Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Geel and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,052 in Geel, rent and utilities included – about $2,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

99

Cost of Living Index in Geel
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Geel Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Geel

🇧🇪 Belgium

$2,052

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,052 in Geel versus $1,839 in Nosara.

Geel $2,052
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,931 in Geel versus $2,828 in Nosara.

Geel $2,931
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,810 in Geel versus $3,818 in Nosara.

Geel $3,810
Nosara $3,818

Living in Geel is roughly 12% more expensive than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Geel 52% above, Nosara 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.72 €16.65

$12.35 ₡5,539

51.58%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$75.6 €67.2

$61.2 ₡27.4K

23.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.77 €9.58

$7.52 ₡3,373

43.22%

Cappuccino

$3.84 €3.42

$4.41 ₡1,978

-12.93%

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

$2.62 €2.33

$1.74 ₡780

50.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.05 €2.71

$1.31 ₡587

132.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.43 €3.94

$3.28 ₡1,471

35.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.30 €2.93

$4.47 ₡2,004

-26.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.35 €1.20

$1.56 ₡701

-13.46%

White Bread (500g)

$2.70 €2.40

$3.02 ₡1,355

-10.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.69 €2.39

$2.51 ₡1,125

7.17%

Eggs

$5.17 €4.60

$3.57 ₡1,603

44.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.98 €16.00

$7.43 ₡3,333

141.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.36 €11.88

$10.52 ₡4,717

27.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.62 €19.23

$13.97 ₡6,265

54.76%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.65

$2.35 ₡1,052

26.81%

Banana (1kg)

$2.35 €2.09

$1.61 ₡720

45.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.82 €2.51

$4.80 ₡2,152

-41.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.07 €3.62

$1.61 ₡724

152.80%

Potato (1kg)

$2.47 €2.20

$3.80 ₡1,703

-35.00%

Onion (1kg)

$2.13 €1.90

$3.69 ₡1,657

-42.28%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.13 ₡507

61.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 €0.67

$2.66 ₡1,191

-71.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.24 €11.78

$5.18 ₡2,321

155.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.68 €7.72

$19.88 ₡8,916

-56.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.59 €2.30

$2.90 ₡1,300

-10.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.10 €2.75

$3.63 ₡1,626

-14.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.39 €3.01

$1.12 ₡504

202.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$70.4 €62.6

$72.6 ₡32.6K

-3.15%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.87 €2.55

$2.14 ₡958

34.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.23 €1.98

$1.57 ₡703

42.04%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.84 €35.44

$8.52 ₡3,823

367.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 €1.60

$1.52 ₡682

17.76%

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

$23.9K €21.2K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

10.53%

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

$34.1K €30.3K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-1.24%

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

$169 €151

$96.3 ₡43.2K

75.87%

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

$21.76 €19.36

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-39.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.5 €46.69

$53.6 ₡24.0K

-2.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.54 €35.17

$71.6 ₡32.1K

-44.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$34.91 ₡15.7K

Cinema Ticket

$16.73 €14.88

$7.89 ₡3,539

112.04%

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

$1,615 €1,437

$494 ₡221.6K

226.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.1K €32.1K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

204.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$100 €89.3

$53.9 ₡24.2K

86.04%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.86 €40.79

$55.4 ₡24.8K

-17.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 €98.0

$77.9 ₡34.9K

41.36%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$144 €128

$79.6 ₡35.7K

80.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,037 €923

$788 ₡353.4K

31.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$795 €708

$794 ₡356.2K

0.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,042 €927

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-73.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$950 €845

$1,419 ₡636.5K

-33.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,922 €3,488

$6,912 ₡3.1M

-43.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,388 €3,014

$1,224 ₡549.0K

176.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,410 €2,144

$864 ₡387.3K

179.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

-65.20%

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

Last update for Geel: 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

Geel

$795 38.8%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 0.1% $1.1

Groceries & Markets

Geel

$383 18.7%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 7.9% $30

Eating Out

Geel

$280 13.6%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 24.2% $68

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Geel

$244 11.9%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 23.7% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Geel

$180 8.8%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 33.3% $60

Getting Around

Geel

$98 4.8%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 11% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Geel

$73 3.6%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 19.7% $14

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,037 in Geel and $788 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Geel pays 179% 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: $76.0 in Geel vs $61.0 in Nosara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $383 vs $352 per month, with Nosara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇪 Geel

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

21:29 9:29 PM

13:29 1:29 PM

8 h behind Geel

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

40,781

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

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Between locations

Geel Nosara 9,190 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Geel
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

Geel vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Geel and Nosara differ by about 12% in total monthly costs ($2,052 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 179% higher in Geel, 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: $1,037 in Geel versus $788 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Nosara – a meal for two runs $61.0 versus $76.0 in Geel. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,052 per month in Geel versus $1,839 in Nosara – a 12% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,839 in Nosara versus $2,052 in Geel, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Nosara but tight or insufficient in Geel. 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, Geel 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 12% less than in Geel. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.