 12.3% $111

Eating Out

Dubrovnik

$324 16.4%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 34.6% $112

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dubrovnik

$242 12.3%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 23.4% $57

Groceries & Markets

Dubrovnik

$235 11.9%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 50.2% $118

Clothing & Footwear

Dubrovnik

$110 5.6%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 8.8% $9.7

Sport & Entertainment

Dubrovnik

$86 4.4%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 1.5% $1.3

Getting Around

Dubrovnik

$76 3.9%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 14.1% $11

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,442 in Dubrovnik 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 66% higher in Dubrovnik, 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 $77.0 in Dubrovnik versus $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries tell a different story – $235 in Dubrovnik vs $352 in Nosara – so Dubrovnik wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇭🇷 Dubrovnik

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

16:40 4:40 PM

08:40 8:40 AM

8 h behind Dubrovnik

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

41,562

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 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 17, 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

Dubrovnik Nosara 10,360 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Dubrovnik
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

Dubrovnik vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,979 in Dubrovnik, $1,839 in Nosara – roughly 8% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,969 per month in Dubrovnik 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.

Public transport costs about 33% less in Nosara. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $90.6 per month in Dubrovnik 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 Nosara, where all-in costs run around $1,839, than in Dubrovnik at $1,979. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Dubrovnik 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 $1,839 in Nosara to $1,979 in Dubrovnik. 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 Nosara. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Dubrovnik makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.