Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Folkestone and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $1,957 in Folkestone, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Folkestone outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

95

Cost of Living Index in Folkestone
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Folkestone Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Folkestone

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$1,957

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,957 per month in Folkestone vs $1,839 in Nosara, rent included.

Folkestone $1,957
Nosara $1,839

A couple spends around $3,010 per month in Folkestone vs $2,828 in Nosara, rent included.

Folkestone $3,010
Nosara $2,828

A family of three spends $4,063 per month in Folkestone vs $3,818 in Nosara, rent included.

Folkestone $4,063
Nosara $3,818

Folkestone costs about 6% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Folkestone and Nosara sit above the global median – Folkestone by 45%, Nosara by 36%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.05 £12.79

$12.35 ₡5,539

38.06%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.1 £48.82

$61.2 ₡27.4K

6.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.41 £7.81

$7.52 ₡3,373

38.43%

Cappuccino

$4.75 £3.56

$4.41 ₡1,978

7.71%

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

$2.71 £2.03

$1.74 ₡780

55.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 £1.39

$1.31 ₡587

41.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.06 £5.30

$3.28 ₡1,471

115.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.67 £5.00

$4.47 ₡2,004

49.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 £1.13

$1.56 ₡701

-3.85%

White Bread (500g)

$1.38 £1.04

$3.02 ₡1,355

-54.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.29 £0.97

$2.51 ₡1,125

-48.61%

Eggs

$3.02 £2.27

$3.57 ₡1,603

-15.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.51 £7.13

$7.43 ₡3,333

27.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.88 £5.91

$10.52 ₡4,717

-25.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.72 £11.04

$13.97 ₡6,265

5.37%

Apples (1kg)

$3.26 £2.45

$2.35 ₡1,052

38.72%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 £1.08

$1.61 ₡720

-10.56%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.77 £2.08

$4.80 ₡2,152

-42.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.16 £2.37

$1.61 ₡724

96.27%

Potato (1kg)

$1.68 £1.26

$3.80 ₡1,703

-55.79%

Onion (1kg)

$1.41 £1.06

$3.69 ₡1,657

-61.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.66 £1.24

$1.13 ₡507

46.90%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.43 £1.07

$2.66 ₡1,191

-46.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.43 £17.58

$5.18 ₡2,321

352.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.06 £8.30

$19.88 ₡8,916

-44.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.72 £2.04

$2.90 ₡1,300

-6.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 £2.77

$3.63 ₡1,626

1.65%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.62 £1.96

$1.12 ₡504

133.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$33.05 £24.79

$72.6 ₡32.6K

-54.50%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.34 £1.01

$2.14 ₡958

-37.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.62 £1.21

$1.57 ₡703

3.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$21.08 £15.82

$8.52 ₡3,823

147.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.99 £1.49

$1.52 ₡682

30.92%

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

$37.9K £28.4K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

75.41%

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

$40.2K £30.2K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

16.59%

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

$249 £187

$96.3 ₡43.2K

159.06%

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

$24.71 £18.54

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-31.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.19 £30.90

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-23.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$72.7 £54.5

$71.6 ₡32.1K

1.51%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.58 £7.19

$34.91 ₡15.7K

-72.56%

Cinema Ticket

$21.21 £15.91

$7.89 ₡3,539

168.82%

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

$1,047 £786

$494 ₡221.6K

111.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$20.1K £15.1K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

69.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.7 £51.5

$53.9 ₡24.2K

27.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.08 £23.32

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-43.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.8 £59.1

$77.9 ₡34.9K

1.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$50.4 £37.79

$79.6 ₡35.7K

-36.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,142 £857

$788 ₡353.4K

44.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$794 £596

$794 ₡356.2K

-0.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,491 £1,119

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-62.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,582 £1,187

$1,419 ₡636.5K

11.49%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,437 £2,578

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-50.27%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,398 £2,549

$1,224 ₡549.0K

177.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$864 ₡387.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.91

8.62

-43.04%

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

Last update for Folkestone: October 10, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Folkestone

$794 40.6%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 0% $0.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Folkestone

$315 16.1%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 41.1% $130

Eating Out

Folkestone

$291 14.9%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 27.3% $80

Groceries & Markets

Folkestone

$285 14.6%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 23.7% $68

Sport & Entertainment

Folkestone

$115 5.9%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 24.1% $28

Clothing & Footwear

Folkestone

$103 5.3%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 16.6% $17

Getting Around

Folkestone

$53 2.7%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 64.5% $34

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,142 in Folkestone 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $65.0 in Folkestone versus $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries tell a different story – $285 in Folkestone vs $352 in Nosara – so Folkestone wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Folkestone

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

15:54 3:54 PM

08:54 8:54 AM

7 h behind Folkestone

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

45,273

4,912

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Folkestone Nosara 8,930 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Folkestone
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

Folkestone vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,957 in Folkestone, $1,839 in Nosara – roughly 6% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,935 per month in Folkestone 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $65.0 in Folkestone and $61.0 in Nosara. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,957 in Folkestone and $1,839 in Nosara. That's a gap of about 6%.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Nosara, where all-in costs run around $1,839, than in Folkestone at $1,957. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Folkestone 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 $1,957 in Folkestone. 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, Folkestone makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.