Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between El Jadida and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in El Jadida: $621 a month against $1,839 in Nosara, rent and utilities included – about $14,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

30

Cost of Living Index in El Jadida
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El Jadida Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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El Jadida

🇲🇦 Morocco

$621

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $621 in El Jadida versus $1,839 in Nosara.

El Jadida $621
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $935 in El Jadida versus $2,828 in Nosara.

El Jadida $935
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,250 in El Jadida versus $3,818 in Nosara.

El Jadida $1,250
Nosara $3,818

Living in El Jadida costs roughly 66% less than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: El Jadida is 54% below, Nosara is 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.83 MAD 27.58

$12.35 ₡5,539

-77.09%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$20.87 MAD 203

$61.2 ₡27.4K

-65.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.08 MAD 59.3

$7.52 ₡3,373

-19.15%

Cappuccino

$1.52 MAD 14.80

$4.41 ₡1,978

-65.53%

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

$0.42 MAD 4.13

$1.74 ₡780

-75.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.28 MAD 2.72

$1.31 ₡587

-78.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.65 MAD 25.80

$3.28 ₡1,471

-19.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.60 MAD 25.32

$4.47 ₡2,004

-41.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.93 MAD 9.04

$1.56 ₡701

-40.38%

White Bread (500g)

$0.38 MAD 3.67

$3.02 ₡1,355

-87.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.98 MAD 19.33

$2.51 ₡1,125

-21.12%

Eggs

$1.84 MAD 17.94

$3.57 ₡1,603

-48.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.33 MAD 61.7

$7.43 ₡3,333

-14.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.89 MAD 37.95

$10.52 ₡4,717

-63.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.61 MAD 74.2

$13.97 ₡6,265

-45.53%

Apples (1kg)

$1.57 MAD 15.34

$2.35 ₡1,052

-33.19%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 MAD 13.70

$1.61 ₡720

-12.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.65 MAD 6.31

$4.80 ₡2,152

-86.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.70 MAD 6.80

$1.61 ₡724

-56.52%

Potato (1kg)

$0.72 MAD 7.06

$3.80 ₡1,703

-81.05%

Onion (1kg)

$0.51 MAD 4.97

$3.69 ₡1,657

-86.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.30 MAD 2.90

$1.13 ₡507

-73.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 MAD 5.09

$2.66 ₡1,191

-80.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.96 MAD 38.64

$5.18 ₡2,321

-23.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.18 MAD 40.77

$19.88 ₡8,916

-78.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.51 MAD 24.46

$2.90 ₡1,300

-13.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.95 MAD 28.78

$3.63 ₡1,626

-18.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.48 MAD 4.68

$1.12 ₡504

-57.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.82 MAD 164

$72.6 ₡32.6K

-76.84%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.02 MAD 9.94

$2.14 ₡958

-52.34%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.01 MAD 9.80

$1.57 ₡703

-35.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.26 MAD 51.3

$8.52 ₡3,823

-38.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MAD 14.33

$1.52 ₡682

-3.29%

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

$34.4K MAD 335.2K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

59.11%

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

$31.0K MAD 302.3K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-10.18%

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

$29.18 MAD 285

$96.3 ₡43.2K

-69.70%

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

$10.38 MAD 101

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-71.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.70 MAD 299

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-42.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.75 MAD 280

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-59.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.84 MAD 115

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-66.08%

Cinema Ticket

$6.34 MAD 61.8

$7.89 ₡3,539

-19.65%

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

$114 MAD 1,112

$494 ₡221.6K

-76.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,165 MAD 30.9K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-73.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.58 MAD 269

$53.9 ₡24.2K

-48.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.84 MAD 359

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-33.51%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$65.3 MAD 637

$77.9 ₡34.9K

-16.20%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$69.5 MAD 677

$79.6 ₡35.7K

-12.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$210 MAD 2,050

$788 ₡353.4K

-73.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$165 MAD 1,606

$794 ₡356.2K

-79.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$359 MAD 3,498

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-90.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$229 MAD 2,230

$1,419 ₡636.5K

-83.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,533 MAD 14.9K

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-77.83%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$782 MAD 7,628

$1,224 ₡549.0K

-36.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$470 MAD 4,581

$864 ₡387.3K

-45.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.5

8.62

-36.19%

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

Last update for El Jadida: 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

El Jadida

$165 26.6%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 382% $630

Groceries & Markets

El Jadida

$149 24.1%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 136% $203

Clothing & Footwear

El Jadida

$90 14.4%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 34% $30

Eating Out

El Jadida

$80 12.9%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 164% $132

Monthly Utilities & Internet

El Jadida

$70 11.3%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 164% $115

Sport & Entertainment

El Jadida

$41 6.7%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 111% $46

Getting Around

El Jadida

$25 4%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 251% $62

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $210 in El Jadida and $788 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nosara pays 84% 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: $21.00 in El Jadida vs $61.0 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $149 vs $352 per month, with El Jadida cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇦 El Jadida

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

17:30 5:30 PM

10:30 10:30 AM

7 h behind El Jadida

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

237,464

4,912

💱 Currency

Moroccan Dirham MAD د.م.

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

100 MAD = 10.26 USD

100 MAD = 9.12 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to MAD – Moroccan Dirham Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇦 Moroccan Dirham (د.م.)

Moroccan Dirham exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 9.75 MAD (1 MAD = 0.103 USD). 1 EUR = 10.96 MAD (100 MAD = 9.12 EUR).

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 MAD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

El Jadida Nosara 8,210 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

El Jadida
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

El Jadida vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

El Jadida wins on cost – living expenses run 196% lower than in Nosara. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making El Jadida the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 84% 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: $210 in El Jadida versus $788 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 136% higher in Nosara. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in El Jadida – a meal for two runs $21.00 versus $61.0 in Nosara. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $621 in El Jadida versus $1,839 in Nosara, a $1,000 budget is realistic in El Jadida but tight or insufficient in Nosara. The gap between the two cities makes El Jadida the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but El Jadida delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $621 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes El Jadida hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, El Jadida 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 El Jadida gentler on the wallet – expenses run 196% less than in Nosara. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.