Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Geraldton and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,835 a month against $2,500 in Geraldton, rent and utilities included – about $8,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

120

Cost of Living Index in Geraldton
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Geraldton Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Geraldton

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,500

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,835

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,500 per month in Geraldton vs $1,835 in Nosara, rent included.

Geraldton $2,500
Nosara $1,835

A couple spends around $3,591 per month in Geraldton vs $2,825 in Nosara, rent included.

Geraldton $3,591
Nosara $2,825

A family of three spends $4,681 per month in Geraldton vs $3,814 in Nosara, rent included.

Geraldton $4,681
Nosara $3,814

Geraldton costs about 36% more than Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Geraldton and Nosara sit above the global median – Geraldton by 85%, Nosara by 35%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.72 A$25.50

$12.34 ₡5,535

43.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$82.1 A$118

$61.3 ₡27.5K

33.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.29 A$14.81

$7.76 ₡3,481

32.60%

Cappuccino

$3.92 A$5.65

$4.44 ₡1,992

-11.71%

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

$2.83 A$4.07

$1.79 ₡803

58.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.27 A$3.26

$1.29 ₡580

75.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.56 A$10.87

$3.24 ₡1,451

133.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.59 A$10.92

$4.43 ₡1,985

71.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 A$2.25

$1.55 ₡696

0.65%

White Bread (500g)

$2.61 A$3.76

$3.08 ₡1,380

-15.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.30 A$3.31

$2.53 ₡1,133

-9.09%

Eggs

$5.33 A$7.66

$3.45 ₡1,546

54.49%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.47 A$13.62

$7.32 ₡3,284

29.37%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.19 A$13.23

$10.24 ₡4,594

-10.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.39 A$20.70

$14.10 ₡6,326

2.06%

Apples (1kg)

$3.92 A$5.64

$2.29 ₡1,027

71.18%

Banana (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.47

$1.64 ₡737

89.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.32 A$4.77

$4.79 ₡2,149

-30.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.74 A$6.82

$1.64 ₡735

189.02%

Potato (1kg)

$2.71 A$3.90

$3.85 ₡1,727

-29.61%

Onion (1kg)

$2.43 A$3.50

$3.75 ₡1,681

-35.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.39 A$3.44

$1.09 ₡488

119.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.47 A$2.11

$2.59 ₡1,160

-43.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$41.37 A$59.5

$5.12 ₡2,295

708.01%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.04 A$20.21

$19.92 ₡8,931

-29.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.55 A$6.55

$2.80 ₡1,255

62.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.07 A$7.29

$3.52 ₡1,580

44.03%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.90 A$4.17

$1.22 ₡549

137.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$80.8 A$116

$73.9 ₡33.1K

9.36%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.53 A$5.09

$2.17 ₡973

62.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 A$2.24

$1.56 ₡698

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.28 A$56.5

$8.67 ₡3,886

353.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 A$1.93

$1.55 ₡697

-13.55%

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

$27.0K A$38.9K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

-21.79%

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

$30.1K A$43.3K

$38.7K ₡17.4M

-22.30%

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

$199 A$287

$94.8 ₡42.5K

110.15%

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

$28.00 A$40.29

$36.15 ₡16.2K

-22.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$57.2 A$82.3

$53.1 ₡23.8K

7.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.3 A$80.9

$73.8 ₡33.1K

-23.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.55 A$25.25

$35.63 ₡16.0K

-50.74%

Cinema Ticket

$14.49 A$20.85

$7.91 ₡3,548

83.19%

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

$2,108 A$3,033

$490 ₡219.9K

329.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$20.6K A$29.7K

$11.9K ₡5.3M

73.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.3 A$113

$54.8 ₡24.6K

42.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.1 A$77.8

$55.9 ₡25.1K

-3.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 A$156

$80.4 ₡36.0K

35.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 A$178

$77.9 ₡34.9K

58.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,357 A$1,953

$801 ₡359.1K

69.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,203 A$1,732

$790 ₡354.1K

52.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,151 A$3,096

$4,005 ₡1.8M

-46.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,773 A$2,551

$1,409 ₡632.0K

25.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,735 A$8,253

$7,064 ₡3.2M

-18.81%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,836 A$6,959

$1,236 ₡554.3K

291.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$887 ₡397.6K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

8.62

-32.25%

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

Last update for Geraldton: October 18, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Geraldton

$1.2K 48.1%

Nosara

$790 43% 34.4% $414

Groceries & Markets

Geraldton

$366 14.7%

Nosara

$350 19.1% 4.5% $16

Eating Out

Geraldton

$293 11.7%

Nosara

$213 11.6% 27.4% $80

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Geraldton

$284 11.4%

Nosara

$184 10% 35.3% $100

Clothing & Footwear

Geraldton

$164 6.6%

Nosara

$121 6.6% 26.2% $43

Getting Around

Geraldton

$104 4.2%

Nosara

$89 4.8% 14.5% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Geraldton

$85 3.4%

Nosara

$90 4.9% 5.1% $4.4

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,357 in Geraldton versus $801 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 $82.0 in Geraldton versus $61.0 in Nosara. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $366 vs $350 – making Nosara the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Geraldton

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

02:27 2:27 AM

12:27 12:27 PM

14 h behind Geraldton

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

32,717

4,912

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Geraldton Nosara 17,040 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Geraldton
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

Geraldton vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,500 in Geraldton, $1,835 in Nosara – roughly 36% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,750 per month in Geraldton and $2,753 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.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,500 in Geraldton and $1,835 in Nosara. That's a gap of about 36%.

Public transport costs about 9% less in Nosara. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Nosara, where all-in costs run around $1,835, than in Geraldton at $2,500. In Nosara it covers expenses comfortably, while in Geraldton 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 $1,835 in Nosara to $2,500 in Geraldton. 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, Geraldton makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.