Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Enschede and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,364 in Enschede, rent and utilities included – about $6,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

115

Cost of Living Index in Enschede
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Enschede Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Enschede

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$2,364

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,364 in Enschede versus $1,839 in Nosara.

Enschede $2,364
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,646 in Enschede versus $2,828 in Nosara.

Enschede $3,646
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,928 in Enschede versus $3,818 in Nosara.

Enschede $4,928
Nosara $3,818

Living in Enschede is roughly 29% more expensive than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Enschede 75% above, Nosara 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.27 €18.92

$12.35 ₡5,539

72.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$78.9 €70.2

$61.2 ₡27.4K

28.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.43 €13.72

$7.52 ₡3,373

105.19%

Cappuccino

$4.18 €3.72

$4.41 ₡1,978

-5.22%

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

$3.57 €3.17

$1.74 ₡780

105.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.95 €2.62

$1.31 ₡587

125.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.31 €5.61

$3.28 ₡1,471

92.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.37 €5.67

$4.47 ₡2,004

42.51%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 €1.17

$1.56 ₡701

-15.38%

White Bread (500g)

$2.41 €2.14

$3.02 ₡1,355

-20.20%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.72 €2.42

$2.51 ₡1,125

8.37%

Eggs

$4.39 €3.90

$3.57 ₡1,603

22.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.85 €12.32

$7.43 ₡3,333

86.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.23 €12.66

$10.52 ₡4,717

35.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.06 €13.40

$13.97 ₡6,265

7.80%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 €2.45

$2.35 ₡1,052

17.02%

Banana (1kg)

$2.16 €1.93

$1.61 ₡720

34.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$4.80 ₡2,152

-54.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.92 €4.38

$1.61 ₡724

205.59%

Potato (1kg)

$2.95 €2.63

$3.80 ₡1,703

-22.37%

Onion (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$3.69 ₡1,657

-43.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.24 €1.11

$1.13 ₡507

9.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.71 €0.63

$2.66 ₡1,191

-73.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.10 €12.55

$5.18 ₡2,321

172.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.87 €6.11

$19.88 ₡8,916

-65.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.49 €1.32

$2.90 ₡1,300

-48.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 €2.53

$3.63 ₡1,626

-21.49%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.98 €2.65

$1.12 ₡504

166.07%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$110 €98.0

$72.6 ₡32.6K

51.71%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.59 €3.19

$2.14 ₡958

67.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.64 €2.35

$1.57 ₡703

68.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.66 €24.60

$8.52 ₡3,823

224.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.49 €2.21

$1.52 ₡682

63.82%

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

$40.9K €36.4K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

89.24%

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

$39.8K €35.4K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

15.16%

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

$259 €231

$96.3 ₡43.2K

169.32%

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

$21.39 €19.03

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-40.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$44.28 €39.39

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-17.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.23 €29.56

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-53.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.80 €21.17

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-31.82%

Cinema Ticket

$18.94 €16.84

$7.89 ₡3,539

140.05%

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

$1,232 €1,096

$494 ₡221.6K

149.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,059 €7,168

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-32.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$94.0 €83.6

$53.9 ₡24.2K

74.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.43 €33.30

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-32.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$91.4 €81.3

$77.9 ₡34.9K

17.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$100 €89.2

$79.6 ₡35.7K

25.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,310 €1,165

$788 ₡353.4K

66.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,010 €898

$794 ₡356.2K

27.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,479 €2,205

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-37.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,941 €1,727

$1,419 ₡636.5K

36.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,543 €4,041

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-34.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,149 €2,801

$1,224 ₡549.0K

157.23%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,838 €2,524

$864 ₡387.3K

228.64%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.6

8.62

-46.64%

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

Last update for Enschede: October 13, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Enschede

$1K 42.7%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 21.3% $215

Groceries & Markets

Enschede

$337 14.3%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 4.5% $15

Eating Out

Enschede

$337 14.3%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 37.1% $125

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Enschede

$325 13.8%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 42.8% $139

Clothing & Footwear

Enschede

$145 6.2%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 17.4% $25

Getting Around

Enschede

$139 5.9%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 37.3% $52

Sport & Entertainment

Enschede

$71 3%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 22.9% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,310 in Enschede and $788 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Enschede pays 229% 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: $79.0 in Enschede vs $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries flip the comparison at $337 vs $352, with Enschede cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇳🇱 Enschede

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

06:44 6:44 AM

22:44 10:44 PM

8 h behind Enschede

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

161,235

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 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

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 EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Enschede Nosara 9,300 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Enschede
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

Enschede vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Enschede and Nosara differ by about 29% in total monthly costs ($2,364 vs $1,839 including rent). Nosara is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 229% higher in Enschede, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,310 in Enschede versus $788 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,364 per month in Enschede versus $1,839 in Nosara – a 29% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Nosara runs roughly 52% less than in Enschede. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,839 in Nosara versus $2,364 in Enschede, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Nosara but tight or insufficient in Enschede. 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, Enschede 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 29% less than in Enschede. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.