Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Fort William and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,446 in Fort William, rent and utilities included – about $7,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

118

Cost of Living Index in Fort William
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Fort William Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Fort William

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,446

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,446 in Fort William versus $1,839 in Nosara.

Fort William $2,446
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,571 in Fort William versus $2,828 in Nosara.

Fort William $3,571
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,696 in Fort William versus $3,818 in Nosara.

Fort William $4,696
Nosara $3,818

Living in Fort William is roughly 33% more expensive than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Fort William 81% above, Nosara 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.99 £15.00

$12.35 ₡5,539

61.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$95.5 £71.7

$61.2 ₡27.4K

56.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.72 £8.04

$7.52 ₡3,373

42.55%

Cappuccino

$4.57 £3.43

$4.41 ₡1,978

3.63%

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

$2.82 £2.12

$1.74 ₡780

62.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 £1.58

$1.31 ₡587

61.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.99 £5.25

$3.28 ₡1,471

113.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.38 £5.53

$4.47 ₡2,004

65.10%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.42 £1.07

$1.56 ₡701

-8.97%

White Bread (500g)

$1.72 £1.29

$3.02 ₡1,355

-43.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.01 £1.51

$2.51 ₡1,125

-19.92%

Eggs

$3.54 £2.66

$3.57 ₡1,603

-0.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.50 £6.37

$7.43 ₡3,333

14.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.74 £8.06

$10.52 ₡4,717

2.09%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.78 £11.84

$13.97 ₡6,265

12.96%

Apples (1kg)

$2.82 £2.11

$2.35 ₡1,052

20.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.29 £0.97

$1.61 ₡720

-19.88%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.96 £1.47

$4.80 ₡2,152

-59.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.81 £2.86

$1.61 ₡724

136.65%

Potato (1kg)

$1.09 £0.82

$3.80 ₡1,703

-71.32%

Onion (1kg)

$1.29 £0.97

$3.69 ₡1,657

-65.04%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.20 £0.90

$1.13 ₡507

6.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 £1.25

$2.66 ₡1,191

-37.59%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.41 £16.81

$5.18 ₡2,321

332.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.19 £8.39

$19.88 ₡8,916

-43.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.79 £2.09

$2.90 ₡1,300

-3.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.06 £2.30

$3.63 ₡1,626

-15.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.52 £2.64

$1.12 ₡504

214.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$97.5 £73.1

$72.6 ₡32.6K

34.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.00 £3.00

$2.14 ₡958

86.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.36 £1.77

$1.57 ₡703

50.32%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.90 £17.93

$8.52 ₡3,823

180.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.99 £1.50

$1.52 ₡682

30.92%

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

$39.0K £29.2K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

80.32%

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

$40.1K £30.1K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

16.16%

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

$386 £289

$96.3 ₡43.2K

300.69%

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

$27.12 £20.34

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-24.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.28 £31.72

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-21.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.49 £34.12

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-36.46%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$11.15 £8.37

$7.89 ₡3,539

41.32%

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

$1,729 £1,297

$494 ₡221.6K

249.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.5K £16.9K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

89.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$94.6 £71.0

$53.9 ₡24.2K

75.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.49 £36.38

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-12.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 £76.9

$77.9 ₡34.9K

31.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$114 £85.8

$79.6 ₡35.7K

43.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,213 £910

$788 ₡353.4K

53.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,015 £762

$794 ₡356.2K

27.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,093 £1,570

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-46.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,649 £1,237

$1,419 ₡636.5K

16.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,043 £3,784

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-27.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,935 £2,952

$1,224 ₡549.0K

221.42%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,003 £1,503

$864 ₡387.3K

131.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.11

8.62

-40.72%

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

Last update for Fort William: 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

Fort William

$1K 41.5%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 21.8% $221

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Fort William

$455 18.6%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 59.2% $269

Eating Out

Fort William

$316 12.9%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 33.1% $105

Groceries & Markets

Fort William

$302 12.3%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 16.7% $50

Clothing & Footwear

Fort William

$162 6.6%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 25.9% $42

Getting Around

Fort William

$127 5.2%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 31.6% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Fort William

$68 2.8%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 28.9% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,213 in Fort William and $788 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Fort William pays 132% 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: $96.0 in Fort William vs $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries flip the comparison at $302 vs $352, with Fort William cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Fort William

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

19:16 7:16 PM

12:16 12:16 PM

7 h behind Fort William

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

10,000

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 19, 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 19, 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

Fort William Nosara 8,510 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Fort William
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

Fort William vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nosara is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and transport. The 33% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 132% higher in Fort William, 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: $1,213 in Fort William versus $788 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Fort William pay roughly 17% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Dining out is cheaper in Nosara – a meal for two runs $61.0 versus $96.0 in Fort William. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,839 in Nosara versus $2,446 in Fort William, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Nosara but tight or insufficient in Fort William. The gap between the two cities makes Nosara the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Nosara is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Fort William, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Fort William 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 33% less than in Fort William. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.